Food and drink · Metro area · Utah
Restaurants and cafes in the Salt Lake City-Murray, UT metro area
How the Salt Lake City-Murray, UT 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 60 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #129 of 387 scored metro areas
#4 of 5 scored metro areas based in Utah
- Listings
- 4,919
- 2,028 chain locations (41%)
- Official establishments
- 2,262
- +7.7% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $2B
- On food away from home · $4,425 a household
- Spending per listing
- $405K
- 9% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 109.3
- In line with the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 1,308,377
- +3.8% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Salt Lake City-Murray 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 Salt Lake City-Murray 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
At $4,425 per household (9% above the U.S. average), households in the Salt Lake City-Murray metro area spend about $2B a year on food away from home. That is about $405K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 9% above the U.S. figure of $371K.
There are 4,919 restaurants and cafes on map listings in the Salt Lake City-Murray metro area as of September 2026. Of those, 2,028 are chain locations, or 41%, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 109.3, in line with the U.S. rate of 109.8.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Salt Lake City-Murray metro area was 2,262 in 2023, up 7.7% from 2019. That is one for every 199 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Official counts list 386 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 160 SBA-backed loans worth $79.5M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Salt Lake City-Murray metro area.
Population estimates show the Salt Lake City-Murray metro area grew 3.8% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For restaurants and cafes, the Salt Lake City-Murray metro area has a Groundwork market score of 60 (upper middle): #129 of 387 scored metro areas and #4 of 5 scored metro areas based in Utah.
How the Salt Lake City-Murray metro area compares
The same measures for Utah 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 | Salt Lake City-Murray metro area | Utah | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 109.3 | 103.7 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $405K | $418K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 199 | 205 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +7.7% | +13.3% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.8% | +7.8% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,425 | $4,339 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $98,083 | $95,166 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 60 | 73 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 2,262+7.7% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 44,980
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $1B
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 386Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 4,9192,028 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 5,373The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 160
- Amount
- $79.5M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Salt Lake City-Murray 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 Salt Lake City-Murray metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 1,308,377+3.8% since 2020
- Households
- 450,170
- Median age
- 34.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 67%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 7,793 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 164
- Median household income
- $98,083+31.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $124,953
- Median home value
- $515,400
- Jobs located here
- 794,734
- Daytime population
- 1,412,074Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Salt Lake City-Murray 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 Salt Lake City-Murray 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 Utah
Every Utah market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Utah for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Utah, with the Salt Lake City-Murray metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Utah
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Ogden, UT | 85 | 1,777 | 83.1 | $536K | +5.3% | #4 of 387 |
| 2Logan, UT-ID | 84 | 383 | 77.6 | $507K | +8.8% | #7 of 387 |
| 3Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT | 77 | 2,022 | 97.7 | $459K | +14.5% | #28 of 387 |
| 4Salt Lake City-Murray, UT | 60 | 4,919 | 109.3 | $405K | +3.8% | #129 of 387 |
| 5St. George, UT | 54 | 737 | 105.6 | $376K | +17.4% | #165 of 387 |
Other business types in the Salt Lake City-Murray metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes60
- Sit-down restaurants63
- Fast food and sandwich shops53
- Pizza65
- Coffee shops and cafes48
- Bakeries and dessert shops47
Groceries and convenience
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Beauty and personal care
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Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
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Questions
How many restaurants and cafes are in the Salt Lake City-Murray, UT metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 4,919 restaurants and cafes in the Salt Lake City-Murray metro area. 2,028 of them (41%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 2,262 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 7.7% from 2019. Official counts also show 386 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Salt Lake City-Murray, UT metro area spend on food away from home?
About $2B a year, or $4,425 per household. That is 9% above the U.S. average (an index of 109, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 4,919 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $405K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 450,170 households in the Salt Lake City-Murray metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Salt Lake City-Murray, UT metro area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Salt Lake City-Murray metro area has 109.3 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $405K, 9% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Salt Lake City-Murray metro area would have about 5,373, against 4,919 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 199 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 7.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Salt Lake City-Murray, UT metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Salt Lake City-Murray metro area at 1,308,377 people in 2025, up 3.8% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 450,170 households. Median household income in the Salt Lake City-Murray metro area is $98,083, 21% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 31.1%, 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. The Salt Lake City-Murray metro area scores 60 for restaurants and cafes (upper middle), #129 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 Salt Lake City-Murray 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 Salt Lake City-Murray metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Salt Lake City-Murray 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 Salt Lake City-Murray 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.