Food and drink · County · Tennessee
Restaurants and cafes in Macon County, TN
How Macon County, TN 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 77 out of 100: High
Ranked #188 of 2,405 scored counties
#9 of 87 scored counties in Tennessee
- Listings
- 48
- 20 chain locations (42%)
- Official establishments
- 27
- +28.6% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $30.5M
- On food away from home · $3,233 a household
- Spending per listing
- $635K
- 71% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 51.0
- 54% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 27,663
- +9.5% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Macon 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 Macon 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
Macon County scores 77 (high) on the Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes, ranking #188 of 2,405 scored counties and #9 of 87 scored counties in Tennessee. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for restaurants and cafes.
Household spending on food away from home in Macon County comes to about $30.5M a year: $3,233 per household, 21% below the U.S. average. Spread across 48 restaurants and cafes, that is $635K per restaurant, 71% above the U.S. figure of $371K.
There are 48 restaurants and cafes on map listings in Macon County as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 42% of them, against 34% across the U.S. That is 51.0 per 10,000 households, 54% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.
Official counts show 27 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in Macon County in 2023, up 28.6% from 2019. That is one for every 349 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Population estimates put the population change in Macon County from 2020 to 2025 at +9.5%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Macon County compares
The same measures for Tennessee 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 | Macon County | Tennessee | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 51.0 | 102.9 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $635K | $357K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 349 | 229 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +28.6% | +9.9% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +9.5% | +5.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,233 | $3,670 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $59,177 | $69,595 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 77 | 49 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 21 → 27+28.6% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 381
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $5.5M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 6Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 4820 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 82The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Macon 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 Macon County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 27,663+9.5% since 2020
- Households
- 9,421
- Median age
- 39.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 74%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.3
- Land area
- 307 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 85
- Median household income
- $59,177+58.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $77,361
- Median home value
- $225,700
- Jobs located here
- 5,612
- Daytime population
- 20,092Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Macon 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 Macon 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 Tennessee
Every Tennessee market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Tennessee for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Tennessee, with Macon County marked.
Top counties in Tennessee
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Fayette County, TN | 91 | 96 | 55.8 | $719K | +7.7% | #19 of 2,405 |
| 2Roane County, TN | 84 | 133 | 58.4 | $623K | +7.0% | #69 of 2,405 |
| 3Loudon County, TN | 84 | 177 | 73.6 | $540K | +15.6% | #77 of 2,405 |
| 4Meigs County, TN | 81 | 25 | 47.8 | $694K | +10.8% | #115 of 2,405 |
| 5Hickman County, TN | 81 | 47 | 49.8 | $687K | +5.0% | #116 of 2,405 |
| 6Union County, TN | 80 | 38 | 47.9 | $689K | +8.1% | #130 of 2,405 |
| 7Cheatham County, TN | 80 | 114 | 70.0 | $567K | +4.1% | #138 of 2,405 |
| 8Grainger County, TN | 77 | 46 | 47.6 | $645K | +9.2% | #187 of 2,405 |
| 9Macon County, TN | 77 | 48 | 51.0 | $635K | +9.5% | #188 of 2,405 |
| 10Smith County, TN | 77 | 52 | 65.6 | $539K | +5.1% | #201 of 2,405 |
Other business types in Macon County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes77
- Sit-down restaurants74
- Fast food and sandwich shops64
- Pizza
- Coffee shops and cafes
- 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 Macon County, TN?
As of September 2026, map listings count 48 restaurants and cafes in Macon County. 20 of them (42%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 27 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 28.6% from 2019. Official counts also show 6 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Macon County, TN spend on food away from home?
About $30.5M a year, or $3,233 per household. That is 21% below the U.S. average (an index of 79, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 48 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $635K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 9,421 households in Macon County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Macon County, TN compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
Macon County has 51.0 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 54% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $635K, 71% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Macon County would have about 82, against 48 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 349 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 28.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is Macon County, TN growing?
Population estimates put Macon County at 27,663 people in 2025, up 9.5% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 9,421 households. Median household income in Macon County is $59,177, 27% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 58.1%, 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. Macon County scores 77 for restaurants and cafes (high), #188 of 2,405 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Macon 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 Macon County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Macon 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 Macon 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.