Food and drink · County · Ohio
Restaurants and cafes in Portage County, OH
How Portage County, OH 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 62 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #673 of 2,405 scored counties
#35 of 88 scored counties in Ohio
- Listings
- 540
- 230 chain locations (43%)
- Official establishments
- 259
- +9.3% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $252.8M
- On food away from home · $3,874 a household
- Spending per listing
- $468K
- 26% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 82.8
- 25% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 163,404
- +1.0% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Portage 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 Portage 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 540 restaurants and cafes in Portage County. Chain locations make up 43% of them, against 34% across the U.S. That comes to 82.8 for every 10,000 households, 25% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.
At $3,874 per household (5% below the U.S. average), households in Portage County spend about $252.8M a year on food away from home. That works out to $468K per restaurant, 26% above the U.S. figure of $371K.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in Portage County was 259 in 2023, up 9.3% from 2019. That is one for every 252 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Official counts list 35 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 32 SBA-backed loans worth $8.4M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Portage County.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Portage County grew 1.0%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes in Portage County is 62 (upper middle), #673 of 2,405 scored counties and #35 of 88 scored counties in Ohio.
How Portage County compares
The same measures for Ohio 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 | Portage County | Ohio | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 82.8 | 93.5 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $468K | $410K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 252 | 235 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +9.3% | +6.3% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.0% | +0.9% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,874 | $3,829 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $75,766 | $71,389 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 62 | 58 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 237 → 259+9.3% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 5,408
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $95.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 35Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 540230 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 682The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 32
- Amount
- $8.4M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Portage 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 Portage County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 163,404+1.0% since 2020
- Households
- 65,249
- Median age
- 41.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 70%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 487 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 332
- Median household income
- $75,766+31.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $97,106
- Median home value
- $227,000
- Jobs located here
- 55,772
- Daytime population
- 143,575Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Portage 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 Portage 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 Ohio
Every Ohio market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Ohio for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Ohio, with Portage County marked.
Top counties in Ohio
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Union County, OH | 92 | 178 | 73.5 | $655K | +16.5% | #17 of 2,405 |
| 2Morrow County, OH | 87 | 64 | 47.5 | $812K | +3.7% | #40 of 2,405 |
| 3Pickaway County, OH | 83 | 140 | 63.9 | $602K | +7.4% | #91 of 2,405 |
| 4Fairfield County, OH | 81 | 447 | 74.1 | $578K | +6.5% | #120 of 2,405 |
| 5Warren County, OH | 80 | 693 | 75.3 | $648K | +5.7% | #133 of 2,405 |
| 6Madison County, OH | 79 | 144 | 91.8 | $452K | +7.1% | #161 of 2,405 |
| 7Clermont County, OH | 77 | 624 | 73.5 | $568K | +3.9% | #196 of 2,405 |
| 8Brown County, OH | 75 | 114 | 66.5 | $545K | +1.6% | #241 of 2,405 |
| 9Holmes County, OH | 74 | 99 | 73.9 | $541K | +1.7% | #263 of 2,405 |
| 10Medina County, OH | 73 | 606 | 82.9 | $535K | +1.3% | #303 of 2,405 |
| 35Portage County, OH | 62 | 540 | 82.8 | $468K | +1.0% | #673 of 2,405 |
Other business types in Portage County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes62
- Sit-down restaurants70
- Fast food and sandwich shops47
- Pizza42
- Coffee shops and cafes64
- 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 Portage County, OH?
There are 540 restaurants and cafes on map listings in Portage County as of September 2026. 230 of them (43%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 259 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 9.3% from 2019. Official counts also show 35 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Portage County, OH spend on food away from home?
About $252.8M a year, or $3,874 per household. That is 5% below the U.S. average (an index of 95, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 540 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $468K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 65,249 households in Portage County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Portage County, OH compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
Portage County has 82.8 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 25% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $468K, 26% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Portage County would have about 682, against 540 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 rose 9.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is Portage County, OH growing?
Population estimates put Portage County at 163,404 people in 2025, up 1.0% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 65,249 households. The median household income in Portage County is $75,766 a year, 6% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 31.5% 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. Portage County scores 62 for restaurants and cafes (upper middle), #673 of 2,405 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Portage 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 Portage County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Portage 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 Portage 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.