Food and drink · Small-town market · Oklahoma
Sit-down restaurants in the Elk City, OK area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for sit-down restaurants in the Elk City, OK area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 22 out of 100: Low
Ranked #516 of 538 scored small-town markets
#16 of 17 scored small-town markets based in Oklahoma
- Listings
- 53
- 21 chain locations (40%)
- Official establishments
- 16
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $25.9M
- On food away from home · $3,163 a household
- Spending per listing
- $489K
- 26% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 64.7
- 6% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 22,159
- −0.7% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in the Elk 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 Elk 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
The Elk City area scores 22 (low) on the Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants, ranking #516 of 538 scored small-town markets and #16 of 17 scored small-town markets based in Oklahoma. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
As of September 2026, map listings count 53 sit-down restaurants in the Elk City area. Chain locations make up 40% of them, against 29% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 64.7, 6% above the U.S. rate of 61.3.
At $3,163 per household (22% below the U.S. average), households in the Elk City area spend about $25.9M a year on food away from home. That is about $489K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 26% 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 the Elk City area was 16 in 2023. That is one for every 512 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $272K have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Elk City area. Population estimates show the Elk City area declined 0.7% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Elk City area compares
The same measures for Oklahoma 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 | Elk City area | Oklahoma | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 64.7 | 58.8 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $489K | $599K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 512 | 522 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +3.2% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.7% | +4.0% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,163 | $3,519 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $53,328 | $65,039 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 22 | 36 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 16
- Employees, 2023
- 221
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $3.1M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 8Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 5321 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 39The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $272K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Elk 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 Elk City area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 22,159−0.7% since 2020
- Households
- 8,188
- Median age
- 36.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 68%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 902 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 25
- Median household income
- $53,328+5.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $73,431
- Median home value
- $143,500
- Jobs located here
- 8,119
- Daytime population
- 22,638Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Elk 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 Elk 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 Oklahoma
Every Oklahoma market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Oklahoma for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in Oklahoma, with the Elk City area marked.
Top small-town markets in Oklahoma
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Ada, OK | 63 | 62 | 41.0 | $821K | +1.2% | #131 of 538 |
| 2Bartlesville, OK | 57 | 102 | 48.7 | $711K | +2.7% | #197 of 538 |
| 3Duncan, OK | 55 | 85 | 48.4 | $698K | +3.4% | #217 of 538 |
| 4Shawnee, OK | 53 | 142 | 52.7 | $623K | +3.5% | #241 of 538 |
| 5Durant, OK | 47 | 115 | 62.5 | $518K | +10.9% | #307 of 538 |
| 6Tahlequah, OK | 39 | 107 | 57.2 | $551K | +4.5% | #388 of 538 |
| 7Ponca City, OK | 38 | 87 | 51.9 | $629K | −0.3% | #396 of 538 |
| 8Muskogee, OK | 37 | 131 | 50.9 | $601K | +0.7% | #404 of 538 |
| 9Miami, OK | 37 | 68 | 57.0 | $512K | +0.7% | #411 of 538 |
| 10Stillwater, OK | 36 | 186 | 57.0 | $555K | +2.8% | #416 of 538 |
| 16Elk City, OK | 22 | 53 | 64.7 | $489K | −0.7% | #516 of 538 |
Other business types in the Elk City area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes15
- Sit-down restaurants22
- Fast food and sandwich shops13
- Pizza32
- Coffee shops and cafes29
- Bakeries and dessert shops29
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 Elk City, OK area?
The Elk City area has 53 sit-down restaurants on map listings as of September 2026. 21 of them (40%) 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. Official counts list 8 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Elk City, OK area spend on food away from home?
About $25.9M a year, or $3,163 per household. That is 22% below the U.S. average (an index of 78, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 53 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $489K per restaurant. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants. It is estimated from the incomes of the 8,188 households in the Elk City area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Elk City, OK area compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
The Elk City area has 64.7 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 6% above the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $489K, 26% below the U.S. figure of $664K. At the national ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, the Elk City area would have about 39, against 53 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 512 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S.
How fast is the Elk City, OK area growing?
Population estimates put the Elk City area at 22,159 people in 2025, down 0.7% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 8,188 households. The median household income in the Elk City area is $53,328 a year, 34% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 5.1% 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. 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 Elk City area scores 22 for sit-down restaurants (low), #516 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 Elk 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 Elk City area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Elk 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 Elk 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.