Groundwork

Food and drink · County · North Carolina

Sit-down restaurants in Martin County, NC

The sit-down restaurants in Martin County, NC, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 24 out of 100: Low

Ranked #2,218 of 2,405 scored counties
#93 of 96 scored counties in North Carolina

Listings
50
21 chain locations (42%)
Official establishments
16
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$28.3M
On food away from home · $2,983 a household
Spending per listing
$567K
15% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
52.6
14% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
21,601
−1.6% since 2020

See the sit-down restaurants around any address in Martin 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 Martin 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

For sit-down restaurants, Martin County has a Groundwork market score of 24 (low): #2,218 of 2,405 scored counties and #93 of 96 scored counties in North Carolina. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

As of September 2026, map listings count 50 sit-down restaurants in Martin County. Chain locations make up 42% of them, against 29% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 52.6, 14% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.

Household spending on food away from home in Martin County comes to about $28.3M a year: $2,983 per household, 27% below the U.S. average. That works out to $567K per restaurant, 15% 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 Martin County was 16 in 2023. That is one for every 594 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Population estimates show Martin County declined 1.6% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How Martin County compares

The same measures for North Carolina 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 Martin County, NC compared with North Carolina and the U.S.
MeasureMartin CountyNorth CarolinaU.S.
Listings per 10k households52.653.361.3
Spending per listing$567K$709K$664K
Households per official establishment594501500
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+6.8%+1.5%
Population growth, 2020–2025−1.6%+7.2%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$2,983$3,776$4,070
Median household income$48,578$72,388$80,734
Groundwork market score2451

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
14 → 16
Employees, 2023
275
Annual payroll, 2023
$3.2M
One-person businesses, 2023
0Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
5021 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
43The 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 Martin 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 Martin County

Population, 2025 estimate
21,601−1.6% since 2020
Households
9,502
Median age
45.9
Homes lived in by their owners
67%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
456 sq. mi.
People per square mile
47
Median household income
$48,578+21.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$65,879
Median home value
$109,700
Jobs located here
6,663
Daytime population
18,494Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Martin 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 Martin 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 North Carolina

Every North Carolina market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in North Carolina for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in North Carolina, with Martin County marked.

Top counties in North Carolina

Counties in North Carolina ranked for sit-down restaurants by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Camden County, NC921332.4$1.2M+8.8%#13 of 2,405
2Franklin County, NC897827.3$1.3M+18.8%#28 of 2,405
3Chatham County, NC8711735.5$1.3M+11.0%#49 of 2,405
4Hoke County, NC845428.0$1.2M+9.0%#70 of 2,405
5Union County, NC8434440.8$1.1M+11.7%#74 of 2,405
6Lincoln County, NC8214539.4$1M+13.2%#95 of 2,405
7Johnston County, NC8234840.7$972K+17.9%#96 of 2,405
8Harnett County, NC8116833.7$1.1M+12.3%#113 of 2,405
9Granville County, NC777734.3$1.1M+2.1%#189 of 2,405
10Person County, NC775534.2$1M+3.7%#193 of 2,405
93Martin County, NC245052.6$567K−1.6%#2,218 of 2,405

Other business types in Martin County

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

Questions

How many sit-down restaurants are in Martin County, NC?

Martin County has 50 sit-down restaurants on map listings as of September 2026. 21 of them (42%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 16 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023.

How much do households in Martin County, NC spend on food away from home?

About $28.3M a year, or $2,983 per household. That is 27% below the U.S. average (an index of 73, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 50 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $567K per restaurant. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants. It is estimated from the incomes of the 9,502 households in Martin County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Martin County has 52.6 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 14% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $567K, 15% below the U.S. figure of $664K. At the national ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, Martin County would have about 43, against 50 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 Martin County, NC growing?

Population estimates put Martin County at 21,601 people in 2025, down 1.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 9,502 households. The median household income in Martin County is $48,578 a year, 40% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 21.2% 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. 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. Martin County scores 24 for sit-down restaurants (low), #2,218 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Martin 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 Martin 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.