Food and drink · Metro area · Ohio
Restaurants and cafes in the Sandusky, OH metro area
How the Sandusky, OH metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for restaurants and cafes: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 13 out of 100: Low
Ranked #385 of 387 scored metro areas
#12 of 12 scored metro areas based in Ohio
- Listings
- 804
- 217 chain locations (27%)
- Official establishments
- 294
- +5.4% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $193.2M
- On food away from home · $3,790 a household
- Spending per listing
- $240K
- 35% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 157.7
- 44% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 112,777
- −2.6% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Sandusky metro 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 Sandusky metro 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
For restaurants and cafes, the Sandusky metro area has a Groundwork market score of 13 (low): #385 of 387 scored metro areas and #12 of 12 scored metro areas based in Ohio. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
As of September 2026, map listings count 804 restaurants and cafes in the Sandusky metro area. Of those, 217 are chain locations, or 27%, against 34% across the U.S. That comes to 157.7 for every 10,000 households, 44% above the U.S. rate of 109.8.
Households in the Sandusky metro area spend about $193.2M a year on food away from home, or $3,790 per household, 7% below the U.S. average. That works out to $240K per restaurant, 35% below the U.S. figure of $371K.
In 2023, official counts showed 294 businesses with payroll in the Sandusky metro area classed as restaurants and other eating places, up 5.4% from 2019. That is one for every 173 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 25 SBA-backed loans worth $6.1M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Sandusky metro area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Sandusky metro area declined 2.6%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Sandusky metro area 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 | Sandusky metro area | Ohio | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 157.7 | 93.5 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $240K | $410K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 173 | 235 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +5.4% | +6.3% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −2.6% | +0.9% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,790 | $3,829 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $73,502 | $71,389 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 13 | 58 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 294+5.4% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 4,899
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $125.2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 32Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 804217 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 521The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 25
- Amount
- $6.1M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Sandusky metro 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 Sandusky metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 112,777−2.6% since 2020
- Households
- 50,986
- Median age
- 46.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 76%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 506 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 226
- Median household income
- $73,502
- Average household income
- $96,712
- Median home value
- $207,500
- Jobs located here
- 46,448
- Daytime population
- 109,099Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Sandusky metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 Sandusky metro 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 Ohio
Every Ohio market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Ohio for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Ohio (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Sandusky metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Ohio
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Columbus, OH | 71 | 8,578 | 99.2 | $421K | +4.7% | #55 of 387 |
| 2Dayton-Kettering-Beavercreek, OH | 67 | 3,012 | 87.5 | $435K | +1.5% | #78 of 387 |
| 3Springfield, OH | 66 | 409 | 73.1 | $479K | −0.4% | #83 of 387 |
| 4Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN | 65 | 8,872 | 97.9 | $419K | +2.7% | #94 of 387 |
| 5Akron, OH | 57 | 2,762 | 93.1 | $413K | 0.0% | #143 of 387 |
| Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH | 52 | 1,196 | 78.6 | $427K | −2.6% | #175 of 387 |
| 6Mansfield, OH | 52 | 419 | 83.6 | $402K | −0.1% | #177 of 387 |
| 7Canton-Massillon, OH | 47 | 1,529 | 91.5 | $396K | −0.2% | #207 of 387 |
| 8Cleveland, OH | 46 | 9,367 | 100.6 | $383K | −0.8% | #214 of 387 |
| 9Lima, OH | 43 | 365 | 88.4 | $396K | −1.2% | #235 of 387 |
| 12Sandusky, OH | 13 | 804 | 157.7 | $240K | −2.6% | #385 of 387 |
Other business types in the Sandusky metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes13
- Sit-down restaurants13
- Fast food and sandwich shops28
- Pizza16
- Coffee shops and cafes22
- Bakeries and dessert shops20
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 Sandusky, OH metro area?
The Sandusky metro area has 804 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 217 of them (27%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 294 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 5.4% from 2019. Another 32 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Sandusky, OH metro area spend on food away from home?
About $193.2M a year, or $3,790 per household. That is 7% below the U.S. average (an index of 93, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 804 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $240K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 50,986 households in the Sandusky metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Sandusky, OH metro area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Sandusky metro area has 157.7 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 44% above the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $240K, 35% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Sandusky metro area would have about 521, against 804 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 173 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 5.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Sandusky, OH metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Sandusky metro area at 112,777 people in 2025, down 2.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 50,986 households. The median household income in the Sandusky metro area is $73,502 a year, 9% below the U.S. median of $80,734.
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. The Sandusky metro area scores 13 for restaurants and cafes (low), #385 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Sandusky metro 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 Sandusky metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Sandusky metro 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 Sandusky metro 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.