Groundwork

Food and drink · County · North Dakota

Sit-down restaurants in Grand Forks County, ND

How Grand Forks County, ND 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 65 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #532 of 2,405 scored counties
#4 of 14 scored counties in North Dakota

Listings
136
60 chain locations (44%)
Official establishments
44
−15.4% since 2019
Household spending a year
$116.5M
On food away from home · $3,723 a household
Spending per listing
$857K
29% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
43.5
29% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
74,501
+1.9% since 2020

See the sit-down restaurants around any address in Grand Forks 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 Grand Forks 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

As of September 2026, map listings count 136 sit-down restaurants in Grand Forks County. 60 of them (44%) are chain locations, against 29% across the U.S. That comes to 43.5 for every 10,000 households, 29% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.

At $3,723 per household (9% below the U.S. average), households in Grand Forks County spend about $116.5M a year on food away from home. That works out to $857K per restaurant, 29% above 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.

Official counts show 44 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in Grand Forks County in 2023, down 15.4% from 2019. That is one for every 711 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Official counts also show 6 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $350K has gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Grand Forks County.

Population estimates show Grand Forks County grew 1.9% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants in Grand Forks County is 65 (upper middle), #532 of 2,405 scored counties and #4 of 14 scored counties in North Dakota. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.

How Grand Forks County compares

The same measures for North Dakota 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 Grand Forks County, ND compared with North Dakota and the U.S.
MeasureGrand Forks CountyNorth DakotaU.S.
Listings per 10k households43.550.361.3
Spending per listing$857K$784K$664K
Households per official establishment711569500
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−15.4%+0.9%+1.5%
Population growth, 2020–2025+1.9%+2.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,723$3,940$4,070
Median household income$68,075$76,657$80,734
Groundwork market score6570

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
52 → 44−15.4% over the period
Employees, 2023
1,480
Annual payroll, 2023
$32.2M
One-person businesses, 2023
6Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
13660 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
176The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
1
Amount
$350K

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

Population, 2025 estimate
74,501+1.9% since 2020
Households
31,295
Median age
33.2
Homes lived in by their owners
52%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
1,436 sq. mi.
People per square mile
51
Median household income
$68,075+26.0% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$92,591
Median home value
$252,700
Jobs located here
38,188
Daytime population
77,655Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Grand Forks 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 Grand Forks 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 Dakota

Every North Dakota market ranked →

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

Top counties in North Dakota

Counties in North Dakota ranked for sit-down restaurants by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Morton County, ND855136.6$1.1M+3.8%#64 of 2,405
2Burleigh County, ND7517642.6$990K+4.7%#243 of 2,405
3Cass County, ND6943051.2$772K+9.1%#414 of 2,405
4Grand Forks County, ND6513643.5$857K+1.9%#532 of 2,405
5McKenzie County, ND583456.7$813K+2.8%#818 of 2,405
6Ward County, ND5814149.4$807K−2.4%#820 of 2,405
7Barnes County, ND572346.9$774K−2.7%#865 of 2,405
8Stark County, ND556548.0$821K+0.5%#942 of 2,405
9Stutsman County, ND543436.0$990K−0.6%#972 of 2,405
10Richland County, ND533145.3$861K+1.2%#1,026 of 2,405

Other business types in Grand Forks 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 Grand Forks County, ND?

Grand Forks County has 136 sit-down restaurants on map listings as of September 2026. 60 of them (44%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 44 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, down 15.4% from 2019. Another 6 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in Grand Forks County, ND spend on food away from home?

About $116.5M a year, or $3,723 per household. That is 9% below the U.S. average (an index of 91, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 136 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $857K per restaurant. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants. It is estimated from the incomes of the 31,295 households in Grand Forks County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Grand Forks County, ND compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?

Grand Forks County has 43.5 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 29% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $857K, 29% above the U.S. figure of $664K. At the national ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, Grand Forks County would have about 176, against 136 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 711 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count fell 15.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.

How fast is Grand Forks County, ND growing?

Population estimates put Grand Forks County at 74,501 people in 2025, up 1.9% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 31,295 households. The median household income in Grand Forks County is $68,075 a year, 16% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 26.0% 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. Grand Forks County scores 65 for sit-down restaurants (upper middle), #532 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Grand Forks 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 Grand Forks County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Grand Forks 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.