Food and drink · Small-town market · Wisconsin
Sit-down restaurants in the Whitewater-Elkhorn, WI area
How the Whitewater-Elkhorn, WI area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for sit-down restaurants: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 44 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #331 of 538 scored small-town markets
#10 of 13 scored small-town markets based in Wisconsin
- Listings
- 288
- 52 chain locations (18%)
- Official establishments
- 122
- +8.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $177.2M
- On food away from home · $4,113 a household
- Spending per listing
- $615K
- 7% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 66.8
- 9% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 106,127
- +0.8% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in the Whitewater-Elkhorn 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 Whitewater-Elkhorn 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
At $4,113 per household (in line with the U.S. average), households in the Whitewater-Elkhorn area spend about $177.2M a year on food away from home. That is about $615K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 7% below the U.S. figure of $664K. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants.
The Whitewater-Elkhorn area has 288 sit-down restaurants on map listings as of September 2026. 52 of them (18%) are chain locations, against 29% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 66.8, 9% above the U.S. rate of 61.3.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in the Whitewater-Elkhorn area was 122 in 2023, up 8.0% from 2019. That is one for every 353 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Another 11 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 3 SBA-backed loans worth $700K have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Whitewater-Elkhorn area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Whitewater-Elkhorn area grew 0.8%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Whitewater-Elkhorn area scores 44 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants, ranking #331 of 538 scored small-town markets and #10 of 13 scored small-town markets based in Wisconsin.
How the Whitewater-Elkhorn area compares
The same measures for Wisconsin 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 | Whitewater-Elkhorn area | Wisconsin | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 66.8 | 52.3 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $615K | $757K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 353 | 497 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +8.0% | −1.0% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +0.8% | +1.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,113 | $3,959 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $80,520 | $77,485 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 44 | 54 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 122+8.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,977
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $50.2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 11Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 28852 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 267The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 3
- Amount
- $700K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Whitewater-Elkhorn 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 Whitewater-Elkhorn area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 106,127+0.8% since 2020
- Households
- 43,087
- Median age
- 42.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 71%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 555 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 190
- Median household income
- $80,520+26.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $109,464
- Median home value
- $302,700
- Jobs located here
- 43,660
- Daytime population
- 95,627Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Whitewater-Elkhorn area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 Whitewater-Elkhorn 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 Wisconsin
Every Wisconsin market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Wisconsin for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in Wisconsin (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Whitewater-Elkhorn area marked.
Top small-town markets in Wisconsin
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Beaver Dam, WI | 72 | 150 | 41.8 | $906K | −0.3% | #60 of 538 |
| 2Menomonie, WI | 67 | 76 | 43.6 | $873K | +1.7% | #91 of 538 |
| 3Wisconsin Rapids-Marshfield, WI | 67 | 143 | 44.3 | $810K | −0.2% | #95 of 538 |
| 4Watertown-Fort Atkinson, WI | 66 | 162 | 46.5 | $858K | +0.3% | #102 of 538 |
| 5Platteville, WI | 59 | 94 | 47.1 | $765K | +0.9% | #174 of 538 |
| 6Manitowoc, WI | 58 | 162 | 46.0 | $793K | +0.4% | #183 of 538 |
| 7Stevens Point-Plover, WI | 57 | 151 | 50.9 | $757K | +2.2% | #196 of 538 |
| 8Sparta, WI | 55 | 94 | 51.4 | $713K | +0.6% | #216 of 538 |
| Iron Mountain, MI-WI | 47 | 63 | 44.7 | $778K | +0.4% | #298 of 538 |
| 9Shawano, WI | 44 | 99 | 53.1 | $667K | +1.4% | #329 of 538 |
| 10Whitewater-Elkhorn, WI | 44 | 288 | 66.8 | $615K | +0.8% | #331 of 538 |
Other business types in the Whitewater-Elkhorn area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes43
- Sit-down restaurants44
- Fast food and sandwich shops67
- Pizza63
- Coffee shops and cafes48
- Bakeries and dessert shops48
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 Whitewater-Elkhorn, WI area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 288 sit-down restaurants in the Whitewater-Elkhorn area. 52 of them (18%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 122 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, up 8.0% from 2019. Official counts list 11 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Whitewater-Elkhorn, WI area spend on food away from home?
About $177.2M a year, or $4,113 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 101, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 288 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $615K 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 43,087 households in the Whitewater-Elkhorn area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Whitewater-Elkhorn, WI area compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
The Whitewater-Elkhorn area has 66.8 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 9% above the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $615K, 7% below the U.S. figure of $664K. At the U.S. ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, the Whitewater-Elkhorn area would have about 267, against 288 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 353 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count rose 8.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.
How fast is the Whitewater-Elkhorn, WI area growing?
Population estimates put the Whitewater-Elkhorn area at 106,127 people in 2025, up 0.8% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 43,087 households. Median household income in the Whitewater-Elkhorn area is $80,520, in line with the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 26.3%, 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Whitewater-Elkhorn area scores 44 for sit-down restaurants (lower middle), #331 of 538 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Whitewater-Elkhorn 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 Whitewater-Elkhorn area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Whitewater-Elkhorn 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 Whitewater-Elkhorn 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.