Food and drink · Small-town market · Indiana
Sit-down restaurants in the Wabash, IN area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for sit-down restaurants in the Wabash, IN area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 59 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #173 of 538 scored small-town markets
#16 of 25 scored small-town markets based in Indiana
- Listings
- 56
- 21 chain locations (38%)
- Official establishments
- 21
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $45.2M
- On food away from home · $3,565 a household
- Spending per listing
- $807K
- 22% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 44.2
- 28% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 30,713
- −0.7% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in the Wabash area
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 the Wabash area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
As of September 2026, map listings count 56 sit-down restaurants in the Wabash area. Chain locations make up 38% of them, against 29% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 44.2, 28% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.
At $3,565 per household (12% below the U.S. average), households in the Wabash area spend about $45.2M a year on food away from home. That is about $807K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 22% 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 21 businesses with payroll in the Wabash area classed as full-service restaurants. That is one for every 604 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $135K has gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Wabash area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Wabash area declined 0.7%, against +3.1% for the U.S. For sit-down restaurants, the Wabash area has a Groundwork market score of 59 (upper middle): #173 of 538 scored small-town markets and #16 of 25 scored small-town markets based in Indiana.
How the Wabash area compares
The same measures for Indiana 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.
| Measure | Wabash area | Indiana | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 44.2 | 50.5 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $807K | $753K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 604 | 566 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +0.1% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.7% | +2.7% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,565 | $3,802 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $66,806 | $71,957 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 59 | 59 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 21
- Employees, 2023
- 244
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $4.3M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 0Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 5621 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 68The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $135K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Wabash area, 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 the Wabash area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 30,713−0.7% since 2020
- Households
- 12,674
- Median age
- 44.0
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 80%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 413 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 75
- Median household income
- $66,806+23.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $83,614
- Median home value
- $157,200
- Jobs located here
- 11,902
- Daytime population
- 29,095Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Wabash area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 the Wabash area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSit-down restaurants across Indiana
Every Indiana market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Indiana for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in Indiana, with the Wabash area marked.
Top small-town markets in Indiana
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Bedford, IN | 84 | 56 | 29.3 | $1.2M | +1.2% | #9 of 538 |
| 2Kendallville, IN | 79 | 71 | 39.1 | $936K | +1.0% | #22 of 538 |
| 3Greencastle, IN | 79 | 64 | 45.3 | $833K | +3.2% | #24 of 538 |
| 4Decatur, IN | 75 | 44 | 35.5 | $1M | +2.2% | #41 of 538 |
| 5Seymour, IN | 75 | 77 | 42.5 | $866K | +1.9% | #44 of 538 |
| 6Huntington, IN | 74 | 54 | 35.1 | $1M | +1.6% | #46 of 538 |
| 7Greensburg, IN | 72 | 49 | 45.7 | $822K | +0.4% | #62 of 538 |
| 8Auburn, IN | 71 | 75 | 43.9 | $845K | +2.9% | #70 of 538 |
| 9Washington, IN | 69 | 53 | 44.9 | $811K | +2.5% | #80 of 538 |
| 10Connersville, IN | 68 | 30 | 31.8 | $1M | +0.7% | #84 of 538 |
| 16Wabash, IN | 59 | 56 | 44.2 | $807K | −0.7% | #173 of 538 |
Other business types in the Wabash area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes51
- Sit-down restaurants59
- Fast food and sandwich shops40
- Pizza32
- Coffee shops and cafes43
- Bakeries and dessert shops44
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many sit-down restaurants are in the Wabash, IN area?
The Wabash area has 56 sit-down restaurants on map listings as of September 2026. 21 of them (38%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 21 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023.
How much do households in the Wabash, IN area spend on food away from home?
About $45.2M a year, or $3,565 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 56 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $807K per restaurant. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants. It is estimated from the incomes of the 12,674 households in the Wabash area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Wabash, IN area compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
The Wabash area has 44.2 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 28% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $807K, 22% above the U.S. figure of $664K. At the national ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, the Wabash area would have about 68, against 56 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 604 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S.
How fast is the Wabash, IN area growing?
Population estimates put the Wabash area at 30,713 people in 2025, down 0.7% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 12,674 households. The median household income in the Wabash area is $66,806 a year, 17% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 23.1% 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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. The Wabash area scores 59 for sit-down restaurants (upper middle), #173 of 538 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Wabash area. 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 the Wabash area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Wabash area?
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 the Wabash area. 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.