Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Arkansas

Sit-down restaurants in Saline County, AR

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

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 80 out of 100: High

Ranked #128 of 2,405 scored counties
#1 of 61 scored counties in Arkansas

Listings
202
86 chain locations (43%)
Official establishments
60
+17.7% since 2019
Household spending a year
$190.4M
On food away from home · $3,792 a household
Spending per listing
$942K
42% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
40.2
34% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
133,288
+7.6% since 2020

See the sit-down restaurants around any address in Saline 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 Saline 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

The Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants in Saline County is 80 (high), #128 of 2,405 scored counties and #1 of 61 scored counties in Arkansas. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for sit-down restaurants.

Map listings as of September 2026 show 202 sit-down restaurants in Saline County. Chain locations make up 43% of them, against 29% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 40.2, 34% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.

Households in Saline County spend about $190.4M a year on food away from home, or $3,792 per household, 7% below the U.S. average. Spread across 202 sit-down restaurants, that is $942K per restaurant, 42% 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 60 businesses with payroll in Saline County classed as full-service restaurants, up 17.7% from 2019. That is one for every 837 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $814K have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Saline County. Population estimates show Saline County grew 7.6% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Saline 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 Saline County, AR compared with Arkansas and the U.S.
MeasureSaline CountyArkansasU.S.
Listings per 10k households40.256.761.3
Spending per listing$942K$600K$664K
Households per official establishment837599500
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+17.7%−1.8%+1.5%
Population growth, 2020–2025+7.6%+3.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,792$3,400$4,070
Median household income$79,046$60,773$80,734
Groundwork market score8042

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
51 → 60+17.7% over the period
Employees, 2023
1,493
Annual payroll, 2023
$30.7M
One-person businesses, 2023
13Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
20286 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
287The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
2
Amount
$814K

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

Population, 2025 estimate
133,288+7.6% since 2020
Households
50,203
Median age
40.8
Homes lived in by their owners
78%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
724 sq. mi.
People per square mile
176
Median household income
$79,046+22.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$95,923
Median home value
$221,200
Jobs located here
29,052
Daytime population
99,620Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

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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 Saline 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

Other business types in Saline County

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

Questions

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

There are 202 sit-down restaurants on map listings in Saline County as of September 2026. 86 of them (43%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 60 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, up 17.7% from 2019. Official counts list 13 one-person businesses without payroll.

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

About $190.4M a year, or $3,792 per household. That is 7% below the U.S. average (an index of 93, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 202 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $942K per restaurant. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants. It is estimated from the incomes of the 50,203 households in Saline County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Saline County has 40.2 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 34% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $942K, 42% above the U.S. figure of $664K. At the national ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, Saline County would have about 287, against 202 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 837 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count rose 17.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.

How fast is Saline County, AR growing?

Population estimates put Saline County at 133,288 people in 2025, up 7.6% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 50,203 households. The median household income in Saline County is $79,046 a year, 2% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 22.7% 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. Saline County scores 80 for sit-down restaurants (high), #128 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Saline 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 Saline 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.