Food and drink · County · South Dakota
Restaurants and cafes in Clay County, SD
How Clay County, SD 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 26 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #2,171 of 2,405 scored counties
#18 of 18 scored counties in South Dakota
- Listings
- 76
- 30 chain locations (39%)
- Official establishments
- 25
- −10.7% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $19.2M
- On food away from home · $3,461 a household
- Spending per listing
- $253K
- 32% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 137.0
- 25% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 15,031
- +0.2% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Clay 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 Clay 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
Clay County scores 26 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes, ranking #2,171 of 2,405 scored counties and #18 of 18 scored counties in South Dakota. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 76 restaurants and cafes in Clay County. Chain locations make up 39% of them, against 34% across the U.S. That is 137.0 per 10,000 households, 25% above the U.S. rate of 109.8.
Households in Clay County spend about $19.2M a year on food away from home, or $3,461 per household, 15% below the U.S. average. That works out to $253K per restaurant, 32% below the U.S. figure of $371K.
Official counts show 25 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in Clay County in 2023, down 10.7% from 2019. That is one for every 222 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $333K have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Clay County. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Clay County grew 0.2%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Clay County compares
The same measures for South Dakota 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 | Clay County | South Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 137.0 | 106.8 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $253K | $361K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 222 | 232 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −10.7% | +6.4% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +0.2% | +5.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,461 | $3,849 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $56,850 | $75,081 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 26 | 56 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 28 → 25−10.7% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 506
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $7.9M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 0Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 7630 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 52The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $333K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Clay 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 Clay County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 15,031+0.2% since 2020
- Households
- 5,547
- Median age
- 31.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 51%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 412 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 37
- Median household income
- $56,850+12.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $78,631
- Median home value
- $232,300
- Jobs located here
- 5,728
- Daytime population
- 14,972Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Clay 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 Clay 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 South Dakota
Every South Dakota market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in South Dakota for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in South Dakota, with Clay County marked.
Top counties in South Dakota
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Lincoln County, SD | 94 | 182 | 65.3 | $694K | +17.5% | #6 of 2,405 |
| 2Union County, SD | 81 | 67 | 91.7 | $471K | +3.3% | #128 of 2,405 |
| 3Meade County, SD | 75 | 99 | 82.7 | $469K | +2.7% | #249 of 2,405 |
| 4Minnehaha County, SD | 55 | 892 | 105.2 | $377K | +7.6% | #982 of 2,405 |
| 5Brown County, SD | 53 | 143 | 87.8 | $425K | −1.7% | #1,045 of 2,405 |
| 6Oglala Lakota County, SD | 51 | 19 | 65.0 | $431K | −2.3% | #1,127 of 2,405 |
| 7Beadle County, SD | 51 | 73 | 96.9 | $369K | +2.4% | #1,156 of 2,405 |
| 8Hughes County, SD | 49 | 77 | 106.2 | $374K | −0.9% | #1,237 of 2,405 |
| 9Brookings County, SD | 49 | 160 | 116.0 | $324K | +9.6% | #1,252 of 2,405 |
| 10Lake County, SD | 47 | 49 | 103.9 | $374K | −0.2% | #1,314 of 2,405 |
| 18Clay County, SD | 26 | 76 | 137.0 | $253K | +0.2% | #2,171 of 2,405 |
Other business types in Clay County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes26
- Sit-down restaurants26
- Fast food and sandwich shops33
- Pizza34
- Coffee shops and cafes28
- Bakeries and dessert shops
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 Clay County, SD?
There are 76 restaurants and cafes on map listings in Clay County as of September 2026. 30 of them (39%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 25 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, down 10.7% from 2019.
How much do households in Clay County, SD spend on food away from home?
About $19.2M a year, or $3,461 per household. That is 15% below the U.S. average (an index of 85, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 76 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $253K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 5,547 households in Clay County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Clay County, SD compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
Clay County has 137.0 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 25% above the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $253K, 32% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Clay County would have about 52, against 76 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 222 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count fell 10.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is Clay County, SD growing?
Population estimates put Clay County at 15,031 people in 2025, up 0.2% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 5,547 households. The median household income in Clay County is $56,850 a year, 30% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 12.1% 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. Clay County scores 26 for restaurants and cafes (lower middle), #2,171 of 2,405 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Clay 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 Clay County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Clay 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 Clay 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.