Market rankings · Mississippi

Sit-down restaurants in Mississippi

Every metro area, small-town market and county in Mississippi, ranked by the Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants, with competitor counts and household spending for each.

Listings: 6,346; 2,108 chain locations (33%)
Official establishments: 1,752; +2.1% since 2019
Household spending a year: $3.8B; On food away from home
Listings per 10k households: 55.4; 10% below the U.S.
Spending per listing: $593K; 11% below the U.S.
Rank among states: #45 of 51; Market score 33 · Lower middle

A site report maps the sit-down restaurants on map listings around any address in Mississippi by name and distance, and the spending within reach.

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

Mississippi has 6,346 sit-down restaurants on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 33% of them, against 29% across the U.S. That comes to 55.4 for every 10,000 households, 10% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.

At $3,288 per household (19% below the U.S. average), households in Mississippi spend about $3.8B a year on food away from home. That works out to $593K per restaurant, 11% below the U.S. figure of $664K. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants.

Official counts show 1,752 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in Mississippi in 2023, up 2.1% from 2019. That is one for every 654 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Across the U.S., the count rose 1.5% over the same years. Since fiscal 2022, 61 SBA-backed loans worth $28.7M have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Mississippi.

Among the 50 states and DC, Mississippi ranks #45 for sit-down restaurants, with a Groundwork market score of 33 (lower middle). Of the 4 scored metro areas in or partly in Mississippi, the Jackson metro area scores highest (34). Of the 17 scored small-town markets in or partly in Mississippi, the Picayune area scores highest (64).

Every market in Mississippi for sit-down restaurants

Download the ranking (CSV)

Numbered by Groundwork market score among the markets based in Mississippi, highest first; the U.S. rank compares each market with every other of its kind. A metro area that crosses a state line is listed in each state it reaches, and numbered only in the state its page is under. How the score works.

Metro areas

Metro areas reaching Mississippi, ranked for sit-down restaurants by Groundwork market score
Market	Score	Listings	Per 10k households	Spending per listing	Population growth	U.S. rank
1Jackson, MS	34	1,416	59.5	$580K	−1.4%	#315 of 387
Memphis, TN-MS-AR	32	3,362	64.3	$565K	−0.3%	#331 of 387
2Hattiesburg, MS	29	398	66.2	$511K	+2.6%	#353 of 387
3Gulfport-Biloxi, MS	25	1,021	60.8	$566K	+3.5%	#363 of 387

Small-town markets

Small-town markets reaching Mississippi, ranked for sit-down restaurants by Groundwork market score
Market	Score	Listings	Per 10k households	Spending per listing	Population growth	U.S. rank
1Picayune, MS	64	100	45.7	$716K	+5.6%	#125 of 538
2Laurel, MS	56	130	41.1	$763K	−1.5%	#203 of 538
3Brookhaven, MS	50	67	50.9	$626K	+0.5%	#266 of 538
4Starkville, MS	42	124	47.9	$660K	+0.8%	#346 of 538
5McComb, MS	39	93	45.8	$627K	−2.6%	#387 of 538
6Meridian, MS	35	176	50.8	$610K	−3.2%	#424 of 538
7Tupelo, MS	34	314	60.6	$560K	+0.8%	#433 of 538
8Columbus, MS	33	148	54.9	$566K	−2.7%	#441 of 538
9Natchez, MS-LA	33	115	55.5	$522K	−0.9%	#447 of 538
10Oxford, MS	33	223	92.8	$384K	+5.3%	#449 of 538
11Greenwood, MS	28	79	54.6	$524K	−8.8%	#477 of 538
12Grenada, MS	27	72	57.1	$533K	−3.6%	#484 of 538
13Vicksburg, MS	27	122	72.7	$477K	−6.3%	#487 of 538
14Clarksdale, MS	25	44	52.4	$504K	−6.5%	#497 of 538
15Corinth, MS	23	80	55.3	$550K	−0.5%	#506 of 538
16Greenville, MS	20	111	64.9	$440K	−9.4%	#522 of 538
17Cleveland, MS	17	73	61.3	$455K	−8.3%	#530 of 538

