Food and drink · County · Arkansas
Sit-down restaurants in Ashley County, AR
How Ashley County, AR compares with other counties and the U.S. for sit-down restaurants: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 42 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,522 of 2,405 scored counties
#20 of 61 scored counties in Arkansas
- Listings
- 28
- 9 chain locations (32%)
- Official establishments
- 4
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $20.2M
- On food away from home · $2,750 a household
- Spending per listing
- $723K
- 9% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 38.1
- 38% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 17,831
- −5.9% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in Ashley County
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 Ashley County. 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 $2,750 per household (32% below the U.S. average), households in Ashley County spend about $20.2M a year on food away from home. Spread across 28 sit-down restaurants, that is $723K per restaurant, 9% above the U.S. figure of $664K. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants.
Ashley County has 28 sit-down restaurants on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 32% of them, against 29% across the U.S. That comes to 38.1 for every 10,000 households, 38% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.
In 2023, official counts showed 4 businesses with payroll in Ashley County classed as full-service restaurants. That is one for every 1,839 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $198K has gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Ashley County.
Population estimates put the population change in Ashley County from 2020 to 2025 at −5.9%, against +3.1% for the U.S. Ashley County scores 42 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants, ranking #1,522 of 2,405 scored counties and #20 of 61 scored counties in Arkansas.
How Ashley County compares
The same measures for Arkansas 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 | Ashley County | Arkansas | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 38.1 | 56.7 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $723K | $600K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 1,839 | 599 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | −1.8% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −5.9% | +3.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $2,750 | $3,400 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $44,266 | $60,773 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 42 | 42 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 6 → 4
- Employees, 2023
- 74
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $1.5M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 0Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 289 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 31The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $198K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Ashley 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 Ashley County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 17,831−5.9% since 2020
- Households
- 7,356
- Median age
- 43.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 71%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 926 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 20
- Median household income
- $44,266−1.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $58,274
- Median home value
- $91,900
- Jobs located here
- 5,531
- Daytime population
- 17,238Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Ashley 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 sit-down restaurants on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of Ashley County. 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 Arkansas
Every Arkansas market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Arkansas for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in Arkansas, with Ashley County marked.
Top counties in Arkansas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Saline County, AR | 80 | 202 | 40.2 | $942K | +7.6% | #128 of 2,405 |
| 2Madison County, AR | 77 | 19 | 29.4 | $1.1M | +11.2% | #188 of 2,405 |
| 3Grant County, AR | 73 | 23 | 33.0 | $1.1M | +4.1% | #298 of 2,405 |
| 4Lonoke County, AR | 71 | 121 | 42.4 | $859K | +3.5% | #349 of 2,405 |
| 5Perry County, AR | 70 | 9 | 22.0 | $1.5M | +3.1% | #358 of 2,405 |
| 6Marion County, AR | 70 | 20 | 26.1 | $1.1M | +4.3% | #363 of 2,405 |
| 7Fulton County, AR | 68 | 12 | 25.2 | $1.1M | +3.7% | #420 of 2,405 |
| 8Benton County, AR | 66 | 667 | 59.6 | $726K | +16.0% | #506 of 2,405 |
| 9Logan County, AR | 65 | 29 | 34.0 | $968K | +2.5% | #521 of 2,405 |
| 10Hot Spring County, AR | 63 | 41 | 33.3 | $943K | +1.1% | #611 of 2,405 |
| 20Ashley County, AR | 42 | 28 | 38.1 | $723K | −5.9% | #1,522 of 2,405 |
Other business types in Ashley County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes46
- Sit-down restaurants42
- Fast food and sandwich shops30
- Pizza
- Coffee shops and cafes
- Bakeries and dessert shops6
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 Ashley County, AR?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 28 sit-down restaurants in Ashley County. 9 of them (32%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 4 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023.
How much do households in Ashley County, AR spend on food away from home?
About $20.2M a year, or $2,750 per household. That is 32% below the U.S. average (an index of 68, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 28 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $723K 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 7,356 households in Ashley County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Ashley County, AR compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
Ashley County has 38.1 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 38% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $723K, 9% above the U.S. figure of $664K. At the U.S. ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, Ashley County would have about 31, against 28 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,839 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S.
How fast is Ashley County, AR growing?
Population estimates put Ashley County at 17,831 people in 2025, down 5.9% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 7,356 households. Median household income in Ashley County is $44,266, 45% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median fell 1.1%, 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. Ashley County scores 42 for sit-down restaurants (lower middle), #1,522 of 2,405 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Ashley County. 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 Ashley County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Ashley 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 Ashley 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.