Food and drink · County · Kansas
Sit-down restaurants in Riley County, KS
How Riley County, KS 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 44 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,469 of 2,405 scored counties
#18 of 38 scored counties in Kansas
- Listings
- 156
- 72 chain locations (46%)
- Official establishments
- 43
- −6.5% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $98.7M
- On food away from home · $3,565 a household
- Spending per listing
- $633K
- 5% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 56.3
- 8% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 72,598
- +0.8% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in Riley 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 Riley County. 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
Households in Riley County spend about $98.7M a year on food away from home, or $3,565 per household, 12% below the U.S. average. That works out to $633K per restaurant, 5% below the U.S. figure of $664K. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants.
Riley County has 156 sit-down restaurants on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 72 are chain locations, or 46%, against 29% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 56.3, 8% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.
In 2023, official counts showed 43 businesses with payroll in Riley County classed as full-service restaurants, down 6.5% from 2019. That is one for every 644 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Official counts list 4 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $5.3M have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Riley County.
Population estimates show Riley County grew 0.8% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). Riley County scores 44 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants, ranking #1,469 of 2,405 scored counties and #18 of 38 scored counties in Kansas.
How Riley 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.
| Measure | Riley County | Kansas | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 56.3 | 53.9 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $633K | $725K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 644 | 534 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −6.5% | +0.6% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +0.8% | +1.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,565 | $3,910 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $61,098 | $74,275 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 44 | 49 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 46 → 43−6.5% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,487
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $28.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 4Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 15672 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 149The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $5.3M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Riley 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 Riley County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 72,598+0.8% since 2020
- Households
- 27,695
- Median age
- 30.7
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 46%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 610 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 118
- Median household income
- $61,098+19.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $85,486
- Median home value
- $237,100
- Jobs located here
- 27,758
- Daytime population
- 75,612Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Riley 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 Riley County. 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 Kansas
Every Kansas market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Kansas for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in Kansas, with Riley County marked.
Top counties in Kansas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Pottawatomie County, KS | 81 | 35 | 37.3 | $1.1M | +6.9% | #107 of 2,405 |
| 2Leavenworth County, KS | 81 | 119 | 39.5 | $1.1M | +3.2% | #112 of 2,405 |
| 3Miami County, KS | 79 | 51 | 37.1 | $1.1M | +5.9% | #145 of 2,405 |
| 4Butler County, KS | 78 | 106 | 41.8 | $963K | +3.1% | #173 of 2,405 |
| 5Johnson County, KS | 71 | 1,308 | 52.4 | $932K | +4.2% | #346 of 2,405 |
| 6Jackson County, KS | 67 | 23 | 45.9 | $822K | +1.5% | #468 of 2,405 |
| 7Jefferson County, KS | 66 | 33 | 44.5 | $910K | −0.2% | #492 of 2,405 |
| 8Dickinson County, KS | 60 | 36 | 44.9 | $811K | +1.4% | #744 of 2,405 |
| 9McPherson County, KS | 58 | 57 | 46.9 | $815K | −0.4% | #816 of 2,405 |
| 10Shawnee County, KS | 58 | 354 | 46.9 | $785K | 0.0% | #823 of 2,405 |
| 18Riley County, KS | 44 | 156 | 56.3 | $633K | +0.8% | #1,469 of 2,405 |
Other business types in Riley County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes32
- Sit-down restaurants44
- Fast food and sandwich shops37
- Pizza40
- Coffee shops and cafes22
- Bakeries and dessert shops26
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 Riley County, KS?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 156 sit-down restaurants in Riley County. 72 of them (46%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 43 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, down 6.5% from 2019. Official counts also show 4 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Riley County, KS spend on food away from home?
About $98.7M 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 156 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $633K 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 27,695 households in Riley County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Riley County, KS compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
Riley County has 56.3 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 8% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $633K, 5% below the U.S. figure of $664K. At the U.S. ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, Riley County would have about 149, against 156 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 644 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count fell 6.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.
How fast is Riley County, KS growing?
Population estimates put Riley County at 72,598 people in 2025, up 0.8% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 27,695 households. Median household income in Riley County is $61,098, 24% 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. Riley County scores 44 for sit-down restaurants (lower middle), #1,469 of 2,405 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Riley 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 Riley County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Riley 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 Riley 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.