Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Montana

Restaurants and cafes in Cascade County, MT

How Cascade County, MT compares with other counties and the U.S. for restaurants and cafes: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 40 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,615 of 2,405 scored counties
#10 of 21 scored counties in Montana

Listings
357
134 chain locations (38%)
Official establishments
158
−4.8% since 2019
Household spending a year
$127.1M
On food away from home · $3,567 a household
Spending per listing
$356K
4% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
100.2
9% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
85,029
+0.7% since 2020

See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Cascade County

The site report maps the restaurants and cafes on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of Cascade County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

Map listings as of September 2026 show 357 restaurants and cafes in Cascade County. Of those, 134 are chain locations, or 38%, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 100.2, 9% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.

Household spending on food away from home in Cascade County comes to about $127.1M a year: $3,567 per household, 12% below the U.S. average. That is about $356K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 4% below the U.S. figure of $371K.

In 2023, official counts showed 158 businesses with payroll in Cascade County classed as restaurants and other eating places, down 4.8% from 2019. That is one for every 225 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Official counts also show 21 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $450K have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Cascade County.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Cascade County grew 0.7%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). For restaurants and cafes, Cascade County has a Groundwork market score of 40 (lower middle): #1,615 of 2,405 scored counties and #10 of 21 scored counties in Montana.

How Cascade County compares

The same measures for Montana and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all food away from home by the restaurants and cafes counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Restaurants and cafes in Cascade County, MT compared with Montana and the U.S.
MeasureCascade CountyMontanaU.S.
Listings per 10k households100.2114.0109.8
Spending per listing$356K$329K$371K
Households per official establishment225200209
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−4.8%+6.2%+6.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025+0.7%+5.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,567$3,748$4,070
Median household income$67,690$72,509$80,734
Groundwork market score4030

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
166 → 158−4.8% over the period
Employees, 2023
3,080
Annual payroll, 2023
$65.6M
One-person businesses, 2023
21Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
357134 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
343The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
2
Amount
$450K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Cascade County, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.

Population and households in Cascade County

Population, 2025 estimate
85,029+0.7% since 2020
Households
35,615
Median age
40.1
Homes lived in by their owners
69%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
2,698 sq. mi.
People per square mile
31
Median household income
$67,690+35.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$89,832
Median home value
$265,300
Jobs located here
35,854
Daytime population
84,523Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Cascade County?

These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the restaurants and cafes on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of Cascade County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Restaurants and cafes across Montana

Every Montana market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Montana for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Montana, with Cascade County marked.

Top counties in Montana

Counties in Montana ranked for restaurants and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Jefferson County, MT853570.1$623K+9.8%#62 of 2,405
2Ravalli County, MT6617493.2$390K+9.4%#527 of 2,405
3Lewis and Clark County, MT6229393.9$418K+5.8%#688 of 2,405
4Yellowstone County, MT5468598.0$397K+4.5%#1,019 of 2,405
5Big Horn County, MT522770.6$444K−2.5%#1,086 of 2,405
6Missoula County, MT51552104.8$366K+4.4%#1,157 of 2,405
7Gallatin County, MT43731142.7$306K+7.7%#1,513 of 2,405
8Sanders County, MT4259108.2$297K+12.9%#1,556 of 2,405
9Flathead County, MT41536121.2$313K+10.1%#1,590 of 2,405
10Cascade County, MT40357100.2$356K+0.7%#1,615 of 2,405

Other business types in Cascade County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many restaurants and cafes are in Cascade County, MT?

There are 357 restaurants and cafes on map listings in Cascade County as of September 2026. 134 of them (38%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 158 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, down 4.8% from 2019. Another 21 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in Cascade County, MT spend on food away from home?

About $127.1M a year, or $3,567 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 357 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $356K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 35,615 households in Cascade County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Cascade County, MT compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?

Cascade County has 100.2 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 9% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $356K, 4% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Cascade County would have about 343, against 357 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 225 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count fell 4.8% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.

How fast is Cascade County, MT growing?

Population estimates put Cascade County at 85,029 people in 2025, up 0.7% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 35,615 households. The median household income in Cascade County is $67,690 a year, 16% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 35.6% from the 2015–2019 survey, before inflation.

What is the Groundwork market score?

The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. Cascade County scores 40 for restaurants and cafes (lower middle), #1,615 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Cascade County. It maps the restaurants and cafes on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.

How the score works · Top markets for restaurants and cafes · All 56 business types in Cascade County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Cascade County?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

The button opens the report at the center of Cascade County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.