Food and drink · Metro area · Rhode Island
Sit-down restaurants in the Providence-Warwick, RI-MA metro area
How the Providence-Warwick, RI-MA metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for sit-down restaurants: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 45 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #228 of 387 scored metro areas
The only scored metro area based in Rhode Island
- Listings
- 4,068
- 820 chain locations (20%)
- Official establishments
- 1,603
- −0.1% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $2.8B
- On food away from home · $4,185 a household
- Spending per listing
- $695K
- 5% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 60.2
- 2% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 1,708,161
- +2.1% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in the Providence-Warwick metro 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 Providence-Warwick metro 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
Households in the Providence-Warwick metro area spend about $2.8B a year on food away from home, or $4,185 per household, 3% above the U.S. average. Spread across 4,068 sit-down restaurants, that is $695K per restaurant, 5% above the U.S. figure of $664K. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants.
There are 4,068 sit-down restaurants on map listings in the Providence-Warwick metro area as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 20% of them, against 29% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 60.2, 2% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.
Official counts show 1,603 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in the Providence-Warwick metro area in 2023, down 0.1% from 2019. That is one for every 421 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Official counts list 227 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 113 SBA-backed loans worth $45.7M have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Providence-Warwick metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Providence-Warwick metro area grew 2.1%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). For sit-down restaurants, the Providence-Warwick metro area has a Groundwork market score of 45 (lower middle): #228 of 387 scored metro areas and the only scored metro area based in Rhode Island.
How the Providence-Warwick metro area compares
The same measures for Rhode Island 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 | Providence-Warwick metro area | Rhode Island | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 60.2 | 67.8 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $695K | $619K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 421 | 383 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −0.1% | −0.4% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.1% | +1.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,185 | $4,196 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $87,040 | $87,796 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 45 | 32 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 1,603−0.1% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 32,197
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $942.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 227Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 4,068820 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 4,259The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 113
- Amount
- $45.7M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Providence-Warwick metro 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 Providence-Warwick metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 1,708,161+2.1% since 2020
- Households
- 675,395
- Median age
- 41.7
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 63%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 1,587 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,061
- Median household income
- $87,040+28.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $113,866
- Median home value
- $422,500
- Jobs located here
- 710,441
- Daytime population
- 1,584,744Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Providence-Warwick metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 Providence-Warwick metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardOther business types in the Providence-Warwick metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes45
- Sit-down restaurants45
- Fast food and sandwich shops72
- Pizza47
- Coffee shops and cafes37
- Bakeries and dessert shops31
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 Providence-Warwick, RI-MA metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 4,068 sit-down restaurants in the Providence-Warwick metro area. 820 of them (20%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 1,603 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, down 0.1% from 2019. Official counts also show 227 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Providence-Warwick, RI-MA metro area spend on food away from home?
About $2.8B a year, or $4,185 per household. That is 3% above the U.S. average (an index of 103, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 4,068 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $695K 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 675,395 households in the Providence-Warwick metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Providence-Warwick, RI-MA metro area compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
The Providence-Warwick metro area has 60.2 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 2% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $695K, 5% above the U.S. figure of $664K. At the U.S. ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, the Providence-Warwick metro area would have about 4,259, against 4,068 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 421 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count fell 0.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.
How fast is the Providence-Warwick, RI-MA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Providence-Warwick metro area at 1,708,161 people in 2025, up 2.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 675,395 households. Median household income in the Providence-Warwick metro area is $87,040, 8% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 28.3%, 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. The Providence-Warwick metro area scores 45 for sit-down restaurants (lower middle), #228 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Providence-Warwick metro 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 Providence-Warwick metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Providence-Warwick metro 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 Providence-Warwick metro 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.