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Restaurants in Iowa

How many restaurants exist per person present (residents + daytime workers) across the 5 Iowa counties we cover, by ZIP code, compared with the U.S. average. Data: Census ZBP 2023 + ACS 2024 + BLS QCEW.

Includes: Sit-down restaurants with table service. Counted together because official statistics use one 722511 code.

State verdict (covered counties): In line with the U.S. rate — 101% of the U.S. rate

Counties covered

in Iowa

Restaurants

997

establishments (2023)

Per 10,000 present

6.4

residents + 0.5×workers

U.S. average

6.4

per 10,000 present

State index

101%

vs. U.S.

Residents

1,236,667

in covered counties

Workers

620,484

jobs in covered counties

Coverage. This page aggregates only the 5 Iowa counties BizGapMap covers — not the whole state. Counts and the index reflect those counties. The aggregate index uses only ZIP cells Census published, so it is a lower bound. Density is a supply-side signal: it counts existing restaurants and the people present, not foot traffic, income, rent, or whether locals want more.

Counties in Iowa

City	County	Restaurants	Residents	Workers	Per 10k	Index	Verdict
Coralville	Johnson County	155–169	153,959	67,063	8.3	129–138%	Above average
Cedar Rapids	Linn County	189–225	230,982	103,114	6.7	105–119%	Above average
Davenport	Scott County	145–171	174,858	85,838	6.7	104–119%	Above average
West Des Moines	Polk County	433–459	546,696	305,833	6.2	97–100%	Range spans bands
Cedar Falls	Black Hawk County	75–93	130,172	58,636	4.7	74–87%	Below average

Scroll the table sideways to see all columns.

Lowest vs. highest measured density

Fewest competitors per capita

129%

105%

104%

97%

74%

Most competitors per capita

74%

97%

104%

105%

129%

Low measured density is not evidence of opportunity. A county with few restaurants may simply lack foot traffic, retail space, or demand. Use the ranking to find where to look, then verify locally.

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BizGapMap — free, no-login small-business saturation reports for major U.S. counties. Built entirely from public U.S. Census, BLS, and IRS data (ZBP 2023, ACS 2024 5-year, PEP 2024, LODES, QCEW, IRS SOI). No forecasts, no revenue guesses — withheld cells are marked, and the few derived counts are labelled as estimates.