Food and drink · Metro area · Texas
Restaurants and cafes in the Waco, TX metro area
How the Waco, TX 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 31 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #331 of 387 scored metro areas
#19 of 26 scored metro areas based in Texas
- Listings
- 1,303
- 511 chain locations (39%)
- Official establishments
- 524
- +16.7% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $396.7M
- On food away from home · $3,568 a household
- Spending per listing
- $304K
- 18% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 117.2
- 7% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 308,807
- +4.2% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Waco 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 Waco 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 Waco metro area has a Groundwork market score of 31 (lower middle): #331 of 387 scored metro areas and #19 of 26 scored metro areas based in Texas. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 1,303 restaurants and cafes in the Waco metro area. 511 of them (39%) are chain locations, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 117.2, 7% above the U.S. rate of 109.8.
Households in the Waco metro area spend about $396.7M a year on food away from home, or $3,568 per household, 12% below the U.S. average. That is about $304K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 18% below the U.S. figure of $371K.
Official counts show 524 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Waco metro area in 2023, up 16.7% from 2019. That is one for every 212 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 22 SBA-backed loans worth $21.6M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Waco metro area. Population estimates show the Waco metro area grew 4.2% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Waco metro area compares
The same measures for Texas 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 | Waco metro area | Texas | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 117.2 | 120.5 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $304K | $329K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 212 | 207 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +16.7% | +12.4% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +4.2% | +8.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,568 | $3,970 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $66,205 | $78,476 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 31 | 45 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 524+16.7% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 11,121
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $226M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 128Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 1,303511 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 1,070The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 22
- Amount
- $21.6M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Waco 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 Waco metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 308,807+4.2% since 2020
- Households
- 111,178
- Median age
- 37.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 64%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 2,785 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 108
- Median household income
- $66,205
- Average household income
- $91,997
- Median home value
- $234,100
- Jobs located here
- 129,143
- Daytime population
- 295,622Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Waco 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 Waco 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 Texas
Every Texas market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Texas for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Texas, with the Waco metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Texas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX | 66 | 11,883 | 120.1 | $379K | +14.0% | #90 of 387 |
| 2Sherman-Denison, TX | 56 | 632 | 114.4 | $325K | +12.8% | #151 of 387 |
| 3Midland, TX | 55 | 820 | 117.8 | $369K | +9.8% | #158 of 387 |
| 4Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | 52 | 34,506 | 119.3 | $359K | +10.6% | #181 of 387 |
| 5Killeen-Temple, TX | 52 | 1,763 | 99.2 | $357K | +7.2% | #182 of 387 |
| 6Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX | 49 | 32,354 | 121.6 | $338K | +10.3% | #201 of 387 |
| 7Odessa, TX | 48 | 685 | 106.1 | $348K | +5.0% | #204 of 387 |
| 8San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | 44 | 11,594 | 119.8 | $323K | +9.5% | #234 of 387 |
| 9Wichita Falls, TX | 40 | 546 | 96.2 | $364K | +0.7% | #259 of 387 |
| 10Longview, TX | 35 | 1,166 | 107.8 | $324K | +3.8% | #299 of 387 |
| 19Waco, TX | 31 | 1,303 | 117.2 | $304K | +4.2% | #331 of 387 |
Other business types in the Waco metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes31
- Sit-down restaurants42
- Fast food and sandwich shops28
- Pizza45
- Coffee shops and cafes36
- Bakeries and dessert shops27
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 Waco, TX metro area?
There are 1,303 restaurants and cafes on map listings in the Waco metro area as of September 2026. 511 of them (39%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 524 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 16.7% from 2019. Another 128 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Waco, TX metro area spend on food away from home?
About $396.7M a year, or $3,568 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 1,303 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $304K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 111,178 households in the Waco metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Waco, TX metro area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Waco metro area has 117.2 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 7% above the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $304K, 18% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Waco metro area would have about 1,070, against 1,303 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 212 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 16.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Waco, TX metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Waco metro area at 308,807 people in 2025, up 4.2% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 111,178 households. The median household income in the Waco metro area is $66,205 a year, 18% 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 Waco metro area scores 31 for restaurants and cafes (lower middle), #331 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 Waco 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 Waco metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Waco 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 Waco 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.