Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Michigan

Sit-down restaurants in Gladwin County, MI

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for sit-down restaurants in Gladwin County, MI, set against other counties and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 64 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #549 of 2,405 scored counties
#20 of 75 scored counties in Michigan

Listings
29
5 chain locations (17%)
Official establishments
19
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$37.1M
On food away from home · $3,286 a household
Spending per listing
$1.3M
93% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
25.7
58% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
26,077
+2.8% since 2020

See the sit-down restaurants around any address in Gladwin 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 Gladwin County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

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 Gladwin County spend about $37.1M a year on food away from home, or $3,286 per household, 19% below the U.S. average. That works out to $1.3M per restaurant, 93% above the U.S. figure of $664K. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants.

There are 29 sit-down restaurants on map listings in Gladwin County as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 17% of them, against 29% across the U.S. That is 25.7 per 10,000 households, 58% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.

In 2023, official counts showed 19 businesses with payroll in Gladwin County classed as full-service restaurants. That is one for every 594 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Gladwin County grew 2.8%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). For sit-down restaurants, Gladwin County has a Groundwork market score of 64 (upper middle): #549 of 2,405 scored counties and #20 of 75 scored counties in Michigan. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.

How Gladwin County compares

The same measures for Michigan 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 Gladwin County, MI compared with Michigan and the U.S.
MeasureGladwin CountyMichiganU.S.
Listings per 10k households25.747.161.3
Spending per listing$1.3M$823K$664K
Households per official establishment594566500
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a−0.1%+1.5%
Population growth, 2020–2025+2.8%+0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,286$3,875$4,070
Median household income$55,349$72,875$80,734
Groundwork market score6464

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
18 → 19
Employees, 2023
251
Annual payroll, 2023
$4.3M
One-person businesses, 2023
0Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
295 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
56The 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 Gladwin 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 Gladwin County

Population, 2025 estimate
26,077+2.8% since 2020
Households
11,280
Median age
50.0
Homes lived in by their owners
86%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
502 sq. mi.
People per square mile
51
Median household income
$55,349+24.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$74,057
Median home value
$162,300
Jobs located here
3,987
Daytime population
21,290Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Gladwin 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 Gladwin 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 Michigan

Every Michigan market ranked →

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

Top counties in Michigan

Counties in Michigan ranked for sit-down restaurants by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Clinton County, MI847323.1$1.8M+1.6%#68 of 2,405
2Ottawa County, MI8439835.8$1.2M+3.9%#72 of 2,405
3Livingston County, MI7927536.0$1.3M+1.7%#138 of 2,405
4Barry County, MI775422.1$1.8M+2.2%#182 of 2,405
5Cass County, MI765023.6$1.6M+0.2%#208 of 2,405
6Kalkaska County, MI762025.7$1.3M+4.3%#210 of 2,405
7Newaygo County, MI765226.5$1.3M+3.1%#212 of 2,405
8Lapeer County, MI7610630.4$1.3M+1.0%#213 of 2,405
9Midland County, MI7512836.6$1.1M+0.3%#236 of 2,405
10Montcalm County, MI747028.6$1.2M+4.1%#259 of 2,405
20Gladwin County, MI642925.7$1.3M+2.8%#549 of 2,405

Other business types in Gladwin County

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

Questions

How many sit-down restaurants are in Gladwin County, MI?

As of September 2026, map listings count 29 sit-down restaurants in Gladwin County. 5 of them (17%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 19 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023.

How much do households in Gladwin County, MI spend on food away from home?

About $37.1M a year, or $3,286 per household. That is 19% below the U.S. average (an index of 81, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 29 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $1.3M 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 11,280 households in Gladwin County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Gladwin County has 25.7 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 58% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $1.3M, 93% above the U.S. figure of $664K. At the U.S. ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, Gladwin County would have about 56, against 29 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 594 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S.

How fast is Gladwin County, MI growing?

Population estimates put Gladwin County at 26,077 people in 2025, up 2.8% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 11,280 households. Median household income in Gladwin County is $55,349, 31% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 24.1%, 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. Gladwin County scores 64 for sit-down restaurants (upper middle), #549 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Gladwin 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 Gladwin 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.