Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Illinois

Sit-down restaurants in Vermilion County, IL

How Vermilion County, IL 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 43 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,489 of 2,405 scored counties
#41 of 87 scored counties in Illinois

Listings
140
56 chain locations (40%)
Official establishments
41
−14.6% since 2019
Household spending a year
$100.7M
On food away from home · $3,348 a household
Spending per listing
$719K
8% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
46.5
24% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
71,259
−3.7% since 2020

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

Households in Vermilion County spend about $100.7M a year on food away from home, or $3,348 per household, 18% below the U.S. average. That works out to $719K per restaurant, 8% above the U.S. figure of $664K. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants.

There are 140 sit-down restaurants on map listings in Vermilion County as of September 2026. Of those, 56 are chain locations, or 40%, against 29% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 46.5, 24% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.

In 2023, official counts showed 41 businesses with payroll in Vermilion County classed as full-service restaurants, down 14.6% from 2019. That is one for every 734 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Official counts list 7 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $2.3M have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Vermilion County.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Vermilion County declined 3.7%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants in Vermilion County is 43 (lower middle), #1,489 of 2,405 scored counties and #41 of 87 scored counties in Illinois.

How Vermilion County compares

The same measures for Illinois 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 Vermilion County, IL compared with Illinois and the U.S.
MeasureVermilion CountyIllinoisU.S.
Listings per 10k households46.562.061.3
Spending per listing$719K$680K$664K
Households per official establishment734507500
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−14.6%+0.4%+1.5%
Population growth, 2020–2025−3.7%−0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,348$4,215$4,070
Median household income$56,877$83,390$80,734
Groundwork market score4341

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
48 → 41−14.6% over the period
Employees, 2023
657
Annual payroll, 2023
$12.7M
One-person businesses, 2023
7Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
14056 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
152The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
4
Amount
$2.3M

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

Population, 2025 estimate
71,259−3.7% since 2020
Households
30,084
Median age
41.7
Homes lived in by their owners
70%
Vehicles per household
1.7
Land area
898 sq. mi.
People per square mile
81
Median household income
$56,877+22.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$75,148
Median home value
$97,200
Jobs located here
24,379
Daytime population
64,835Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

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Sit-down restaurants across Illinois

Every Illinois market ranked →

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

Top counties in Illinois

Counties in Illinois ranked for sit-down restaurants by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Kendall County, IL8120745.6$1.1M+9.9%#114 of 2,405
2Boone County, IL787538.5$1.1M+0.4%#162 of 2,405
3Menard County, IL751426.8$1.5M−3.3%#231 of 2,405
4Piatt County, IL742739.0$1.1M+0.6%#263 of 2,405
5Woodford County, IL705839.5$1.1M−0.8%#365 of 2,405
6Will County, IL701,30753.5$898K+2.2%#382 of 2,405
7McHenry County, IL6754846.6$1M+2.5%#452 of 2,405
8Moultrie County, IL622746.4$801K−0.8%#676 of 2,405
9Monroe County, IL606446.2$1M−0.3%#729 of 2,405
10Cumberland County, IL601638.3$955K−2.1%#730 of 2,405
41Vermilion County, IL4314046.5$719K−3.7%#1,489 of 2,405

Other business types in Vermilion County

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

Questions

How many sit-down restaurants are in Vermilion County, IL?

As of September 2026, map listings count 140 sit-down restaurants in Vermilion County. 56 of them (40%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 41 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, down 14.6% from 2019. Official counts also show 7 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Vermilion County, IL spend on food away from home?

About $100.7M a year, or $3,348 per household. That is 18% below the U.S. average (an index of 82, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 140 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $719K 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 30,084 households in Vermilion County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Vermilion County has 46.5 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 24% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $719K, 8% above the U.S. figure of $664K. At the U.S. ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, Vermilion County would have about 152, against 140 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 734 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count fell 14.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.

How fast is Vermilion County, IL growing?

Population estimates put Vermilion County at 71,259 people in 2025, down 3.7% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 30,084 households. Median household income in Vermilion County is $56,877, 30% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 22.3%, 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. Vermilion County scores 43 for sit-down restaurants (lower middle), #1,489 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Vermilion 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 Vermilion 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.