Market rankings · Pennsylvania

Sit-down restaurants in Pennsylvania

Every metro area, small-town market and county in Pennsylvania, ranked by the Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants, with competitor counts and household spending for each.

Listings: 28,334; 6,543 chain locations (23%)
Official establishments: 9,433; −2.3% since 2019
Household spending a year: $21B; On food away from home
Listings per 10k households: 53.7; 12% below the U.S.
Spending per listing: $740K; 11% above the U.S.
Rank among states: #18 of 51; Market score 56 · Upper middle

A site report maps the sit-down restaurants on map listings around any address in Pennsylvania by name and distance, and the spending within reach.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

Pennsylvania has 28,334 sit-down restaurants on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 23% of them, against 29% across the U.S. That comes to 53.7 for every 10,000 households, 12% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.

Household spending on food away from home in Pennsylvania comes to about $21B a year: $3,973 per household, 2% below the U.S. average. That works out to $740K per restaurant, 11% above the U.S. figure of $664K. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants.

Official counts show 9,433 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in Pennsylvania in 2023, down 2.3% from 2019. That is one for every 559 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Across the U.S., the count rose 1.5% over the same years. Since fiscal 2022, 485 SBA-backed loans worth $266.8M have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Pennsylvania.

Among the 50 states and DC, Pennsylvania ranks #18 for sit-down restaurants, with a Groundwork market score of 56 (upper middle). Of the 16 scored metro areas in or partly in Pennsylvania, the York-Hanover metro area scores highest (85). Of the 20 scored small-town markets in or partly in Pennsylvania, the Hemlock Farms area scores highest (84).

Every market in Pennsylvania for sit-down restaurants

Download the ranking (CSV)

Numbered by Groundwork market score among the markets based in Pennsylvania, highest first; the U.S. rank compares each market with every other of its kind. A metro area that crosses a state line is listed in each state it reaches, and numbered only in the state its page is under. How the score works.

Metro areas

Metro areas reaching Pennsylvania, ranked for sit-down restaurants by Groundwork market score
Market	Score	Listings	Per 10k households	Spending per listing	Population growth	U.S. rank
1York-Hanover, PA	85	770	42.4	$952K	+3.6%	#8 of 387
2Lebanon, PA	81	193	34.0	$1.1M	+2.2%	#12 of 387
3Gettysburg, PA	78	169	41.4	$967K	+3.6%	#17 of 387
4Lancaster, PA	78	927	43.6	$950K	+1.9%	#18 of 387
5Reading, PA	70	772	47.3	$834K	+2.7%	#48 of 387
6Chambersburg, PA	69	277	43.6	$878K	+3.0%	#55 of 387
7Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA	63	1,339	54.4	$735K	+4.2%	#96 of 387
8Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD	55	15,176	61.5	$708K	+1.4%	#146 of 387
9Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ	54	1,926	56.7	$726K	+3.0%	#156 of 387
10State College, PA	52	302	51.2	$758K	−0.4%	#167 of 387
11Pittsburgh, PA	51	5,557	52.3	$746K	−1.3%	#177 of 387
12Erie, PA	47	500	45.2	$776K	−1.8%	#211 of 387
13Williamsport, PA	42	199	42.5	$815K	−1.3%	#254 of 387
14Johnstown, PA	40	258	46.1	$717K	−3.2%	#272 of 387
15Altoona, PA	35	252	49.8	$690K	−2.5%	#308 of 387
16Scranton–Wilkes-Barre, PA	23	1,440	61.5	$578K	+1.4%	#369 of 387

Small-town markets

Small-town markets reaching Pennsylvania, ranked for sit-down restaurants by Groundwork market score
Market	Score	Listings	Per 10k households	Spending per listing	Population growth	U.S. rank
1Hemlock Farms, PA	84	98	40.4	$987K	+7.2%	#11 of 538
2Sayre, PA	70	69	28.0	$1.2M	−0.6%	#72 of 538
3Pottsville, PA	64	253	43.6	$806K	+1.5%	#117 of 538
4Lewistown, PA	62	65	35.1	$943K	0.0%	#140 of 538
5Oil City, PA	61	73	34.1	$966K	−2.0%	#147 of 538
6Sunbury, PA	61	167	36.5	$952K	−1.7%	#148 of 538
7Lewisburg, PA	60	70	48.1	$793K	−0.8%	#163 of 538
8Huntingdon, PA	59	65	39.8	$875K	−2.4%	#172 of 538
9Warren, PA	57	56	34.7	$952K	−3.8%	#191 of 538
10Somerset, PA	54	118	40.2	$831K	−2.7%	#220 of 538
11Bradford, PA	51	67	40.9	$821K	−3.5%	#252 of 538
12Indiana, PA	51	163	50.2	$663K	−0.3%	#256 of 538
13Lock Haven, PA	49	76	49.3	$689K	+1.3%	#270 of 538
14Hermitage, PA	47	204	43.8	$768K	−2.4%	#299 of 538
15DuBois, PA	45	127	39.1	$853K	−2.9%	#320 of 538
16Selinsgrove, PA	43	75	51.4	$688K	−0.2%	#337 of 538
17Meadville, PA	42	149	44.0	$745K	−2.4%	#342 of 538
18Bloomsburg-Berwick, PA	42	144	54.6	$630K	+2.3%	#349 of 538
19St. Marys, PA	34	65	48.8	$695K	−3.3%	#429 of 538
20East Stroudsburg, PA	33	459	75.0	$532K	−0.7%	#446 of 538

