Groundwork

Food and drink · County · South Dakota

Restaurants and cafes in Lincoln County, SD

How Lincoln 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 94 out of 100: Very high

Ranked #6 of 2,405 scored counties
#1 of 18 scored counties in South Dakota

Listings
182
89 chain locations (49%)
Official establishments
74
+29.8% since 2019
Household spending a year
$126.2M
On food away from home · $4,528 a household
Spending per listing
$694K
87% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
65.3
41% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
77,145
+17.5% since 2020

See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Lincoln 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 Lincoln County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey 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 Lincoln County is 94 (very high), #6 of 2,405 scored counties and #1 of 18 scored counties in South Dakota. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for restaurants and cafes.

As of September 2026, map listings count 182 restaurants and cafes in Lincoln County. Of those, 89 are chain locations, or 49%, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 65.3, 41% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.

Household spending on food away from home in Lincoln County comes to about $126.2M a year: $4,528 per household, 11% above the U.S. average. That works out to $694K per restaurant, 87% above the U.S. figure of $371K.

In 2023, official counts showed 74 businesses with payroll in Lincoln County classed as restaurants and other eating places, up 29.8% from 2019. That is one for every 377 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 5 SBA-backed loans worth $4.3M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Lincoln County. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Lincoln County grew 17.5%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Lincoln 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.

Restaurants and cafes in Lincoln County, SD compared with South Dakota and the U.S.
MeasureLincoln CountySouth DakotaU.S.
Listings per 10k households65.3106.8109.8
Spending per listing$694K$361K$371K
Households per official establishment377232209
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+29.8%+6.4%+6.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025+17.5%+5.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$4,528$3,849$4,070
Median household income$99,166$75,081$80,734
Groundwork market score9456

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
57 → 74+29.8% over the period
Employees, 2023
1,554
Annual payroll, 2023
$32.4M
One-person businesses, 2023
13Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
18289 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
341The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
5
Amount
$4.3M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Lincoln 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 Lincoln County

Population, 2025 estimate
77,145+17.5% since 2020
Households
27,879
Median age
36.5
Homes lived in by their owners
71%
Vehicles per household
2.1
Land area
577 sq. mi.
People per square mile
122
Median household income
$99,166+20.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$132,275
Median home value
$348,300
Jobs located here
29,510
Daytime population
60,089Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Lincoln 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 Lincoln County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Restaurants 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 Lincoln County marked.

Top counties in South Dakota

Counties in South Dakota ranked for restaurants and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Lincoln County, SD9418265.3$694K+17.5%#6 of 2,405
2Union County, SD816791.7$471K+3.3%#128 of 2,405
3Meade County, SD759982.7$469K+2.7%#249 of 2,405
4Minnehaha County, SD55892105.2$377K+7.6%#982 of 2,405
5Brown County, SD5314387.8$425K−1.7%#1,045 of 2,405
6Oglala Lakota County, SD511965.0$431K−2.3%#1,127 of 2,405
7Beadle County, SD517396.9$369K+2.4%#1,156 of 2,405
8Hughes County, SD4977106.2$374K−0.9%#1,237 of 2,405
9Brookings County, SD49160116.0$324K+9.6%#1,252 of 2,405
10Lake County, SD4749103.9$374K−0.2%#1,314 of 2,405

Other business types in Lincoln County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Funeral services

Questions

How many restaurants and cafes are in Lincoln County, SD?

Lincoln County has 182 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 89 of them (49%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 74 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 29.8% from 2019. Official counts also show 13 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Lincoln County, SD spend on food away from home?

About $126.2M a year, or $4,528 per household. That is 11% above the U.S. average (an index of 111, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 182 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $694K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 27,879 households in Lincoln County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Lincoln County, SD compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?

Lincoln County has 65.3 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 41% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $694K, 87% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Lincoln County would have about 341, against 182 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 377 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 29.8% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.

How fast is Lincoln County, SD growing?

Population estimates put Lincoln County at 77,145 people in 2025, up 17.5% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 27,879 households. The median household income in Lincoln County is $99,166 a year, 23% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 20.2% 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. Lincoln County scores 94 for restaurants and cafes (very high), #6 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Lincoln 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 Lincoln County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Lincoln County?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

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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.