Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Arkansas

Sit-down restaurants in Baxter County, AR

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for sit-down restaurants in Baxter County, AR, set against other counties and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 30 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #2,045 of 2,405 scored counties
#42 of 61 scored counties in Arkansas

Listings
102
31 chain locations (30%)
Official establishments
38
−5.0% since 2019
Household spending a year
$58.6M
On food away from home · $3,027 a household
Spending per listing
$574K
13% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
52.7
14% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
42,982
+3.1% since 2020

See the sit-down restaurants around any address in Baxter 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 Baxter County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Survey 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, Baxter County has a Groundwork market score of 30 (lower middle): #2,045 of 2,405 scored counties and #42 of 61 scored counties in Arkansas. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

Households in Baxter County spend about $58.6M a year on food away from home, or $3,027 per household, 26% below the U.S. average. Spread across 102 sit-down restaurants, that is $574K per restaurant, 13% below the U.S. figure of $664K. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants.

There are 102 sit-down restaurants on map listings in Baxter County as of September 2026. 31 of them (30%) are chain locations, against 29% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 52.7, 14% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.

Official counts show 38 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in Baxter County in 2023, down 5.0% from 2019. That is one for every 509 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Population estimates show Baxter County grew 3.1% from 2020 to 2025, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Baxter 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.

Sit-down restaurants in Baxter County, AR compared with Arkansas and the U.S.
MeasureBaxter CountyArkansasU.S.
Listings per 10k households52.756.761.3
Spending per listing$574K$600K$664K
Households per official establishment509599500
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−5.0%−1.8%+1.5%
Population growth, 2020–2025+3.1%+3.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,027$3,400$4,070
Median household income$48,452$60,773$80,734
Groundwork market score3042

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
40 → 38−5.0% over the period
Employees, 2023
592
Annual payroll, 2023
$11.9M
One-person businesses, 2023
10Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
10231 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
88The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
0
Amount
$0

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Baxter 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 Baxter County

Population, 2025 estimate
42,982+3.1% since 2020
Households
19,348
Median age
51.0
Homes lived in by their owners
75%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
554 sq. mi.
People per square mile
77
Median household income
$48,452+14.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$71,486
Median home value
$174,600
Jobs located here
16,323
Daytime population
43,148Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Sit-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 Baxter County marked.

Top counties in Arkansas

Counties in Arkansas ranked for sit-down restaurants by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Saline County, AR8020240.2$942K+7.6%#128 of 2,405
2Madison County, AR771929.4$1.1M+11.2%#188 of 2,405
3Grant County, AR732333.0$1.1M+4.1%#298 of 2,405
4Lonoke County, AR7112142.4$859K+3.5%#349 of 2,405
5Perry County, AR70922.0$1.5M+3.1%#358 of 2,405
6Marion County, AR702026.1$1.1M+4.3%#363 of 2,405
7Fulton County, AR681225.2$1.1M+3.7%#420 of 2,405
8Benton County, AR6666759.6$726K+16.0%#506 of 2,405
9Logan County, AR652934.0$968K+2.5%#521 of 2,405
10Hot Spring County, AR634133.3$943K+1.1%#611 of 2,405
42Baxter County, AR3010252.7$574K+3.1%#2,045 of 2,405

Other business types in Baxter County

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

Questions

How many sit-down restaurants are in Baxter County, AR?

As of September 2026, map listings count 102 sit-down restaurants in Baxter County. 31 of them (30%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 38 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, down 5.0% from 2019. Another 10 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in Baxter County, AR spend on food away from home?

About $58.6M a year, or $3,027 per household. That is 26% below the U.S. average (an index of 74, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 102 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $574K 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 19,348 households in Baxter County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Baxter County, AR compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?

Baxter County has 52.7 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 14% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $574K, 13% below the U.S. figure of $664K. At the U.S. ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, Baxter County would have about 88, against 102 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 509 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count fell 5.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.

How fast is Baxter County, AR growing?

Population estimates put Baxter County at 42,982 people in 2025, up 3.1% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 19,348 households. Median household income in Baxter County is $48,452, 40% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 14.7%, 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. Baxter County scores 30 for sit-down restaurants (lower middle), #2,045 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Baxter 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 Baxter 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.