Counties

Counties in Pennsylvania, ranked for sit-down restaurants by Groundwork market score
Market	Score	Listings	Per 10k households	Spending per listing	Population growth	U.S. rank
1Perry County, PA	79	52	28.4	$1.4M	+2.1%	#137 of 2,405
2Lebanon County, PA	79	193	34.0	$1.1M	+2.2%	#146 of 2,405
3York County, PA	79	770	42.4	$952K	+3.6%	#151 of 2,405
4Butler County, PA	77	344	42.6	$993K	+3.2%	#197 of 2,405
5Pike County, PA	75	98	40.4	$987K	+7.2%	#244 of 2,405
6Chester County, PA	74	1,074	52.4	$991K	+4.2%	#272 of 2,405
7Adams County, PA	73	169	41.4	$967K	+3.6%	#302 of 2,405
8Lancaster County, PA	72	927	43.6	$950K	+1.9%	#322 of 2,405
9Fulton County, PA	70	19	30.0	$1.2M	−0.6%	#361 of 2,405
10Cumberland County, PA	68	559	52.5	$797K	+6.5%	#438 of 2,405
11Franklin County, PA	65	277	43.6	$878K	+3.0%	#530 of 2,405
12Washington County, PA	65	407	46.0	$865K	+0.7%	#531 of 2,405
13Beaver County, PA	64	292	40.4	$917K	−1.1%	#563 of 2,405
14Berks County, PA	64	772	47.3	$834K	+2.7%	#571 of 2,405
15Bradford County, PA	63	69	28.0	$1.2M	−0.6%	#597 of 2,405
16Greene County, PA	63	49	34.2	$1M	−5.5%	#604 of 2,405
17Juniata County, PA	62	24	26.6	$1.3M	−0.3%	#643 of 2,405
18Montour County, PA	61	30	38.2	$1M	−1.4%	#694 of 2,405
19Delaware County, PA	61	1,241	57.2	$763K	+0.8%	#715 of 2,405
20Bucks County, PA	60	1,336	53.6	$915K	+0.3%	#736 of 2,405
21Montgomery County, PA	60	2,037	60.7	$809K	+2.4%	#746 of 2,405
22Lehigh County, PA	57	809	56.0	$723K	+2.7%	#871 of 2,405
23Lawrence County, PA	56	134	37.1	$922K	−2.4%	#891 of 2,405
24Susquehanna County, PA	56	71	45.8	$796K	−0.3%	#904 of 2,405
25Mifflin County, PA	54	65	35.1	$943K	0.0%	#974 of 2,405

