Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Kansas

Sit-down restaurants in Ellis County, KS

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

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 21 out of 100: Low

Ranked #2,293 of 2,405 scored counties
#37 of 38 scored counties in Kansas

Listings
92
40 chain locations (43%)
Official establishments
35
+25.0% since 2019
Household spending a year
$43M
On food away from home · $3,507 a household
Spending per listing
$467K
30% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
75.1
23% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
29,075
+0.4% since 2020

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

Ellis County scores 21 (low) on the Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants, ranking #2,293 of 2,405 scored counties and #37 of 38 scored counties in Kansas. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

At $3,507 per household (14% below the U.S. average), households in Ellis County spend about $43M a year on food away from home. That works out to $467K per restaurant, 30% below the U.S. figure of $664K. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants.

Ellis County has 92 sit-down restaurants on map listings as of September 2026. 40 of them (43%) are chain locations, against 29% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 75.1, 23% above the U.S. rate of 61.3.

In 2023, official counts showed 35 businesses with payroll in Ellis County classed as full-service restaurants, up 25.0% from 2019. That is one for every 350 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 3 SBA-backed loans worth $807K have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Ellis County. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Ellis County grew 0.4%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Ellis County compares

The same measures for Kansas 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 Ellis County, KS compared with Kansas and the U.S.
MeasureEllis CountyKansasU.S.
Listings per 10k households75.153.961.3
Spending per listing$467K$725K$664K
Households per official establishment350534500
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+25.0%+0.6%+1.5%
Population growth, 2020–2025+0.4%+1.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,507$3,910$4,070
Median household income$63,084$74,275$80,734
Groundwork market score2149

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
28 → 35+25.0% over the period
Employees, 2023
746
Annual payroll, 2023
$13.4M
One-person businesses, 2023
0Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
9240 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
65The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
3
Amount
$807K

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

Population, 2025 estimate
29,075+0.4% since 2020
Households
12,251
Median age
36.5
Homes lived in by their owners
63%
Vehicles per household
2.1
Land area
900 sq. mi.
People per square mile
32
Median household income
$63,084+19.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$89,365
Median home value
$216,300
Jobs located here
15,340
Daytime population
30,752Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Sit-down restaurants across Kansas

Every Kansas market ranked →

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

Top counties in Kansas

Counties in Kansas ranked for sit-down restaurants by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Pottawatomie County, KS813537.3$1.1M+6.9%#107 of 2,405
2Leavenworth County, KS8111939.5$1.1M+3.2%#112 of 2,405
3Miami County, KS795137.1$1.1M+5.9%#145 of 2,405
4Butler County, KS7810641.8$963K+3.1%#173 of 2,405
5Johnson County, KS711,30852.4$932K+4.2%#346 of 2,405
6Jackson County, KS672345.9$822K+1.5%#468 of 2,405
7Jefferson County, KS663344.5$910K−0.2%#492 of 2,405
8Dickinson County, KS603644.9$811K+1.4%#744 of 2,405
9McPherson County, KS585746.9$815K−0.4%#816 of 2,405
10Shawnee County, KS5835446.9$785K0.0%#823 of 2,405
37Ellis County, KS219275.1$467K+0.4%#2,293 of 2,405

Other business types in Ellis County

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

Questions

How many sit-down restaurants are in Ellis County, KS?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 92 sit-down restaurants in Ellis County. 40 of them (43%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 35 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, up 25.0% from 2019.

How much do households in Ellis County, KS spend on food away from home?

About $43M a year, or $3,507 per household. That is 14% below the U.S. average (an index of 86, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 92 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $467K 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 12,251 households in Ellis County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Ellis County has 75.1 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 23% above the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $467K, 30% below the U.S. figure of $664K. At the U.S. ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, Ellis County would have about 65, against 92 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 350 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count rose 25.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.

How fast is Ellis County, KS growing?

Population estimates put Ellis County at 29,075 people in 2025, up 0.4% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 12,251 households. Median household income in Ellis County is $63,084, 22% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 19.3%, 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. Ellis County scores 21 for sit-down restaurants (low), #2,293 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Ellis 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 Ellis 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.