Counties

Counties in Mississippi, ranked for sit-down restaurants by Groundwork market score
Market	Score	Listings	Per 10k households	Spending per listing	Population growth	U.S. rank
1Tate County, MS	70	40	36.3	$941K	+2.1%	#377 of 2,405
2Greene County, MS	64	8	19.5	$1.6M	+1.3%	#546 of 2,405
3Amite County, MS	63	6	10.3	$2.6M	−1.7%	#592 of 2,405
4Walthall County, MS	63	17	32.1	$967K	+0.4%	#609 of 2,405
5Leake County, MS	61	26	35.1	$846K	+1.9%	#707 of 2,405
6Itawamba County, MS	59	33	34.3	$952K	+1.3%	#768 of 2,405
7George County, MS	59	42	45.2	$747K	+8.1%	#785 of 2,405
8Rankin County, MS	59	346	57.5	$673K	+3.2%	#793 of 2,405
9Perry County, MS	58	10	21.5	$1.4M	+1.1%	#794 of 2,405
10Smith County, MS	57	15	26.8	$1.2M	−1.5%	#836 of 2,405
11Jasper County, MS	57	18	27.1	$1.1M	−3.5%	#839 of 2,405
12Tallahatchie County, MS	56	11	25.5	$1.1M	−14.0%	#884 of 2,405
13Stone County, MS	56	28	41.8	$778K	+7.2%	#909 of 2,405
14Pearl River County, MS	55	100	45.7	$716K	+5.6%	#960 of 2,405
15Marshall County, MS	55	61	46.3	$690K	+2.6%	#965 of 2,405
16DeSoto County, MS	54	430	60.6	$656K	+6.3%	#1,012 of 2,405
17Winston County, MS	53	27	37.8	$810K	−1.2%	#1,031 of 2,405
18Chickasaw County, MS	52	22	33.0	$830K	−2.0%	#1,077 of 2,405
19Union County, MS	52	44	44.7	$724K	+2.3%	#1,092 of 2,405
20Wayne County, MS	51	27	35.2	$799K	0.0%	#1,129 of 2,405
21Madison County, MS	51	286	65.1	$631K	+6.5%	#1,146 of 2,405
22Jackson County, MS	50	309	53.6	$660K	+3.0%	#1,182 of 2,405
23Newton County, MS	49	23	29.8	$1M	−1.4%	#1,194 of 2,405
24Holmes County, MS	49	20	32.5	$832K	−8.4%	#1,201 of 2,405
25Covington County, MS	49	28	38.2	$794K	−2.2%	#1,205 of 2,405

