2026-10-15

Taipei vs. Yilan: A Restaurant Market 5 Times Larger, Yet Yilan Is Adding Stores Faster

Restaurant DataMarket ComparisonYilanJavelin

Based on a Javelin snapshot taken on the afternoon of 15 October 2026. Javelin is my own restaurant intelligence and trade-area platform.

Javelin market overview: Taipei

Javelin market overview: Yilan

Key findings

  • Restaurants: Taipei 28,710; Yilan 5,800
  • Average rating: Taipei 4.24; Yilan 4.38
  • Venues with a rating: Taipei 26,567; Yilan 5,212
  • Operating in tax records: Taipei 25,807; Yilan 4,433
  • New registrations in the last 12 months: Taipei 1,971; Yilan 387
  • Chain share: Taipei 4.3%; Yilan 0.9%

My reading:

  • Scale: Taipei has 4.95 times as many venues as Yilan.
  • Rating: Yilan averages 4.38 against 4.24, from fewer rated venues.
  • Chains: chain share is 4.3% in Taipei and only 0.9% in Yilan.
  • Speed: new registrations in the last 12 months equal 8.7% of operating venues in Yilan (387 of 4,433) versus 7.6% in Taipei (1,971 of 25,807).

Reading it correctly

  1. New registrations are not net growth because closures are not deducted.
  2. Average ratings depend on sample and rating habits, so do not rank markets on them alone.
  3. Javelin counts a chain only when a head-office entity has three or more branches nationwide.
  4. Competition scores are relative within each county, so Jiaoxi at 78 and Daan at 85 cannot be compared directly.

What to do with it

  • Chains considering expansion: low chain share and fast new-store growth make Yilan worth evaluating, with on-site checks on tourist flow and rent. Inside Yilan, Jiaoxi scores 78, Yilan City 73 and Luodong 67.
  • Suppliers: 77 new registrations in 90 days and 387 in 12 months mean a steady stream of new customers. Luodong, Yilan City and Jiaoxi hold about two thirds of the 90-day total.
  • Local founders: rivals are mostly independents, so differentiate on reputation and local ties.

Try it yourself

Switch between Taipei and Yilan in the region menu on Javelin. Details in the Javelin page.

Sources

  • Google Maps venue information; Ministry of Finance business-tax records
  • Snapshot of 15 October 2026
  • Registration share is new registrations in the last 12 months divided by operating venues, calculated by the author from public page figures