Food and drink · Small-town market · North Carolina
Restaurants and cafes in the North Wilkesboro, NC area
The restaurants and cafes in the North Wilkesboro, NC area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 62 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #147 of 538 scored small-town markets
#4 of 23 scored small-town markets based in North Carolina
- Listings
- 191
- 86 chain locations (45%)
- Official establishments
- 87
- +1.2% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $81.5M
- On food away from home · $3,005 a household
- Spending per listing
- $427K
- 15% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 70.5
- 36% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 66,233
- +0.6% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the North Wilkesboro 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 North Wilkesboro 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
At $3,005 per household (26% below the U.S. average), households in the North Wilkesboro area spend about $81.5M a year on food away from home. Spread across 191 restaurants and cafes, that is $427K per restaurant, 15% above the U.S. figure of $371K.
The North Wilkesboro area has 191 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 86 of them (45%) are chain locations, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 70.5, 36% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.
Official counts show 87 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in the North Wilkesboro area in 2023, up 1.2% from 2019. That is one for every 312 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Another 19 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
Population estimates show the North Wilkesboro area grew 0.6% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). For restaurants and cafes, the North Wilkesboro area has a Groundwork market score of 62 (upper middle): #147 of 538 scored small-town markets and #4 of 23 scored small-town markets based in North Carolina.
How the North Wilkesboro area compares
The same measures for North Carolina 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 | North Wilkesboro area | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 70.5 | 97.5 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $427K | $387K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 312 | 221 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +1.2% | +8.5% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +0.6% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,005 | $3,776 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $51,721 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 62 | 58 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 87+1.2% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,703
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $28.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 19Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 19186 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 220The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the North Wilkesboro 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 North Wilkesboro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 66,233+0.6% since 2020
- Households
- 27,107
- Median age
- 45.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 74%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 754 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 87
- Median household income
- $51,721+17.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $66,361
- Median home value
- $168,800
- Jobs located here
- 19,607
- Daytime population
- 59,600Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the North Wilkesboro 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 North Wilkesboro 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 North Carolina
Every North Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in North Carolina for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in North Carolina, with the North Wilkesboro area marked.
Top small-town markets in North Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Anderson Creek, NC | 90 | 313 | 62.8 | $572K | +12.3% | #4 of 538 |
| 2Shelby-Kings Mountain, NC | 63 | 309 | 79.5 | $412K | +3.4% | #140 of 538 |
| 3New Bern, NC | 63 | 460 | 87.7 | $388K | +3.6% | #142 of 538 |
| 4North Wilkesboro, NC | 62 | 191 | 70.5 | $427K | +0.6% | #147 of 538 |
| 5Sanford, NC | 56 | 230 | 91.5 | $373K | +10.8% | #202 of 538 |
| 6Laurinburg, NC | 55 | 83 | 66.0 | $448K | −0.3% | #208 of 538 |
| 7Marion, NC | 55 | 153 | 82.1 | $390K | +1.5% | #211 of 538 |
| 8Albemarle, NC | 55 | 236 | 93.5 | $361K | +9.8% | #216 of 538 |
| 9Forest City, NC | 55 | 232 | 87.1 | $355K | +2.1% | #217 of 538 |
| 10Wilson, NC | 54 | 277 | 83.8 | $385K | +1.7% | #220 of 538 |
Other business types in the North Wilkesboro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes62
- Sit-down restaurants56
- Fast food and sandwich shops51
- Pizza52
- Coffee shops and cafes61
- Bakeries and dessert shops64
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 North Wilkesboro, NC area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 191 restaurants and cafes in the North Wilkesboro area. 86 of them (45%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 87 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 1.2% from 2019. Official counts list 19 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the North Wilkesboro, NC area spend on food away from home?
About $81.5M a year, or $3,005 per household. That is 26% below the U.S. average (an index of 74, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 191 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $427K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 27,107 households in the North Wilkesboro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the North Wilkesboro, NC area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The North Wilkesboro area has 70.5 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 36% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $427K, 15% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the North Wilkesboro area would have about 220, against 191 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 312 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 1.2% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the North Wilkesboro, NC area growing?
Population estimates put the North Wilkesboro area at 66,233 people in 2025, up 0.6% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 27,107 households. Median household income in the North Wilkesboro area is $51,721, 36% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 17.3%, 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 North Wilkesboro area scores 62 for restaurants and cafes (upper middle), #147 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 North Wilkesboro 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 North Wilkesboro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the North Wilkesboro 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 North Wilkesboro 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.