Food and drink · Metro area · Vermont
Restaurants and cafes in the Burlington-South Burlington, VT metro area
How the Burlington-South Burlington, VT 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 55 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #157 of 387 scored metro areas
The only scored metro area based in Vermont
- Listings
- 1,068
- 199 chain locations (19%)
- Official establishments
- 411
- −2.4% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $406.9M
- On food away from home · $4,303 a household
- Spending per listing
- $381K
- 3% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 112.9
- 3% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 227,803
- +0.9% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Burlington-South Burlington 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 Burlington-South Burlington 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 $4,303 per household (6% above the U.S. average), households in the Burlington-South Burlington metro area spend about $406.9M a year on food away from home. Spread across 1,068 restaurants and cafes, that is $381K per restaurant, 3% above the U.S. figure of $371K.
There are 1,068 restaurants and cafes on map listings in the Burlington-South Burlington metro area as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 19% of them, against 34% across the U.S. That comes to 112.9 for every 10,000 households, 3% above the U.S. rate of 109.8.
Official counts show 411 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Burlington-South Burlington metro area in 2023, down 2.4% from 2019. That is one for every 230 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Another 87 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 21 SBA-backed loans worth $3.3M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Burlington-South Burlington metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Burlington-South Burlington metro area grew 0.9%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). For restaurants and cafes, the Burlington-South Burlington metro area has a Groundwork market score of 55 (upper middle): #157 of 387 scored metro areas and the only scored metro area based in Vermont.
How the Burlington-South Burlington metro area compares
The same measures for Vermont 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 | Burlington-South Burlington metro area | Vermont | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 112.9 | 115.1 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $381K | $349K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 230 | 227 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −2.4% | −1.2% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +0.9% | +0.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,303 | $4,013 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $93,043 | $81,203 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 55 | 40 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 411−2.4% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 6,867
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $186M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 87Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 1,068199 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 1,097The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 21
- Amount
- $3.3M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Burlington-South Burlington 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 Burlington-South Burlington metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 227,803+0.9% since 2020
- Households
- 94,559
- Median age
- 40.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 68%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 1,250 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 182
- Median household income
- $93,043+30.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $118,646
- Median home value
- $401,000
- Jobs located here
- 121,615
- Daytime population
- 237,948Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Burlington-South Burlington 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 Burlington-South Burlington metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardOther business types in the Burlington-South Burlington metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes55
- Sit-down restaurants61
- Fast food and sandwich shops79
- Pizza75
- Coffee shops and cafes42
- Bakeries and dessert shops29
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 Burlington-South Burlington, VT metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 1,068 restaurants and cafes in the Burlington-South Burlington metro area. 199 of them (19%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 411 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, down 2.4% from 2019. Official counts list 87 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Burlington-South Burlington, VT metro area spend on food away from home?
About $406.9M a year, or $4,303 per household. That is 6% above the U.S. average (an index of 106, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 1,068 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $381K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 94,559 households in the Burlington-South Burlington metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Burlington-South Burlington, VT metro area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Burlington-South Burlington metro area has 112.9 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 3% above the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $381K, 3% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Burlington-South Burlington metro area would have about 1,097, against 1,068 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 230 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count fell 2.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Burlington-South Burlington, VT metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Burlington-South Burlington metro area at 227,803 people in 2025, up 0.9% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 94,559 households. Median household income in the Burlington-South Burlington metro area is $93,043, 15% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 30.3%, 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 Burlington-South Burlington metro area scores 55 for restaurants and cafes (upper middle), #157 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 Burlington-South Burlington 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 Burlington-South Burlington metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Burlington-South Burlington 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 Burlington-South Burlington 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.