Food and drink · County · Oregon
Sit-down restaurants in Wasco County, OR
How Wasco County, OR 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 20 out of 100: Low
Ranked #2,302 of 2,405 scored counties
#24 of 29 scored counties in Oregon
- Listings
- 68
- 16 chain locations (24%)
- Official establishments
- 29
- 0.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $36.6M
- On food away from home · $3,464 a household
- Spending per listing
- $538K
- 19% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 64.4
- 5% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 26,310
- −1.1% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in Wasco 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 Wasco County. 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 Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants in Wasco County is 20 (low), #2,302 of 2,405 scored counties and #24 of 29 scored counties in Oregon. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
At $3,464 per household (15% below the U.S. average), households in Wasco County spend about $36.6M a year on food away from home. That is about $538K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 19% below the U.S. figure of $664K. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants.
Wasco County has 68 sit-down restaurants on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 16 are chain locations, or 24%, against 29% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 64.4, 5% above the U.S. rate of 61.3.
In 2023, official counts showed 29 businesses with payroll in Wasco County classed as full-service restaurants, unchanged from 2019. That is one for every 364 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Population estimates put the population change in Wasco County from 2020 to 2025 at −1.1%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How Wasco County compares
The same measures for Oregon 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 | Wasco County | Oregon | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 64.4 | 64.9 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $538K | $627K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 364 | 405 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | 0.0% | −5.3% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −1.1% | +0.7% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,464 | $4,070 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $64,175 | $83,011 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 20 | 31 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 29 → 290.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 314
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $8.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 3Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 6816 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 Wasco 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 Wasco County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 26,310−1.1% since 2020
- Households
- 10,563
- Median age
- 42.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 68%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 2,381 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 11
- Median household income
- $64,175+20.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $93,059
- Median home value
- $367,400
- Jobs located here
- 10,091
- Daytime population
- 24,380Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Wasco 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 Wasco County. 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 Oregon
Every Oregon market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Oregon for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in Oregon, with Wasco County marked.
Top counties in Oregon
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Crook County, OR | 74 | 45 | 41.7 | $947K | +10.6% | #277 of 2,405 |
| 2Columbia County, OR | 71 | 84 | 40.1 | $990K | +2.6% | #343 of 2,405 |
| 3Polk County, OR | 71 | 147 | 44.6 | $916K | +2.3% | #347 of 2,405 |
| 4Washington County, OR | 62 | 1,301 | 55.3 | $853K | +1.8% | #664 of 2,405 |
| 5Linn County, OR | 62 | 224 | 44.2 | $825K | +3.0% | #670 of 2,405 |
| 6Clackamas County, OR | 60 | 800 | 48.8 | $943K | +0.9% | #731 of 2,405 |
| 7Benton County, OR | 57 | 209 | 54.2 | $732K | +4.4% | #868 of 2,405 |
| 8Jefferson County, OR | 53 | 46 | 52.2 | $717K | +4.7% | #1,047 of 2,405 |
| 9Yamhill County, OR | 48 | 229 | 58.3 | $705K | +2.2% | #1,274 of 2,405 |
| 10Deschutes County, OR | 48 | 576 | 67.8 | $639K | +6.8% | #1,286 of 2,405 |
| 24Wasco County, OR | 20 | 68 | 64.4 | $538K | −1.1% | #2,302 of 2,405 |
Other business types in Wasco County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes17
- Sit-down restaurants20
- Fast food and sandwich shops46
- Pizza47
- Coffee shops and cafes20
- Bakeries and dessert shops22
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 Wasco County, OR?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 68 sit-down restaurants in Wasco County. 16 of them (24%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 29 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, unchanged from 2019. Official counts also show 3 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Wasco County, OR spend on food away from home?
About $36.6M a year, or $3,464 per household. That is 15% below the U.S. average (an index of 85, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 68 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $538K 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 10,563 households in Wasco County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Wasco County, OR compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
Wasco County has 64.4 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 5% above the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $538K, 19% below the U.S. figure of $664K. At the U.S. ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, Wasco County would have about 55, against 68 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 364 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count held level from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.
How fast is Wasco County, OR growing?
Population estimates put Wasco County at 26,310 people in 2025, down 1.1% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 10,563 households. Median household income in Wasco County is $64,175, 21% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 20.9%, 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. Wasco County scores 20 for sit-down restaurants (low), #2,302 of 2,405 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Wasco 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 Wasco County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Wasco County?
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 Wasco County. 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.