Show all 82 counties

Counties in Mississippi, ranked for sit-down restaurants by Groundwork market score, continued
Market	Score	Listings	Per 10k households	Spending per listing	Population growth	U.S. rank
26Prentiss County, MS	49	41	42.7	$731K	+1.3%	#1,224 of 2,405
27Lawrence County, MS	47	17	38.6	$751K	−1.4%	#1,303 of 2,405
28Jones County, MS	47	112	44.9	$713K	−1.0%	#1,313 of 2,405
29Lamar County, MS	46	165	65.0	$567K	+4.7%	#1,388 of 2,405
30Tippah County, MS	45	33	41.2	$737K	−1.6%	#1,411 of 2,405
31Monroe County, MS	43	60	43.2	$722K	−2.4%	#1,487 of 2,405
32Lincoln County, MS	42	67	50.9	$626K	+0.5%	#1,550 of 2,405
33Pontotoc County, MS	42	66	55.8	$567K	+2.9%	#1,565 of 2,405
34Simpson County, MS	41	51	53.4	$603K	−1.5%	#1,598 of 2,405
35Tishomingo County, MS	40	35	39.6	$801K	−1.1%	#1,608 of 2,405
36Yalobusha County, MS	40	23	46.0	$654K	−0.5%	#1,636 of 2,405
37Scott County, MS	40	45	46.5	$625K	+0.4%	#1,643 of 2,405
38Hancock County, MS	37	109	53.9	$666K	+1.6%	#1,758 of 2,405
39Calhoun County, MS	36	25	44.6	$627K	−4.4%	#1,802 of 2,405
40Marion County, MS	36	46	50.4	$579K	−1.5%	#1,807 of 2,405
41Neshoba County, MS	35	54	52.5	$598K	−0.9%	#1,840 of 2,405
42Attala County, MS	34	25	37.7	$832K	−4.0%	#1,861 of 2,405
43Panola County, MS	34	59	47.9	$632K	−1.4%	#1,877 of 2,405
44Clay County, MS	33	38	48.7	$578K	−2.0%	#1,924 of 2,405
45Lauderdale County, MS	31	151	52.6	$594K	−3.2%	#1,999 of 2,405
46Copiah County, MS	31	54	53.7	$575K	−2.7%	#2,003 of 2,405
47Lafayette County, MS	31	200	105.0	$353K	+6.6%	#2,024 of 2,405
48Sunflower County, MS	30	38	47.3	$578K	−10.9%	#2,042 of 2,405
49Oktibbeha County, MS	29	112	51.3	$615K	+0.4%	#2,074 of 2,405
50Jefferson Davis County, MS	28	17	38.2	$745K	−2.9%	#2,098 of 2,405
51Yazoo County, MS	28	46	52.5	$543K	−14.0%	#2,119 of 2,405
52Harrison County, MS	28	575	69.0	$487K	+4.0%	#2,127 of 2,405
53Hinds County, MS	28	568	63.4	$486K	−6.6%	#2,128 of 2,405
54Lowndes County, MS	26	129	56.1	$566K	−2.4%	#2,176 of 2,405
55Adams County, MS	26	73	63.7	$457K	+2.2%	#2,184 of 2,405
56Pike County, MS	25	76	50.6	$551K	−3.7%	#2,200 of 2,405
57Clarke County, MS	24	25	42.1	$707K	−2.8%	#2,213 of 2,405
58Warren County, MS	24	122	72.7	$477K	−6.3%	#2,230 of 2,405
59Lee County, MS	23	240	73.6	$476K	+0.5%	#2,253 of 2,405
60Forrest County, MS	22	223	74.0	$432K	+1.1%	#2,281 of 2,405
61Coahoma County, MS	21	44	52.4	$504K	−6.5%	#2,289 of 2,405
62Alcorn County, MS	20	80	55.3	$550K	−0.5%	#2,301 of 2,405
63Grenada County, MS	19	53	62.6	$495K	−3.3%	#2,326 of 2,405
64Washington County, MS	17	111	64.9	$440K	−9.4%	#2,355 of 2,405
65Leflore County, MS	17	66	64.7	$427K	−9.4%	#2,356 of 2,405
66Bolivar County, MS	16	73	61.3	$455K	−8.3%	#2,366 of 2,405
67Noxubee County, MS	10	19	48.2	$566K	−4.2%	#2,393 of 2,405
Webster County, MS	Not scored	12	29.5	$1.1M	+2.6%
Carroll County, MS	Not scored	13	30.5	$1M	−7.2%
Montgomery County, MS	Not scored	19	45.9	$640K	−4.5%
Tunica County, MS	Not scored	49	128.9	$220K	−9.4%
Kemper County, MS	Not scored	4	12.4	$2.3M	−4.1%
Claiborne County, MS	Not scored	15	49.9	$492K	−11.4%
Wilkinson County, MS	Not scored	18	56.5	$448K	−11.0%
Choctaw County, MS	Not scored	9	26.0	$1.1M	−1.9%
Franklin County, MS	Not scored	10	32.5	$953K	−2.2%
Benton County, MS	Not scored	8	26.0	$1.1M	−2.1%
Humphreys County, MS	Not scored	17	58.6	$451K	−9.5%
Jefferson County, MS	Not scored	10	40.1	$705K	−5.8%
Quitman County, MS	Not scored	12	45.4	$574K	−12.9%
Sharkey County, MS	Not scored	6	42.2	$645K	−17.9%
Issaquena County, MS	Not scored	1	28.6	$851K	−4.7%

Markets with fewer than 5 sit-down restaurants on map listings, and counties under 10,000 people, aren’t scored; they’re listed last in each table.

Questions

How many sit-down restaurants are in Mississippi?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 6,346 sit-down restaurants in Mississippi. 2,108 of them (33%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 1,752 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, up 2.1% from 2019. Official counts list 589 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Mississippi spend on food away from home?

About $3.8B a year, or $3,288 per household. That is 19% below the U.S. average (an index of 81, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 6,346 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $593K 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 1,145,431 households in Mississippi and national spending patterns by income.

How does Mississippi compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?

Mississippi has 55.4 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 10% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $593K, 11% below the U.S. figure of $664K. At the U.S. ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, Mississippi would have about 5,675, against 6,346 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 654 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count rose 2.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.

Which market in Mississippi has the highest market score for sit-down restaurants?

Among 4 scored metro areas in or partly in Mississippi, the Jackson metro area scores highest, at 34 (lower middle). Among 17 scored small-town markets in or partly in Mississippi, the Picayune area scores highest, at 64 (upper middle). Among 67 scored counties in Mississippi, Tate County scores highest, at 70 (upper middle). Scores compare each market with others of its kind across the U.S.

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. Mississippi scores 33 for sit-down restaurants (lower middle), #45 of the 50 states and DC.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Mississippi. 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.

Restaurants and cafes11,414 listings
Fast food and sandwich shops1,923 listings
Pizza637 listings
Coffee shops and cafes1,056 listings
Bakeries and dessert shops966 listings

Screening a site or an acquisition in Mississippi?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

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