Food and drink · Small-town market · North Carolina
Restaurants and cafes in the Washington, NC area
How the Washington, NC 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 50 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #259 of 538 scored small-town markets
#13 of 23 scored small-town markets based in North Carolina
- Listings
- 171
- 52 chain locations (30%)
- Official establishments
- 77
- −3.7% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $64M
- On food away from home · $3,300 a household
- Spending per listing
- $374K
- In line with the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 88.2
- 20% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 44,670
- 0.0% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Washington 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 Washington 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 Washington area comes to about $64M a year: $3,300 per household, 19% below the U.S. average. That is about $374K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, in line with the U.S. figure of $371K.
There are 171 restaurants and cafes on map listings in the Washington area as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 30% of them, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 88.2, 20% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Washington area was 77 in 2023, down 3.7% from 2019. That is one for every 252 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Another 15 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $1.5M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Washington area.
Population estimates put the population change in the Washington area from 2020 to 2025 at 0.0%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes in the Washington area is 50 (upper middle), #259 of 538 scored small-town markets and #13 of 23 scored small-town markets based in North Carolina.
How the Washington 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 | Washington area | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 88.2 | 97.5 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $374K | $387K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 252 | 221 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −3.7% | +8.5% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | 0.0% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,300 | $3,776 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $58,357 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 50 | 58 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 77−3.7% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,366
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $24.9M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 15Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 17152 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 173The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 4
- Amount
- $1.5M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Washington 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 Washington area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 44,6700.0% since 2020
- Households
- 19,385
- Median age
- 46.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 70%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 833 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 53
- Median household income
- $58,357+29.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $78,141
- Median home value
- $192,700
- Jobs located here
- 16,163
- Daytime population
- 41,743Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Washington 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 Washington 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 Washington 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 |
| 13Washington, NC | 50 | 171 | 88.2 | $374K | 0.0% | #259 of 538 |
Other business types in the Washington area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes50
- Sit-down restaurants47
- Fast food and sandwich shops55
- Pizza49
- Coffee shops and cafes52
- Bakeries and dessert shops56
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 Washington, NC area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 171 restaurants and cafes in the Washington area. 52 of them (30%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 77 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, down 3.7% from 2019. Official counts list 15 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Washington, NC area spend on food away from home?
About $64M a year, or $3,300 per household. That is 19% below the U.S. average (an index of 81, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 171 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $374K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 19,385 households in the Washington area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Washington, NC area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Washington area has 88.2 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 20% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $374K, in line with the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Washington area would have about 173, against 171 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 252 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count fell 3.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Washington, NC area growing?
Population estimates put the Washington area at 44,670 people in 2025, unchanged since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 19,385 households. Median household income in the Washington area is $58,357, 28% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 29.1%, 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 Washington area scores 50 for restaurants and cafes (upper middle), #259 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 Washington 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 Washington area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Washington 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 Washington 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.