Restaurants, commercial kitchens, and food trucks.
Laramie County food-facility health permits run about $100–$200 annually, depending on size or sales volume. Confirm the exact amount with Cheyenne-Laramie County Health Department (CLCHD) - Environmental Health (a delegated jurisdiction that administers/inspects locally; food-establishment license FEES are set statewide by the Wyoming Department of Agriculture, Consumer Health Services) before you budget.
Confirm the authority for your exact address. Some cities run their own health division, and building, planning, fire, sewer/grease and business-license approvals are separate even when Cheyenne-Laramie County Health Department (CLCHD) - Environmental Health (a delegated jurisdiction that administers/inspects locally; food-establishment license FEES are set statewide by the Wyoming Department of Agriculture, Consumer Health Services) issues the health permit.
What the local foodservice landscape looks like — useful whether you’re opening here or sizing up the competition.
▲ 5.8% change in establishments since 2022 (190 → 201).
The average foodservice wage here is $846 below the Wyoming average ($22,601); Wyoming has about 1,366 food & drink establishments statewide.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023 (NAICS 722, food services & drinking places) — establishments with paid employees. Some small-county payroll figures are withheld by Census for confidentiality.
Wyoming food-establishment license fees are set by the Wyoming Dept of Agriculture (WDA) Consumer Health Services rules and applied statewide; the license is NOT free (a common historical assumption); it is $200 initial / $100 annual renewal, good for one year and non-transferable; Laramie County (Cheyenne) is one of the delegated jurisdictions where the local health department (CLCHD, 307-633-4090) reviews plans, inspects and administers the program; applications are submitted to CLCHD, and WDA handles renewals after the initial license; Confirmed on CLCHD 'Opening a Retail Food Establishment' guide and WDA Consumer Health Services page
Turnaround: CLCHD notifies applicants within 14 business days of receiving the application packet; revised plans may take up to 14 additional business days
No letter grade; Cheyenne-Laramie County Public Health and WY Dept. of Agriculture post inspection results online.
Mobile units must be fully self-contained (they cannot be commissary dependent per CLCHD guidance); If the mobile unit has never been licensed by CLCHD, a plan review application is required; A separate license is required for each unit; applications/plan review go to CLCHD for Laramie County
Fees/payment and forms are on the department site; application steps vary by concept — see the checklist below.
The government permit & plan-review fees below total roughly $200–$400 for Laramie County:
That’s the paperwork only. Add buildout, equipment, deposits and licenses with the cost-to-open calculator. Fees change — confirm current amounts with the department.
Check the health-inspection history and violation scores for any food establishment in Laramie County and Wyoming. Wyoming Department of Agriculture Consumer Health Services inspects retail food establishments statewide except in the few counties that run their own programs.
Wyoming inspection lookup →Comparison uses the lowest published annual restaurant-permit figure in each county; confirm your exact tier with the department.
U.S. Census 2023 population; County Business Patterns 2022 (NAICS 722).
Plus building, fire, and business-license fees that vary locally — use the cost calculators and the checklist below to budget the full stack.
food establishments here must control fats, oils & grease (FOG) with a grease interceptor or trap, and typically register with the local sewer/wastewater authority. A grease interceptor sized to the locally adopted plumbing code is required, with a municipal sewer-authority FOG discharge permit.
Size the interceptor with our grease-trap sizing calculator, compare units in the grease-trap catalog, and confirm the local FOG permit with Cheyenne-Laramie County Health Department (CLCHD) - Environmental Health (a delegated jurisdiction that administers/inspects locally; food-establishment license FEES are set statewide by the Wyoming Department of Agriculture, Consumer Health Services) (contact above).
Hood fire suppression (IFC): commercial cooking under a Type I hood needs a wet-chemical suppression system to NFPA 96, permitted and inspected by the local fire marshal. Commercial hood suppression must meet NFPA 96 and the state fire code enforced by the Wyoming State Fire Marshal and local fire officials. See do I need a hood? and the hood CFM calculator.
Backflow prevention: An approved backflow preventer with a certified annual test is required by the local water purveyor. A certified backflow assembly (often an RPZ) on the water service, tested annually, is standard — confirm with your water utility.
| Category | Annual fee | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Caterer | $200 initial / $100 annual renewal | Wyoming prices by establishment, not by category (WDA Consumer Health Services rules); a caterer is licensed as a retail food establishment; No separate caterer fee |
| Commissary / central preparation kitchen | $200 initial / $100 annual renewal | Licensed as a retail food establishment; no distinct commissary fee tier |
| Bakery / food processing | $200 initial / $100 annual renewal | Retail bakery licensed as a retail food establishment under the WDA statewide fee; Wholesale operations register separately with WDA-CHS and/or FDA |
| Bar / limited food service | $200 initial / $100 annual renewal | A bar serving food is licensed as a retail food establishment; same WDA fee; Liquor licensing is handled separately by Wyoming Liquor Control |
| Grocery / market with deli | $200 initial / $100 annual renewal | Grocery/market with a deli licensed as a retail food establishment; single statewide fee |
| Temporary / seasonal event | $50 temporary establishment food permit (max 14 consecutive days); $50 temporary sampling permit (14 individual days within 3 consecutive months, single location) | WDA Consumer Health Services statewide temporary fees; applied locally by CLCHD for Laramie County |
| Pushcart / mobile vending | $200 initial / $100 annual renewal | Mobile food unit uses the same WDA fee as fixed establishments; unit must be fully self-contained (cannot be commissary dependent per CLCHD guidance) |
Health-department plan review looks for specific, code-compliant fixtures. Compare spec-filtered options, then confirm counts and sizes with your local requirements. See the full list in what equipment a commercial kitchen requires.
Permit costs and rules change at the county line — compare Laramie County with its neighbors.
This is a typical sequence — confirm the exact sequence with your authority having jurisdiction.
Official plan-check requirements: plan-check guide →