Food and drink · Metro area · South Carolina
Sit-down restaurants in the Columbia, SC metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for sit-down restaurants in the Columbia, SC metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 49 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #197 of 387 scored metro areas
#1 of 8 scored metro areas based in South Carolina
- Listings
- 1,786
- 686 chain locations (38%)
- Official establishments
- 629
- +8.5% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $1.2B
- On food away from home · $3,627 a household
- Spending per listing
- $690K
- 4% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 52.6
- 14% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 879,918
- +6.0% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in the Columbia 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 Columbia 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
Household spending on food away from home in the Columbia metro area comes to about $1.2B a year: $3,627 per household, 11% below the U.S. average. That is about $690K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 4% above the U.S. figure of $664K. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants.
The Columbia metro area has 1,786 sit-down restaurants on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 686 are chain locations, or 38%, against 29% across the U.S. That is 52.6 per 10,000 households, 14% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in the Columbia metro area was 629 in 2023, up 8.5% from 2019. That is one for every 540 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Official counts also show 136 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 25 SBA-backed loans worth $17.5M have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Columbia metro area.
Population estimates show the Columbia metro area grew 6.0% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants in the Columbia metro area is 49 (lower middle), #197 of 387 scored metro areas and #1 of 8 scored metro areas based in South Carolina.
How the Columbia metro area compares
The same measures for South Carolina 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 | Columbia metro area | South Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 52.6 | 59.9 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $690K | $611K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 540 | 462 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +8.5% | +5.5% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +6.0% | +8.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,627 | $3,660 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $68,359 | $69,324 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 49 | 39 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 629+8.5% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 13,984
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $294.2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 136Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 1,786686 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 1,856The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 25
- Amount
- $17.5M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Columbia 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 Columbia metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 879,918+6.0% since 2020
- Households
- 339,601
- Median age
- 39.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 69%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 3,703 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 229
- Median household income
- $68,359+22.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $92,243
- Median home value
- $232,400
- Jobs located here
- 410,492
- Daytime population
- 894,123Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Columbia 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 Columbia metro 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 South Carolina
Every South Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in South Carolina for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in South Carolina (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Columbia metro area marked.
Top metro areas in South Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | 65 | 5,831 | 54.2 | $758K | +10.1% | #81 of 387 |
| Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC | 56 | 1,227 | 52.9 | $691K | +4.7% | #139 of 387 |
| 1Columbia, SC | 49 | 1,786 | 52.6 | $690K | +6.0% | #197 of 387 |
| 2Sumter, SC | 48 | 186 | 45.3 | $721K | −0.3% | #209 of 387 |
| 3Spartanburg, SC | 47 | 751 | 52.4 | $659K | +14.3% | #215 of 387 |
| 4Charleston-North Charleston, SC | 42 | 2,334 | 69.5 | $591K | +10.7% | #266 of 387 |
| 5Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC | 39 | 2,321 | 60.5 | $611K | +9.0% | #283 of 387 |
| 6Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC | 36 | 785 | 82.2 | $501K | +12.0% | #305 of 387 |
| 7Florence, SC | 25 | 414 | 52.8 | $619K | +0.9% | #360 of 387 |
| 8Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach, SC | 25 | 1,512 | 95.2 | $368K | +20.9% | #365 of 387 |
Other business types in the Columbia metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes58
- Sit-down restaurants49
- Fast food and sandwich shops41
- Pizza61
- Coffee shops and cafes76
- Bakeries and dessert shops73
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 Columbia, SC metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 1,786 sit-down restaurants in the Columbia metro area. 686 of them (38%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 629 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, up 8.5% from 2019. Another 136 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Columbia, SC metro area spend on food away from home?
About $1.2B a year, or $3,627 per household. That is 11% below the U.S. average (an index of 89, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 1,786 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $690K 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 339,601 households in the Columbia metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Columbia, SC metro area compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
The Columbia metro area has 52.6 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 14% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $690K, 4% above the U.S. figure of $664K. At the U.S. ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, the Columbia metro area would have about 1,856, against 1,786 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 540 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count rose 8.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.
How fast is the Columbia, SC metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Columbia metro area at 879,918 people in 2025, up 6.0% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 339,601 households. Median household income in the Columbia metro area is $68,359, 15% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 22.1%, 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 Columbia metro area scores 49 for sit-down restaurants (lower middle), #197 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 Columbia 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 Columbia metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Columbia 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 Columbia 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.