Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Georgia

Sit-down restaurants in DeKalb County, GA

The sit-down restaurants in DeKalb County, GA, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 39 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,699 of 2,405 scored counties
#82 of 124 scored counties in Georgia

Listings
2,137
582 chain locations (27%)
Official establishments
588
+2.6% since 2019
Household spending a year
$1.2B
On food away from home · $4,137 a household
Spending per listing
$556K
16% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
74.4
21% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
774,394
+1.3% since 2020

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

Map listings as of September 2026 show 2,137 sit-down restaurants in DeKalb County. Chain locations make up 27% of them, against 29% across the U.S. That comes to 74.4 for every 10,000 households, 21% above the U.S. rate of 61.3.

Households in DeKalb County spend about $1.2B a year on food away from home, or $4,137 per household, 2% above the U.S. average. That is about $556K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 16% below 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.

Official counts show 588 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in DeKalb County in 2023, up 2.6% from 2019. That is one for every 489 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Official counts list 268 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 45 SBA-backed loans worth $39.6M have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in DeKalb County.

Population estimates put the population change in DeKalb County from 2020 to 2025 at +1.3%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). For sit-down restaurants, DeKalb County has a Groundwork market score of 39 (lower middle): #1,699 of 2,405 scored counties and #82 of 124 scored counties in Georgia.

How DeKalb 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 DeKalb County, GA compared with Georgia and the U.S.
MeasureDeKalb CountyGeorgiaU.S.
Listings per 10k households74.466.061.3
Spending per listing$556K$593K$664K
Households per official establishment489514500
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+2.6%+5.5%+1.5%
Population growth, 2020–2025+1.3%+5.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$4,137$3,917$4,070
Median household income$80,644$77,353$80,734
Groundwork market score3942

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
573 → 588+2.6% over the period
Employees, 2023
11,012
Annual payroll, 2023
$301.6M
One-person businesses, 2023
268Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
2,137582 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
1,791The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
45
Amount
$39.6M

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

Population, 2025 estimate
774,394+1.3% since 2020
Households
287,239
Median age
37.7
Homes lived in by their owners
59%
Vehicles per household
1.6
Land area
268 sq. mi.
People per square mile
2,860
Median household income
$80,644+29.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$119,811
Median home value
$357,800
Jobs located here
346,946
Daytime population
767,907Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in DeKalb 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 DeKalb 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 DeKalb 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
82DeKalb County, GA392,13774.4$556K+1.3%#1,699 of 2,405

Other business types in DeKalb County

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

Questions

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

There are 2,137 sit-down restaurants on map listings in DeKalb County as of September 2026. 582 of them (27%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 588 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, up 2.6% from 2019. Official counts also show 268 one-person businesses without payroll.

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

About $1.2B a year, or $4,137 per household. That is 2% above the U.S. average (an index of 102, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 2,137 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $556K per restaurant. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants. It is estimated from the incomes of the 287,239 households in DeKalb County and national spending patterns by income.

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

DeKalb County has 74.4 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 21% above the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $556K, 16% below the U.S. figure of $664K. At the national ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, DeKalb County would have about 1,791, against 2,137 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 489 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count rose 2.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.

How fast is DeKalb County, GA growing?

Population estimates put DeKalb County at 774,394 people in 2025, up 1.3% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 287,239 households. The median household income in DeKalb County is $80,644 a year, in line with the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 29.2% 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. DeKalb County scores 39 for sit-down restaurants (lower middle), #1,699 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in DeKalb 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 DeKalb 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.