Groundwork

Food and drink · County · North Carolina

Sit-down restaurants in Mecklenburg County, NC

How Mecklenburg County, NC compares with other counties and the U.S. for sit-down restaurants: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 50 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #1,191 of 2,405 scored counties
#51 of 96 scored counties in North Carolina

Listings
3,171
1,050 chain locations (33%)
Official establishments
1,131
+9.3% since 2019
Household spending a year
$2B
On food away from home · $4,258 a household
Spending per listing
$626K
6% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
68.0
11% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
1,233,383
+10.5% since 2020

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

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

Map listings as of September 2026 show 3,171 sit-down restaurants in Mecklenburg County. Chain locations make up 33% of them, against 29% across the U.S. That comes to 68.0 for every 10,000 households, 11% above the U.S. rate of 61.3.

At $4,258 per household (5% above the U.S. average), households in Mecklenburg County spend about $2B a year on food away from home. Spread across 3,171 sit-down restaurants, that is $626K per restaurant, 6% 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 Mecklenburg County was 1,131 in 2023, up 9.3% from 2019. That is one for every 412 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Official counts also show 240 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 50 SBA-backed loans worth $36.8M have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Mecklenburg County.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Mecklenburg County grew 10.5%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). Mecklenburg County scores 50 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants, ranking #1,191 of 2,405 scored counties and #51 of 96 scored counties in North Carolina.

How Mecklenburg 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 Mecklenburg County, NC compared with North Carolina and the U.S.
MeasureMecklenburg CountyNorth CarolinaU.S.
Listings per 10k households68.053.361.3
Spending per listing$626K$709K$664K
Households per official establishment412501500
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+9.3%+6.8%+1.5%
Population growth, 2020–2025+10.5%+7.2%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$4,258$3,776$4,070
Median household income$87,005$72,388$80,734
Groundwork market score5051

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
1,035 → 1,131+9.3% over the period
Employees, 2023
26,745
Annual payroll, 2023
$750.8M
One-person businesses, 2023
240Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
3,1711,050 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
2,993The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
50
Amount
$36.8M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Mecklenburg 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 Mecklenburg County

Population, 2025 estimate
1,233,383+10.5% since 2020
Households
466,527
Median age
36.7
Homes lived in by their owners
55%
Vehicles per household
1.7
Land area
524 sq. mi.
People per square mile
2,205
Median household income
$87,005+30.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$128,768
Median home value
$406,800
Jobs located here
829,972
Daytime population
1,424,612Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Mecklenburg 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 Mecklenburg County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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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 Mecklenburg 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
51Mecklenburg County, NC503,17168.0$626K+10.5%#1,191 of 2,405

Other business types in Mecklenburg County

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

Funeral services

Questions

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

There are 3,171 sit-down restaurants on map listings in Mecklenburg County as of September 2026. 1,050 of them (33%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 1,131 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, up 9.3% from 2019. Another 240 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

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

About $2B a year, or $4,258 per household. That is 5% above the U.S. average (an index of 105, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 3,171 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $626K per restaurant. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants. It is estimated from the incomes of the 466,527 households in Mecklenburg County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Mecklenburg County has 68.0 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 11% above the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $626K, 6% below the U.S. figure of $664K. At the national ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, Mecklenburg County would have about 2,993, against 3,171 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 412 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count rose 9.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.

How fast is Mecklenburg County, NC growing?

Population estimates put Mecklenburg County at 1,233,383 people in 2025, up 10.5% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 466,527 households. The median household income in Mecklenburg County is $87,005 a year, 8% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 30.6% 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. Mecklenburg County scores 50 for sit-down restaurants (upper middle), #1,191 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Mecklenburg County?

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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.