Food and drink · Small-town market · North Carolina
Sit-down restaurants in the Morehead City, NC area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for sit-down restaurants in the Morehead City, NC area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 38 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #401 of 538 scored small-town markets
#19 of 23 scored small-town markets based in North Carolina
- Listings
- 244
- 58 chain locations (24%)
- Official establishments
- 121
- +12.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $119.7M
- On food away from home · $3,745 a household
- Spending per listing
- $491K
- 26% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 76.3
- 24% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 70,469
- +4.1% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in the Morehead City 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 Morehead City 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
Household spending on food away from home in the Morehead City area comes to about $119.7M a year: $3,745 per household, 8% below the U.S. average. Spread across 244 sit-down restaurants, that is $491K per restaurant, 26% below the U.S. figure of $664K. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants.
There are 244 sit-down restaurants on map listings in the Morehead City area as of September 2026. 58 of them (24%) are chain locations, against 29% across the U.S. That comes to 76.3 for every 10,000 households, 24% above the U.S. rate of 61.3.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in the Morehead City area was 121 in 2023, up 12.0% from 2019. That is one for every 264 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Official counts also show 17 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $2.3M have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Morehead City area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Morehead City area grew 4.1%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For sit-down restaurants, the Morehead City area has a Groundwork market score of 38 (lower middle): #401 of 538 scored small-town markets and #19 of 23 scored small-town markets based in North Carolina.
How the Morehead City area 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.
| Measure | Morehead City area | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 76.3 | 53.3 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $491K | $709K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 264 | 501 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +12.0% | +6.8% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +4.1% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,745 | $3,776 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $72,322 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 38 | 51 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 121+12.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 2,319
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $61.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 17Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 24458 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 180The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $2.3M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Morehead City 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 Morehead City area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 70,469+4.1% since 2020
- Households
- 31,977
- Median age
- 49.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 75%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 508 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 136
- Median household income
- $72,322+26.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $99,351
- Median home value
- $333,300
- Jobs located here
- 23,748
- Daytime population
- 65,592Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Morehead City area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 Morehead City 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 North Carolina
Every North Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in North Carolina for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in North Carolina, with the Morehead City area marked.
Top small-town markets in North Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Anderson Creek, NC | 89 | 168 | 33.7 | $1.1M | +12.3% | #4 of 538 |
| 2New Bern, NC | 63 | 238 | 45.4 | $751K | +3.6% | #135 of 538 |
| 3Marion, NC | 61 | 69 | 37.0 | $864K | +1.5% | #151 of 538 |
| 4Shelby-Kings Mountain, NC | 58 | 178 | 45.8 | $715K | +3.4% | #188 of 538 |
| 5North Wilkesboro, NC | 56 | 105 | 38.7 | $776K | +0.6% | #201 of 538 |
| 6Laurinburg, NC | 54 | 50 | 39.7 | $743K | −0.3% | #221 of 538 |
| 7Sanford, NC | 53 | 128 | 50.9 | $671K | +10.8% | #238 of 538 |
| 8Albemarle, NC | 50 | 131 | 51.9 | $650K | +9.8% | #265 of 538 |
| 9Wilson, NC | 49 | 159 | 48.1 | $670K | +1.7% | #272 of 538 |
| 10Kinston, NC | 49 | 110 | 47.1 | $623K | +1.4% | #276 of 538 |
| 19Morehead City, NC | 38 | 244 | 76.3 | $491K | +4.1% | #401 of 538 |
Other business types in the Morehead City area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes37
- Sit-down restaurants38
- Fast food and sandwich shops50
- Pizza56
- Coffee shops and cafes42
- Bakeries and dessert shops39
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 Morehead City, NC area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 244 sit-down restaurants in the Morehead City area. 58 of them (24%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 121 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, up 12.0% from 2019. Another 17 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Morehead City, NC area spend on food away from home?
About $119.7M a year, or $3,745 per household. That is 8% below the U.S. average (an index of 92, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 244 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $491K 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 31,977 households in the Morehead City area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Morehead City, NC area compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
The Morehead City area has 76.3 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 24% above the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $491K, 26% below the U.S. figure of $664K. At the U.S. ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, the Morehead City area would have about 180, against 244 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 264 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count rose 12.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.
How fast is the Morehead City, NC area growing?
Population estimates put the Morehead City area at 70,469 people in 2025, up 4.1% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 31,977 households. Median household income in the Morehead City area is $72,322, 10% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 26.5%, 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Morehead City area scores 38 for sit-down restaurants (lower middle), #401 of 538 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Morehead City 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 Morehead City area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Morehead City 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 Morehead City 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.