Food and drink · Metro area · Virginia
Sit-down restaurants in the Harrisonburg, VA metro area
How the Harrisonburg, VA 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 30 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #345 of 387 scored metro areas
#9 of 9 scored metro areas based in Virginia
- Listings
- 324
- 109 chain locations (34%)
- Official establishments
- 117
- −7.1% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $186.2M
- On food away from home · $3,721 a household
- Spending per listing
- $575K
- 13% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 64.7
- 6% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 140,155
- +3.5% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in the Harrisonburg 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 Harrisonburg 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
The Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants in the Harrisonburg metro area is 30 (lower middle), #345 of 387 scored metro areas and #9 of 9 scored metro areas based in Virginia. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 324 sit-down restaurants in the Harrisonburg metro area. 109 of them (34%) are chain locations, against 29% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 64.7, 6% above the U.S. rate of 61.3.
Households in the Harrisonburg metro area spend about $186.2M a year on food away from home, or $3,721 per household, 9% below the U.S. average. Spread across 324 sit-down restaurants, that is $575K per restaurant, 13% 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.
Official counts show 117 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in the Harrisonburg metro area in 2023, down 7.1% from 2019. That is one for every 428 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $1.1M have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Harrisonburg metro area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Harrisonburg metro area grew 3.5%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Harrisonburg metro area compares
The same measures for Virginia 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 | Harrisonburg metro area | Virginia | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 64.7 | 57.1 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $575K | $765K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 428 | 470 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −7.1% | +2.1% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.5% | +2.8% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,721 | $4,372 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $75,065 | $93,170 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 30 | 66 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 117−7.1% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 2,706
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $62.1M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 12Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 324109 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 281The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $1.1M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Harrisonburg 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 Harrisonburg metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 140,155+3.5% since 2020
- Households
- 50,046
- Median age
- 37.3
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 63%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.2
- Land area
- 867 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 158
- Median household income
- $75,065+32.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $97,373
- Median home value
- $309,300
- Jobs located here
- 66,301
- Daytime population
- 138,028Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Harrisonburg 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 Harrisonburg 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 Virginia
Every Virginia market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Virginia for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in Virginia (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Harrisonburg metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Virginia
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | 66 | 15,316 | 64.5 | $796K | +3.3% | #74 of 387 |
| 1Staunton-Stuarts Draft, VA | 59 | 241 | 46.1 | $783K | +3.2% | #117 of 387 |
| 2Richmond, VA | 58 | 3,034 | 56.9 | $733K | +5.5% | #126 of 387 |
| 3Winchester, VA-WV | 53 | 322 | 58.0 | $699K | +6.5% | #164 of 387 |
| 4Lynchburg, VA | 50 | 507 | 49.0 | $723K | +2.9% | #189 of 387 |
| Kingsport-Bristol, TN-VA | 46 | 607 | 46.4 | $712K | +2.3% | #220 of 387 |
| 5Charlottesville, VA | 45 | 596 | 65.9 | $662K | +3.1% | #230 of 387 |
| 6Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford, VA | 40 | 354 | 50.4 | $712K | −0.1% | #273 of 387 |
| 7Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC | 40 | 4,149 | 58.7 | $684K | +0.9% | #274 of 387 |
| 8Roanoke, VA | 36 | 691 | 52.5 | $691K | +0.4% | #296 of 387 |
| 9Harrisonburg, VA | 30 | 324 | 64.7 | $575K | +3.5% | #345 of 387 |
Other business types in the Harrisonburg metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes29
- Sit-down restaurants30
- Fast food and sandwich shops39
- Pizza48
- Coffee shops and cafes30
- Bakeries and dessert shops32
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 Harrisonburg, VA metro area?
There are 324 sit-down restaurants on map listings in the Harrisonburg metro area as of September 2026. 109 of them (34%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 117 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, down 7.1% from 2019. Official counts also show 12 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Harrisonburg, VA metro area spend on food away from home?
About $186.2M a year, or $3,721 per household. That is 9% below the U.S. average (an index of 91, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 324 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $575K per restaurant. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants. It is estimated from the incomes of the 50,046 households in the Harrisonburg metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Harrisonburg, VA metro area compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
The Harrisonburg metro area has 64.7 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 6% above the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $575K, 13% below the U.S. figure of $664K. At the national ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, the Harrisonburg metro area would have about 281, against 324 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 428 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count fell 7.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.
How fast is the Harrisonburg, VA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Harrisonburg metro area at 140,155 people in 2025, up 3.5% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 50,046 households. The median household income in the Harrisonburg metro area is $75,065 a year, 7% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 32.9% 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. 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 Harrisonburg metro area scores 30 for sit-down restaurants (lower middle), #345 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 Harrisonburg 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 Harrisonburg metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Harrisonburg 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 Harrisonburg 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.