Food and drink · Small-town market · North Dakota
Sit-down restaurants in the Wahpeton, ND-MN area
How the Wahpeton, ND-MN area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for sit-down restaurants: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 67 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #90 of 538 scored small-town markets
#1 of 4 scored small-town markets based in North Dakota
- Listings
- 41
- 10 chain locations (24%)
- Official establishments
- 17
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $36.3M
- On food away from home · $3,824 a household
- Spending per listing
- $886K
- 34% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 43.1
- 30% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 23,019
- 0.0% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in the Wahpeton 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 Wahpeton 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 Wahpeton area comes to about $36.3M a year: $3,824 per household, 6% below the U.S. average. That works out to $886K per restaurant, 34% above the U.S. figure of $664K. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants.
There are 41 sit-down restaurants on map listings in the Wahpeton area as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 24% of them, against 29% across the U.S. That comes to 43.1 for every 10,000 households, 30% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.
In 2023, official counts showed 17 businesses with payroll in the Wahpeton area classed as full-service restaurants. That is one for every 559 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Another 3 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
Population estimates put the population change in the Wahpeton area from 2020 to 2025 at 0.0%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Wahpeton area scores 67 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants, ranking #90 of 538 scored small-town markets and #1 of 4 scored small-town markets based in North Dakota. That puts it in the top quarter of small-town markets.
How the Wahpeton area 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.
| Measure | Wahpeton area | North Dakota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 43.1 | 50.3 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $886K | $784K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 559 | 569 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +0.9% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | 0.0% | +2.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,824 | $3,940 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $73,734 | $76,657 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 67 | 70 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 17
- Employees, 2023
- 313
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $5.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 3Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 4110 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 55The 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 the Wahpeton 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 Wahpeton area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 23,0190.0% since 2020
- Households
- 9,504
- Median age
- 39.7
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 71%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 2,187 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 10
- Median household income
- $73,734+20.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $95,848
- Median home value
- $183,300
- Jobs located here
- 9,601
- Daytime population
- 21,383Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Wahpeton 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 Wahpeton 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 Dakota
Every North Dakota market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in North Dakota for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in North Dakota, with the Wahpeton area marked.
Top small-town markets in North Dakota
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Wahpeton, ND-MN | 67 | 41 | 43.1 | $886K | 0.0% | #90 of 538 |
| 2Jamestown, ND | 61 | 34 | 36.0 | $990K | −0.6% | #146 of 538 |
| 3Dickinson, ND | 61 | 76 | 49.0 | $819K | +0.7% | #152 of 538 |
| 4Williston, ND | 61 | 95 | 62.7 | $681K | +1.4% | #159 of 538 |
Other business types in the Wahpeton area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes73
- Sit-down restaurants67
- Fast food and sandwich shops83
- Pizza69
- Coffee shops and cafes50
- Bakeries and dessert shops69
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 Wahpeton, ND-MN area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 41 sit-down restaurants in the Wahpeton area. 10 of them (24%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 17 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023. Official counts list 3 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Wahpeton, ND-MN area spend on food away from home?
About $36.3M a year, or $3,824 per household. That is 6% below the U.S. average (an index of 94, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 41 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $886K 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 9,504 households in the Wahpeton area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Wahpeton, ND-MN area compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
The Wahpeton area has 43.1 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 30% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $886K, 34% above the U.S. figure of $664K. At the U.S. ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, the Wahpeton area would have about 55, against 41 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 559 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S.
How fast is the Wahpeton, ND-MN area growing?
Population estimates put the Wahpeton area at 23,019 people in 2025, unchanged since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 9,504 households. Median household income in the Wahpeton area is $73,734, 9% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 20.6%, 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 Wahpeton area scores 67 for sit-down restaurants (upper middle), #90 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 Wahpeton 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 Wahpeton area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Wahpeton 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 Wahpeton 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.