Food and drink · Small-town market · Louisiana
Sit-down restaurants in the Ruston, LA area
The sit-down restaurants in the Ruston, LA area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 30 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #467 of 538 scored small-town markets
#6 of 8 scored small-town markets based in Louisiana
- Listings
- 118
- 49 chain locations (42%)
- Official establishments
- 29
- −3.3% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $55.6M
- On food away from home · $3,005 a household
- Spending per listing
- $471K
- 29% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 63.8
- 4% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 48,360
- +0.1% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in the Ruston 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 Ruston 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
The Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants in the Ruston area is 30 (lower middle), #467 of 538 scored small-town markets and #6 of 8 scored small-town markets based in Louisiana. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
As of September 2026, map listings count 118 sit-down restaurants in the Ruston area. Chain locations make up 42% of them, against 29% across the U.S. That is 63.8 per 10,000 households, 4% above the U.S. rate of 61.3.
Households in the Ruston area spend about $55.6M a year on food away from home, or $3,005 per household, 26% below the U.S. average. That is about $471K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 29% 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.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in the Ruston area was 29 in 2023, down 3.3% from 2019. That is one for every 637 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Ruston area grew 0.1%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Ruston area compares
The same measures for Louisiana 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 | Ruston area | Louisiana | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 63.8 | 60.1 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $471K | $577K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 637 | 585 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −3.3% | +2.8% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +0.1% | −0.7% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,005 | $3,469 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $39,172 | $60,756 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 30 | 25 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 29−3.3% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 674
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $11.9M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 0Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 11849 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 84The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Ruston 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 Ruston area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 48,360+0.1% since 2020
- Households
- 18,487
- Median age
- 32.7
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 54%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 472 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 102
- Median household income
- $39,172+10.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $66,113
- Median home value
- $210,100
- Jobs located here
- 18,570
- Daytime population
- 48,307Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Ruston 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 Ruston 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 Louisiana
Every Louisiana market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Louisiana for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in Louisiana (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Ruston area marked.
Top small-town markets in Louisiana
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1DeRidder, LA | 80 | 42 | 30.6 | $1.2M | +0.2% | #16 of 538 |
| 2Opelousas, LA | 49 | 133 | 41.3 | $705K | −1.9% | #269 of 538 |
| 3New Iberia, LA | 48 | 120 | 44.7 | $717K | −4.6% | #286 of 538 |
| 4Bogalusa, LA | 48 | 78 | 44.0 | $670K | −0.9% | #290 of 538 |
| Natchez, MS-LA | 33 | 115 | 55.5 | $522K | −0.9% | #447 of 538 |
| 5Morgan City, LA | 30 | 107 | 58.0 | $537K | −5.3% | #466 of 538 |
| 6Ruston, LA | 30 | 118 | 63.8 | $471K | +0.1% | #467 of 538 |
| 7Minden, LA | 27 | 72 | 50.2 | $562K | −5.2% | #482 of 538 |
| 8Natchitoches, LA | 22 | 83 | 57.2 | $540K | −3.5% | #515 of 538 |
Other business types in the Ruston area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes21
- Sit-down restaurants30
- Fast food and sandwich shops17
- Pizza27
- Coffee shops and cafes23
- Bakeries and dessert shops23
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 Ruston, LA area?
The Ruston area has 118 sit-down restaurants on map listings as of September 2026. 49 of them (42%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 29 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, down 3.3% from 2019.
How much do households in the Ruston, LA area spend on food away from home?
About $55.6M a year, or $3,005 per household. That is 26% below the U.S. average (an index of 74, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 118 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $471K per restaurant. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants. It is estimated from the incomes of the 18,487 households in the Ruston area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Ruston, LA area compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
The Ruston area has 63.8 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 4% above the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $471K, 29% below the U.S. figure of $664K. At the national ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, the Ruston area would have about 84, against 118 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 637 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count fell 3.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.
How fast is the Ruston, LA area growing?
Population estimates put the Ruston area at 48,360 people in 2025, up 0.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 18,487 households. The median household income in the Ruston area is $39,172 a year, 51% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 10.5% 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 Ruston area scores 30 for sit-down restaurants (lower middle), #467 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 Ruston 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 Ruston area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Ruston 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 Ruston 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.