Show all 67 counties

Counties in Pennsylvania, ranked for sit-down restaurants by Groundwork market score, continued
Market	Score	Listings	Per 10k households	Spending per listing	Population growth	U.S. rank
26Westmoreland County, PA	54	707	45.6	$834K	−1.4%	#983 of 2,405
27Schuylkill County, PA	54	253	43.6	$806K	+1.5%	#985 of 2,405
28Venango County, PA	53	73	34.1	$966K	−2.0%	#1,017 of 2,405
29Northampton County, PA	53	720	58.7	$718K	+3.7%	#1,046 of 2,405
30Tioga County, PA	52	58	34.8	$990K	−1.3%	#1,066 of 2,405
31Union County, PA	52	70	48.1	$793K	−0.8%	#1,081 of 2,405
32Northumberland County, PA	51	137	36.2	$934K	−1.8%	#1,113 of 2,405
33Huntingdon County, PA	51	65	39.8	$875K	−2.4%	#1,121 of 2,405
34Wyoming County, PA	51	51	46.7	$784K	−0.9%	#1,130 of 2,405
35Centre County, PA	51	302	51.2	$758K	−0.4%	#1,132 of 2,405
36Warren County, PA	50	56	34.7	$952K	−3.8%	#1,151 of 2,405
37Armstrong County, PA	50	116	41.4	$838K	−2.7%	#1,156 of 2,405
38Dauphin County, PA	48	728	60.0	$643K	+2.3%	#1,284 of 2,405
39Somerset County, PA	47	118	40.2	$831K	−2.7%	#1,294 of 2,405
40Erie County, PA	46	500	45.2	$776K	−1.8%	#1,350 of 2,405
41McKean County, PA	45	67	40.9	$821K	−3.5%	#1,395 of 2,405
42Bedford County, PA	44	90	45.6	$730K	−0.2%	#1,451 of 2,405
43Lycoming County, PA	43	199	42.5	$815K	−1.3%	#1,480 of 2,405
44Indiana County, PA	43	163	50.2	$663K	−0.3%	#1,496 of 2,405
45Mercer County, PA	41	204	43.8	$768K	−2.4%	#1,574 of 2,405
46Clinton County, PA	41	76	49.3	$689K	+1.3%	#1,584 of 2,405
47Allegheny County, PA	40	3,294	60.4	$666K	−2.0%	#1,633 of 2,405
48Clearfield County, PA	39	127	39.1	$853K	−2.9%	#1,660 of 2,405
49Clarion County, PA	39	68	45.2	$748K	−1.4%	#1,666 of 2,405
50Cambria County, PA	39	258	46.1	$717K	−3.2%	#1,670 of 2,405
51Fayette County, PA	39	263	47.7	$689K	−4.3%	#1,675 of 2,405
52Carbon County, PA	39	145	53.2	$667K	+1.7%	#1,682 of 2,405
53Blair County, PA	38	252	49.8	$690K	−2.5%	#1,720 of 2,405
54Crawford County, PA	37	149	44.0	$745K	−2.4%	#1,749 of 2,405
55Snyder County, PA	36	75	51.4	$688K	−0.2%	#1,794 of 2,405
56Wayne County, PA	35	103	49.3	$706K	+1.1%	#1,823 of 2,405
57Columbia County, PA	35	144	54.6	$630K	+2.3%	#1,831 of 2,405
58Luzerne County, PA	33	833	61.7	$572K	+2.1%	#1,925 of 2,405
59Jefferson County, PA	31	82	44.7	$733K	−2.8%	#1,988 of 2,405
60Potter County, PA	30	30	42.9	$763K	−3.0%	#2,027 of 2,405
61Elk County, PA	29	65	48.8	$695K	−3.3%	#2,070 of 2,405
62Monroe County, PA	29	459	75.0	$532K	−0.7%	#2,086 of 2,405
63Lackawanna County, PA	28	556	63.0	$569K	+0.5%	#2,112 of 2,405
64Philadelphia County, PA	28	4,830	71.1	$500K	−1.6%	#2,124 of 2,405
Forest County, PA	Not scored	9	46.9	$642K	−5.1%
Sullivan County, PA	Not scored	10	39.2	$917K	+0.6%
Cameron County, PA	Not scored	11	49.6	$595K	−7.0%

Markets with fewer than 5 sit-down restaurants on map listings, and counties under 10,000 people, aren’t scored; they’re listed last in each table.

Questions

How many sit-down restaurants are in Pennsylvania?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 28,334 sit-down restaurants in Pennsylvania. 6,543 of them (23%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 9,433 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, down 2.3% from 2019. Another 1,761 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in Pennsylvania spend on food away from home?

About $21B a year, or $3,973 per household. That is 2% below the U.S. average (an index of 98, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 28,334 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $740K 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 5,274,853 households in Pennsylvania and national spending patterns by income.

How does Pennsylvania compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?

Pennsylvania has 53.7 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 12% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $740K, 11% above the U.S. figure of $664K. At the U.S. ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, Pennsylvania would have about 31,582, against 28,334 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. The official count fell 2.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.

Which market in Pennsylvania has the highest market score for sit-down restaurants?

Among 16 scored metro areas in or partly in Pennsylvania, the York-Hanover metro area scores highest, at 85 (high). Among 20 scored small-town markets in or partly in Pennsylvania, the Hemlock Farms area scores highest, at 84 (high). Among 64 scored counties in Pennsylvania, Perry County scores highest, at 79 (high). Scores compare each market with others of its kind across the U.S.

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. Pennsylvania scores 56 for sit-down restaurants (upper middle), #18 of the 50 states and DC.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Pennsylvania. 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.

Restaurants and cafes52,828 listings
Fast food and sandwich shops5,801 listings
Pizza5,451 listings
Coffee shops and cafes4,524 listings
Bakeries and dessert shops5,464 listings

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