Food and drink · Metro area · Alabama
Sit-down restaurants in the Auburn-Opelika, AL metro area
How the Auburn-Opelika, AL metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for sit-down restaurants: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 43 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #252 of 387 scored metro areas
#7 of 12 scored metro areas based in Alabama
- Listings
- 432
- 181 chain locations (42%)
- Official establishments
- 134
- +14.8% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $269.1M
- On food away from home · $3,510 a household
- Spending per listing
- $623K
- 6% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 56.3
- 8% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 208,013
- +7.1% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in the Auburn-Opelika metro area
The site report maps the sit-down restaurants 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 Auburn-Opelika 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
Households in the Auburn-Opelika metro area spend about $269.1M a year on food away from home, or $3,510 per household, 14% below the U.S. average. Spread across 432 sit-down restaurants, that is $623K per restaurant, 6% below the U.S. figure of $664K. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants.
There are 432 sit-down restaurants on map listings in the Auburn-Opelika metro area as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 42% of them, against 29% across the U.S. That comes to 56.3 for every 10,000 households, 8% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in the Auburn-Opelika metro area was 134 in 2023, up 14.8% from 2019. That is one for every 572 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Official counts also show 22 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 10 SBA-backed loans worth $6M have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Auburn-Opelika metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Auburn-Opelika metro area grew 7.1%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Auburn-Opelika metro area scores 43 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants, ranking #252 of 387 scored metro areas and #7 of 12 scored metro areas based in Alabama.
How the Auburn-Opelika metro area compares
The same measures for Alabama and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all food away from home by the sit-down restaurants 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 | Auburn-Opelika metro area | Alabama | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 56.3 | 53.1 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $623K | $663K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 572 | 721 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +14.8% | −2.6% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +7.1% | +3.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,510 | $3,519 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $63,649 | $63,999 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 43 | 52 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 134+14.8% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 3,013
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $61.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 22Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 432181 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 406The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 10
- Amount
- $6M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Auburn-Opelika 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 Auburn-Opelika metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 208,013+7.1% since 2020
- Households
- 76,673
- Median age
- 37.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 66%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 1,216 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 164
- Median household income
- $63,649
- Average household income
- $87,657
- Median home value
- $247,500
- Jobs located here
- 69,655
- Daytime population
- 195,094Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Auburn-Opelika 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 sit-down restaurants on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Auburn-Opelika metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSit-down restaurants across Alabama
Every Alabama market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Alabama for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in Alabama, with the Auburn-Opelika metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Alabama
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Huntsville, AL | 77 | 1,151 | 55.9 | $737K | +12.5% | #24 of 387 |
| 2Decatur, AL | 62 | 302 | 48.2 | $741K | +2.5% | #104 of 387 |
| 3Tuscaloosa, AL | 60 | 487 | 46.1 | $747K | +2.9% | #113 of 387 |
| 4Birmingham, AL | 52 | 2,650 | 57.0 | $658K | +1.4% | #175 of 387 |
| 5Florence-Muscle Shoals, AL | 46 | 327 | 51.4 | $659K | +3.5% | #223 of 387 |
| 6Montgomery, AL | 43 | 837 | 55.3 | $631K | +0.9% | #250 of 387 |
| 7Auburn-Opelika, AL | 43 | 432 | 56.3 | $623K | +7.1% | #252 of 387 |
| 8Gadsden, AL | 39 | 179 | 45.4 | $690K | +0.4% | #278 of 387 |
| 9Anniston-Oxford, AL | 36 | 219 | 48.7 | $651K | −0.3% | #300 of 387 |
| 10Mobile, AL | 36 | 895 | 55.4 | $608K | −0.7% | #303 of 387 |
Other business types in the Auburn-Opelika metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes43
- Sit-down restaurants43
- Fast food and sandwich shops32
- Pizza55
- Coffee shops and cafes56
- Bakeries and dessert shops62
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 sit-down restaurants are in the Auburn-Opelika, AL metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 432 sit-down restaurants in the Auburn-Opelika metro area. 181 of them (42%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 134 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, up 14.8% from 2019. Another 22 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Auburn-Opelika, AL metro area spend on food away from home?
About $269.1M a year, or $3,510 per household. That is 14% below the U.S. average (an index of 86, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 432 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $623K per restaurant. That spending covers all food away from home, which sit-down restaurants share with other businesses in the trade. It is estimated from the incomes of the 76,673 households in the Auburn-Opelika metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Auburn-Opelika, AL metro area compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
The Auburn-Opelika metro area has 56.3 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 8% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $623K, 6% below the U.S. figure of $664K. At the U.S. ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, the Auburn-Opelika metro area would have about 406, against 432 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 572 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count rose 14.8% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.
How fast is the Auburn-Opelika, AL metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Auburn-Opelika metro area at 208,013 people in 2025, up 7.1% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 76,673 households. Median household income in the Auburn-Opelika metro area is $63,649, 21% 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 Auburn-Opelika metro area scores 43 for sit-down restaurants (lower middle), #252 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 Auburn-Opelika metro area. It maps the sit-down restaurants 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 sit-down restaurants · All 56 business types in the Auburn-Opelika metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Auburn-Opelika 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 Auburn-Opelika 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.