Food and drink · Small-town market · Nevada
Restaurants and cafes in the Elko, NV area
How the Elko, NV area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for restaurants and cafes: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 55 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #218 of 538 scored small-town markets
#3 of 5 scored small-town markets based in Nevada
- Listings
- 234
- 86 chain locations (37%)
- Official establishments
- 90
- +7.1% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $80.1M
- On food away from home · $3,956 a household
- Spending per listing
- $342K
- 8% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 115.6
- 5% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 56,682
- +2.1% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Elko area
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 the Elko area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
Household spending on food away from home in the Elko area comes to about $80.1M a year: $3,956 per household, 3% below the U.S. average. That is about $342K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 8% below the U.S. figure of $371K.
The Elko area has 234 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 86 of them (37%) are chain locations, against 34% across the U.S. That comes to 115.6 for every 10,000 households, 5% above the U.S. rate of 109.8.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Elko area was 90 in 2023, up 7.1% from 2019. That is one for every 225 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Official counts list 18 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $765K has gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Elko area.
Population estimates show the Elko area grew 2.1% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes in the Elko area is 55 (upper middle), #218 of 538 scored small-town markets and #3 of 5 scored small-town markets based in Nevada.
How the Elko area compares
The same measures for Nevada 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.
| Measure | Elko area | Nevada | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 115.6 | 130.3 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $342K | $302K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 225 | 194 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +7.1% | +15.2% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.1% | +5.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,956 | $3,930 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $85,882 | $78,260 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 55 | 32 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 90+7.1% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,280
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $32.3M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 18Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 23486 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 216The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $765K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Elko area, 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 the Elko area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 56,682+2.1% since 2020
- Households
- 20,249
- Median age
- 36.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 72%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 21,349 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 3
- Median household income
- $85,882+6.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $100,957
- Median home value
- $297,500
- Jobs located here
- 26,741
- Daytime population
- 56,947Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Elko area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 the Elko area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardRestaurants and cafes across Nevada
Every Nevada market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Nevada for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Nevada, with the Elko area marked.
Top small-town markets in Nevada
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Pahrump, NV | 78 | 193 | 87.0 | $395K | +10.3% | #39 of 538 |
| 2Fallon, NV | 62 | 91 | 95.6 | $396K | +1.1% | #152 of 538 |
| 3Elko, NV | 55 | 234 | 115.6 | $342K | +2.1% | #218 of 538 |
| 4Gardnerville Ranchos, NV-CA | 53 | 267 | 122.7 | $351K | +0.9% | #236 of 538 |
| 5Winnemucca, NV | 39 | 81 | 117.2 | $322K | 0.0% | #384 of 538 |
Other business types in the Elko area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes55
- Sit-down restaurants68
- Fast food and sandwich shops43
- Pizza69
- Coffee shops and cafes47
- Bakeries and dessert shops61
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many restaurants and cafes are in the Elko, NV area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 234 restaurants and cafes in the Elko area. 86 of them (37%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 90 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 7.1% from 2019. Official counts also show 18 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Elko, NV area spend on food away from home?
About $80.1M a year, or $3,956 per household. That is 3% below the U.S. average (an index of 97, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 234 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $342K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 20,249 households in the Elko area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Elko, NV area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Elko area has 115.6 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 5% above the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $342K, 8% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Elko area would have about 216, against 234 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 rose 7.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Elko, NV area growing?
Population estimates put the Elko area at 56,682 people in 2025, up 2.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 20,249 households. Median household income in the Elko area is $85,882, 6% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 6.4%, 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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. The Elko area scores 55 for restaurants and cafes (upper middle), #218 of 538 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Elko area. 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 the Elko area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Elko area?
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 the Elko area. 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.