Food and drink · Metro area · Missouri
Sit-down restaurants in the Cape Girardeau, MO-IL metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for sit-down restaurants in the Cape Girardeau, MO-IL metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 23 out of 100: Low
Ranked #371 of 387 scored metro areas
#8 of 8 scored metro areas based in Missouri
- Listings
- 245
- 102 chain locations (42%)
- Official establishments
- 85
- +2.4% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $137.5M
- On food away from home · $3,589 a household
- Spending per listing
- $561K
- 15% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 64.0
- 4% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 99,215
- +1.7% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in the Cape Girardeau metro 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 Cape Girardeau metro 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 Cape Girardeau metro area scores 23 (low) on the Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants, ranking #371 of 387 scored metro areas and #8 of 8 scored metro areas based in Missouri. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
At $3,589 per household (12% below the U.S. average), households in the Cape Girardeau metro area spend about $137.5M a year on food away from home. That works out to $561K per restaurant, 15% below the U.S. figure of $664K. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants.
The Cape Girardeau metro area has 245 sit-down restaurants on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 42% of them, against 29% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 64.0, 4% above the U.S. rate of 61.3.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in the Cape Girardeau metro area was 85 in 2023, up 2.4% from 2019. That is one for every 451 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 3 SBA-backed loans worth $1.2M have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Cape Girardeau metro area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Cape Girardeau metro area grew 1.7%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Cape Girardeau metro area compares
The same measures for Missouri 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 | Cape Girardeau metro area | Missouri | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 64.0 | 53.7 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $561K | $708K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 451 | 555 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +2.4% | −2.3% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.7% | +1.9% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,589 | $3,799 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $66,759 | $70,702 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 23 | 45 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 85+2.4% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,967
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $39M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 11Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 245102 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 207The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 3
- Amount
- $1.2M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Cape Girardeau metro 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 Cape Girardeau metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 99,215+1.7% since 2020
- Households
- 38,299
- Median age
- 40.0
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 69%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 1,432 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 69
- Median household income
- $66,759+29.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $86,168
- Median home value
- $208,400
- Jobs located here
- 42,124
- Daytime population
- 96,665Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Cape Girardeau metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 Cape Girardeau metro 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 Missouri
Every Missouri market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Missouri for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in Missouri, with the Cape Girardeau metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Missouri
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Kansas City, MO-KS | 72 | 4,654 | 52.0 | $803K | +3.4% | #38 of 387 |
| 2St. Louis, MO-IL | 60 | 6,121 | 52.7 | $779K | −0.2% | #111 of 387 |
| 3Jefferson City, MO | 55 | 300 | 51.2 | $738K | +2.2% | #143 of 387 |
| 4St. Joseph, MO-KS | 54 | 208 | 44.4 | $794K | −2.0% | #151 of 387 |
| 5Columbia, MO | 54 | 471 | 54.5 | $705K | +3.9% | #160 of 387 |
| 6Springfield, MO | 52 | 1,014 | 51.0 | $701K | +5.1% | #172 of 387 |
| 7Joplin, MO-KS | 32 | 451 | 56.7 | $603K | +3.9% | #328 of 387 |
| 8Cape Girardeau, MO-IL | 23 | 245 | 64.0 | $561K | +1.7% | #371 of 387 |
Other business types in the Cape Girardeau metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes24
- Sit-down restaurants23
- Fast food and sandwich shops31
- Pizza21
- Coffee shops and cafes40
- Bakeries and dessert shops48
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 Cape Girardeau, MO-IL metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 245 sit-down restaurants in the Cape Girardeau metro area. 102 of them (42%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 85 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, up 2.4% from 2019. Another 11 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Cape Girardeau, MO-IL metro area spend on food away from home?
About $137.5M a year, or $3,589 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 245 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $561K 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 38,299 households in the Cape Girardeau metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Cape Girardeau, MO-IL metro area compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
The Cape Girardeau metro area has 64.0 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 4% above the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $561K, 15% below the U.S. figure of $664K. At the U.S. ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, the Cape Girardeau metro area would have about 207, against 245 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 451 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count rose 2.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.
How fast is the Cape Girardeau, MO-IL metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Cape Girardeau metro area at 99,215 people in 2025, up 1.7% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 38,299 households. Median household income in the Cape Girardeau metro area is $66,759, 17% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 29.8%, 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. The Cape Girardeau metro area scores 23 for sit-down restaurants (low), #371 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Cape Girardeau metro 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 Cape Girardeau metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Cape Girardeau metro 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 Cape Girardeau metro 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.