Food and drink · Small-town market · Alabama
Sit-down restaurants in the Cullman, AL area
How the Cullman, AL area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for sit-down restaurants: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 79 out of 100: High
Ranked #23 of 538 scored small-town markets
#1 of 12 scored small-town markets based in Alabama
- Listings
- 143
- 64 chain locations (45%)
- Official establishments
- 43
- −6.5% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $120.9M
- On food away from home · $3,421 a household
- Spending per listing
- $846K
- 27% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 40.5
- 34% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 94,009
- +6.7% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in the Cullman 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 Cullman 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 sit-down restaurants, the Cullman area has a Groundwork market score of 79 (high): #23 of 538 scored small-town markets and #1 of 12 scored small-town markets based in Alabama. That puts it in the top 10% of small-town markets for sit-down restaurants.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 143 sit-down restaurants in the Cullman area. 64 of them (45%) are chain locations, against 29% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 40.5, 34% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.
Household spending on food away from home in the Cullman area comes to about $120.9M a year: $3,421 per household, 16% below the U.S. average. That works out to $846K per restaurant, 27% above the U.S. figure of $664K. That spending covers all food away from home, which sit-down restaurants share with other businesses in the trade.
In 2023, official counts showed 43 businesses with payroll in the Cullman area classed as full-service restaurants, down 6.5% from 2019. That is one for every 822 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 3 SBA-backed loans worth $2.6M have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Cullman area. Population estimates show the Cullman area grew 6.7% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Cullman 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 | Cullman area | Alabama | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 40.5 | 53.1 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $846K | $663K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 822 | 721 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −6.5% | −2.6% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +6.7% | +3.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,421 | $3,519 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $62,656 | $63,999 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 79 | 52 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 43−6.5% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,059
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $22.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 6Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 14364 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 182The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 3
- Amount
- $2.6M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Cullman 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 Cullman area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 94,009+6.7% since 2020
- Households
- 35,347
- Median age
- 41.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 77%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.2
- Land area
- 735 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 123
- Median household income
- $62,656+39.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $82,606
- Median home value
- $199,100
- Jobs located here
- 31,045
- Daytime population
- 83,269Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Cullman area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 Cullman 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 small-town markets in Alabama for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in Alabama, with the Cullman area marked.
Top small-town markets in Alabama
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Cullman, AL | 79 | 143 | 40.5 | $846K | +6.7% | #23 of 538 |
| 2Scottsboro, AL | 69 | 85 | 39.0 | $799K | +3.3% | #81 of 538 |
| 3Talladega-Sylacauga, AL | 68 | 131 | 34.4 | $919K | 0.0% | #86 of 538 |
| 4Ozark, AL | 63 | 79 | 40.0 | $789K | +1.3% | #133 of 538 |
| 5Russellville, AL | 60 | 47 | 39.3 | $781K | +1.1% | #164 of 538 |
| 6Enterprise, AL | 60 | 108 | 51.5 | $693K | +6.3% | #168 of 538 |
| 7Selma, AL | 55 | 48 | 30.1 | $872K | −7.9% | #211 of 538 |
| 8Fort Payne, AL | 54 | 119 | 45.5 | $662K | +3.4% | #225 of 538 |
| 9Albertville, AL | 54 | 205 | 56.2 | $616K | +6.0% | #228 of 538 |
| 10Alexander City, AL | 51 | 77 | 45.1 | $718K | −0.8% | #254 of 538 |
Other business types in the Cullman area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes76
- Sit-down restaurants79
- Fast food and sandwich shops42
- Pizza67
- Coffee shops and cafes72
- Bakeries and dessert shops65
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 Cullman, AL area?
There are 143 sit-down restaurants on map listings in the Cullman area as of September 2026. 64 of them (45%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 43 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, down 6.5% from 2019. Another 6 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Cullman, AL area spend on food away from home?
About $120.9M a year, or $3,421 per household. That is 16% below the U.S. average (an index of 84, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 143 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $846K per restaurant. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants. It is estimated from the incomes of the 35,347 households in the Cullman area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Cullman, AL area compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
The Cullman area has 40.5 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 34% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $846K, 27% above the U.S. figure of $664K. At the national ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, the Cullman area would have about 182, against 143 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 822 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count fell 6.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.
How fast is the Cullman, AL area growing?
Population estimates put the Cullman area at 94,009 people in 2025, up 6.7% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 35,347 households. The median household income in the Cullman area is $62,656 a year, 22% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 39.5% 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Cullman area scores 79 for sit-down restaurants (high), #23 of 538 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Cullman 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 Cullman area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Cullman 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 Cullman 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.