Food and drink · County · New Hampshire
Restaurants and cafes in Belknap County, NH
How Belknap County, NH 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 41 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,579 of 2,405 scored counties
#7 of 10 scored counties in New Hampshire
- Listings
- 329
- 83 chain locations (25%)
- Official establishments
- 168
- 0.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $111.9M
- On food away from home · $4,248 a household
- Spending per listing
- $340K
- 8% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 124.9
- 14% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 65,147
- +2.1% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Belknap 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 Belknap County. 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
Map listings as of September 2026 show 329 restaurants and cafes in Belknap County. Chain locations make up 25% of them, against 34% across the U.S. That is 124.9 per 10,000 households, 14% above the U.S. rate of 109.8.
Households in Belknap County spend about $111.9M a year on food away from home, or $4,248 per household, 4% above the U.S. average. That works out to $340K per restaurant, 8% below the U.S. figure of $371K.
In 2023, official counts showed 168 businesses with payroll in Belknap County classed as restaurants and other eating places, unchanged from 2019. That is one for every 157 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Official counts list 17 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 14 SBA-backed loans worth $9.6M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Belknap County.
Population estimates put the population change in Belknap County from 2020 to 2025 at +2.1%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). Belknap County scores 41 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes, ranking #1,579 of 2,405 scored counties and #7 of 10 scored counties in New Hampshire.
How Belknap County compares
The same measures for New Hampshire 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 | Belknap County | New Hampshire | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 124.9 | 108.9 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $340K | $413K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 157 | 186 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | 0.0% | +3.0% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.1% | +2.7% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,248 | $4,493 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $92,783 | $99,031 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 41 | 60 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 168 → 1680.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 2,521
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $73.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 17Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 32983 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 302The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 14
- Amount
- $9.6M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Belknap 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 Belknap County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 65,147+2.1% since 2020
- Households
- 26,337
- Median age
- 48.0
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 80%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 402 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 161
- Median household income
- $92,783+33.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $116,878
- Median home value
- $374,900
- Jobs located here
- 26,593
- Daytime population
- 60,550Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Belknap 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 Belknap County. 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 New Hampshire
Every New Hampshire market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in New Hampshire for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in New Hampshire, with Belknap County marked.
Top counties in New Hampshire
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Sullivan County, NH | 74 | 133 | 80.0 | $493K | +2.1% | #270 of 2,405 |
| 2Strafford County, NH | 65 | 463 | 88.9 | $482K | +3.0% | #557 of 2,405 |
| 3Merrimack County, NH | 64 | 538 | 88.3 | $494K | +2.6% | #596 of 2,405 |
| 4Hillsborough County, NH | 64 | 1,597 | 94.6 | $489K | +2.5% | #597 of 2,405 |
| 5Cheshire County, NH | 58 | 310 | 101.2 | $397K | +2.3% | #845 of 2,405 |
| 6Rockingham County, NH | 53 | 1,598 | 125.3 | $396K | +3.0% | #1,057 of 2,405 |
| 7Belknap County, NH | 41 | 329 | 124.9 | $340K | +2.1% | #1,579 of 2,405 |
| 8Carroll County, NH | 35 | 376 | 172.1 | $240K | +5.0% | #1,850 of 2,405 |
| 9Grafton County, NH | 34 | 549 | 148.0 | $286K | +2.2% | #1,888 of 2,405 |
| 10Coos County, NH | 29 | 158 | 112.8 | $294K | +0.4% | #2,074 of 2,405 |
Other business types in Belknap County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes41
- Sit-down restaurants45
- Fast food and sandwich shops53
- Pizza63
- Coffee shops and cafes38
- Bakeries and dessert shops36
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 Belknap County, NH?
There are 329 restaurants and cafes on map listings in Belknap County as of September 2026. 83 of them (25%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 168 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, unchanged from 2019. Official counts also show 17 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Belknap County, NH spend on food away from home?
About $111.9M a year, or $4,248 per household. That is 4% above the U.S. average (an index of 104, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 329 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $340K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 26,337 households in Belknap County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Belknap County, NH compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
Belknap County has 124.9 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 14% above the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $340K, 8% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Belknap County would have about 302, against 329 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 157 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count held level from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is Belknap County, NH growing?
Population estimates put Belknap County at 65,147 people in 2025, up 2.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 26,337 households. The median household income in Belknap County is $92,783 a year, 15% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 33.6% 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. Belknap County scores 41 for restaurants and cafes (lower middle), #1,579 of 2,405 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Belknap 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 Belknap County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Belknap 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 Belknap 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.