Food and drink · Metro area · Oregon
Restaurants and cafes in the Medford, OR metro area
How the Medford, OR 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 18 out of 100: Low
Ranked #375 of 387 scored metro areas
#8 of 8 scored metro areas based in Oregon
- Listings
- 1,151
- 333 chain locations (29%)
- Official establishments
- 490
- +2.9% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $342.7M
- On food away from home · $3,724 a household
- Spending per listing
- $298K
- 20% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 125.1
- 14% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 221,795
- −0.9% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Medford 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 Medford 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
The Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes in the Medford metro area is 18 (low), #375 of 387 scored metro areas and #8 of 8 scored metro areas based in Oregon. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 1,151 restaurants and cafes in the Medford metro area. Of those, 333 are chain locations, or 29%, against 34% across the U.S. That is 125.1 per 10,000 households, 14% above the U.S. rate of 109.8.
Households in the Medford metro area spend about $342.7M a year on food away from home, or $3,724 per household, 9% below the U.S. average. That works out to $298K per restaurant, 20% below the U.S. figure of $371K.
Official counts show 490 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Medford metro area in 2023, up 2.9% from 2019. That is one for every 188 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 19 SBA-backed loans worth $7.4M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Medford metro area. Population estimates put the population change in the Medford metro area from 2020 to 2025 at −0.9%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Medford metro area compares
The same measures for Oregon 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 | Medford metro area | Oregon | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 125.1 | 130.4 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $298K | $312K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 188 | 184 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +2.9% | +2.8% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.9% | +0.7% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,724 | $4,070 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $73,999 | $83,011 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 18 | 22 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 490+2.9% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 7,123
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $174.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 76Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 1,151333 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 924The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 19
- Amount
- $7.4M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Medford 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 Medford metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 221,795−0.9% since 2020
- Households
- 92,035
- Median age
- 44.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 66%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 2,783 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 80
- Median household income
- $73,999+38.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $98,011
- Median home value
- $430,200
- Jobs located here
- 90,545
- Daytime population
- 223,934Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Medford 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 Medford 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 Oregon
Every Oregon market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Oregon for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Oregon, with the Medford metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Oregon
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Albany, OR | 63 | 448 | 88.3 | $413K | +3.0% | #105 of 387 |
| 2Corvallis, OR | 47 | 427 | 110.8 | $358K | +4.4% | #212 of 387 |
| 3Bend, OR | 41 | 1,400 | 133.9 | $317K | +7.0% | #257 of 387 |
| 4Salem, OR | 40 | 1,789 | 111.9 | $349K | +2.7% | #260 of 387 |
| 5Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | 38 | 13,193 | 130.6 | $341K | +1.0% | #277 of 387 |
| 6Grants Pass, OR | 25 | 372 | 101.3 | $343K | −0.4% | #353 of 387 |
| 7Eugene-Springfield, OR | 24 | 1,761 | 109.8 | $333K | −0.7% | #357 of 387 |
| 8Medford, OR | 18 | 1,151 | 125.1 | $298K | −0.9% | #375 of 387 |
Other business types in the Medford metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes18
- Sit-down restaurants24
- Fast food and sandwich shops47
- Pizza52
- Coffee shops and cafes13
- Bakeries and dessert shops33
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 Medford, OR metro area?
There are 1,151 restaurants and cafes on map listings in the Medford metro area as of September 2026. 333 of them (29%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 490 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 2.9% from 2019. Official counts also show 76 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Medford, OR metro area spend on food away from home?
About $342.7M a year, or $3,724 per household. That is 9% below the U.S. average (an index of 91, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 1,151 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $298K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 92,035 households in the Medford metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Medford, OR metro area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Medford metro area has 125.1 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 14% above the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $298K, 20% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Medford metro area would have about 924, against 1,151 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 188 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 2.9% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Medford, OR metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Medford metro area at 221,795 people in 2025, down 0.9% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 92,035 households. The median household income in the Medford metro area is $73,999 a year, 8% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 38.5% 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. The Medford metro area scores 18 for restaurants and cafes (low), #375 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 Medford 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 Medford metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Medford 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 Medford 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.