Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Georgia

Sit-down restaurants in Cherokee County, GA

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

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 78 out of 100: High

Ranked #168 of 2,405 scored counties
#13 of 124 scored counties in Georgia

Listings
472
186 chain locations (39%)
Official establishments
181
+4.0% since 2019
Household spending a year
$471.2M
On food away from home · $4,642 a household
Spending per listing
$998K
50% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
46.5
24% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
299,273
+11.6% since 2020

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

Cherokee County scores 78 (high) on the Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants, ranking #168 of 2,405 scored counties and #13 of 124 scored counties in Georgia. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for sit-down restaurants.

At $4,642 per household (14% above the U.S. average), households in Cherokee County spend about $471.2M a year on food away from home. Spread across 472 sit-down restaurants, that is $998K per restaurant, 50% above the U.S. figure of $664K. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants.

Cherokee County has 472 sit-down restaurants on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 39% of them, against 29% across the U.S. That is 46.5 per 10,000 households, 24% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.

In 2023, official counts showed 181 businesses with payroll in Cherokee County classed as full-service restaurants, up 4.0% from 2019. That is one for every 561 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 13 SBA-backed loans worth $8.2M have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Cherokee County. Population estimates show Cherokee County grew 11.6% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Cherokee County compares

The same measures for Georgia 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 Cherokee County, GA compared with Georgia and the U.S.
MeasureCherokee CountyGeorgiaU.S.
Listings per 10k households46.566.061.3
Spending per listing$998K$593K$664K
Households per official establishment561514500
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+4.0%+5.5%+1.5%
Population growth, 2020–2025+11.6%+5.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$4,642$3,917$4,070
Median household income$108,115$77,353$80,734
Groundwork market score7842

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
174 → 181+4.0% over the period
Employees, 2023
4,707
Annual payroll, 2023
$113.6M
One-person businesses, 2023
62Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
472186 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
710The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
13
Amount
$8.2M

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

Population, 2025 estimate
299,273+11.6% since 2020
Households
101,514
Median age
40.8
Homes lived in by their owners
77%
Vehicles per household
2.1
Land area
421 sq. mi.
People per square mile
668
Median household income
$108,115+30.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$131,625
Median home value
$435,100
Jobs located here
78,270
Daytime population
228,185Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

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Sit-down restaurants across Georgia

Every Georgia market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Georgia for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in Georgia, with Cherokee County marked.

Top counties in Georgia

Counties in Georgia ranked for sit-down restaurants by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Effingham County, GA929037.1$1.1M+14.1%#14 of 2,405
2Paulding County, GA9119732.8$1.3M+12.7%#17 of 2,405
3Pike County, GA892334.2$1.2M+10.5%#32 of 2,405
4Lee County, GA882923.6$1.7M+2.9%#35 of 2,405
5Long County, GA851219.5$1.7M+32.6%#59 of 2,405
6Oglethorpe County, GA841731.4$1.2M+10.4%#73 of 2,405
7Jones County, GA832523.2$1.6M+2.8%#81 of 2,405
8Forsyth County, GA8243348.6$1.1M+11.8%#93 of 2,405
9Jasper County, GA822033.5$1M+20.2%#94 of 2,405
10Monroe County, GA805653.1$762K+14.1%#133 of 2,405
13Cherokee County, GA7847246.5$998K+11.6%#168 of 2,405

Other business types in Cherokee County

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

Questions

How many sit-down restaurants are in Cherokee County, GA?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 472 sit-down restaurants in Cherokee County. 186 of them (39%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 181 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, up 4.0% from 2019. Official counts list 62 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Cherokee County, GA spend on food away from home?

About $471.2M a year, or $4,642 per household. That is 14% above the U.S. average (an index of 114, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 472 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $998K 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 101,514 households in Cherokee County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Cherokee County has 46.5 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 24% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $998K, 50% above the U.S. figure of $664K. At the U.S. ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, Cherokee County would have about 710, against 472 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 561 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count rose 4.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.

How fast is Cherokee County, GA growing?

Population estimates put Cherokee County at 299,273 people in 2025, up 11.6% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 101,514 households. Median household income in Cherokee County is $108,115, 34% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 30.7%, 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. Cherokee County scores 78 for sit-down restaurants (high), #168 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Cherokee 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 Cherokee 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.