Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Wisconsin

Restaurants and cafes in Winnebago County, WI

How Winnebago County, WI 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 60 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #768 of 2,405 scored counties
#14 of 67 scored counties in Wisconsin

Listings
674
219 chain locations (32%)
Official establishments
264
+3.1% since 2019
Household spending a year
$278.1M
On food away from home · $3,827 a household
Spending per listing
$413K
11% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
92.8
15% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
174,218
+1.4% since 2020

See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Winnebago 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 Winnebago 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

Map listings as of September 2026 show 674 restaurants and cafes in Winnebago County. 219 of them (32%) are chain locations, against 34% across the U.S. That is 92.8 per 10,000 households, 15% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.

Household spending on food away from home in Winnebago County comes to about $278.1M a year: $3,827 per household, 6% below the U.S. average. That works out to $413K per restaurant, 11% above the U.S. figure of $371K.

Official counts show 264 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in Winnebago County in 2023, up 3.1% from 2019. That is one for every 275 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Official counts list 25 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 8 SBA-backed loans worth $3.4M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Winnebago County.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Winnebago County grew 1.4%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes in Winnebago County is 60 (upper middle), #768 of 2,405 scored counties and #14 of 67 scored counties in Wisconsin.

How Winnebago County compares

The same measures for Wisconsin 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 Winnebago County, WI compared with Wisconsin and the U.S.
MeasureWinnebago CountyWisconsinU.S.
Listings per 10k households92.8106.3109.8
Spending per listing$413K$373K$371K
Households per official establishment275242209
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+3.1%+4.2%+6.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025+1.4%+1.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,827$3,959$4,070
Median household income$74,925$77,485$80,734
Groundwork market score6055

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
256 → 264+3.1% over the period
Employees, 2023
5,119
Annual payroll, 2023
$96.4M
One-person businesses, 2023
25Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
674219 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
750The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
8
Amount
$3.4M

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

Population, 2025 estimate
174,218+1.4% since 2020
Households
72,667
Median age
40.1
Homes lived in by their owners
66%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
435 sq. mi.
People per square mile
395
Median household income
$74,925+28.0% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$94,286
Median home value
$225,800
Jobs located here
96,519
Daytime population
182,504Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

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Restaurants and cafes across Wisconsin

Every Wisconsin market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Wisconsin for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Wisconsin, with Winnebago County marked.

Top counties in Wisconsin

Counties in Wisconsin ranked for restaurants and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Calumet County, WI8413261.8$681K+2.9%#67 of 2,405
2Washington County, WI7544277.4$566K+1.8%#237 of 2,405
3St. Croix County, WI7335594.6$491K+4.7%#316 of 2,405
4Waukesha County, WI721,54991.8$518K+2.4%#338 of 2,405
5Pierce County, WI70163102.7$417K+3.1%#415 of 2,405
6Vernon County, WI6910181.3$458K+2.4%#438 of 2,405
7Dane County, WI672,49699.2$441K+4.9%#492 of 2,405
8Ozaukee County, WI64384100.2$462K+3.0%#604 of 2,405
9Iowa County, WI639896.9$416K+1.0%#645 of 2,405
10Racine County, WI6272289.8$441K+0.4%#679 of 2,405
14Winnebago County, WI6067492.8$413K+1.4%#768 of 2,405

Other business types in Winnebago County

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

Questions

How many restaurants and cafes are in Winnebago County, WI?

There are 674 restaurants and cafes on map listings in Winnebago County as of September 2026. 219 of them (32%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 264 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 3.1% from 2019. Official counts also show 25 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Winnebago County, WI spend on food away from home?

About $278.1M a year, or $3,827 per household. That is 6% below the U.S. average (an index of 94, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 674 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $413K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 72,667 households in Winnebago County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Winnebago County, WI compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?

Winnebago County has 92.8 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 15% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $413K, 11% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Winnebago County would have about 750, against 674 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 275 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 3.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.

How fast is Winnebago County, WI growing?

Population estimates put Winnebago County at 174,218 people in 2025, up 1.4% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 72,667 households. The median household income in Winnebago County is $74,925 a year, 7% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 28.0% 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. Winnebago County scores 60 for restaurants and cafes (upper middle), #768 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Winnebago 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 Winnebago 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.