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Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors in Tennessee (2026)

40 rules on the books across Tennessee, 16 cities and counties. Select a rule to read the full details.

Severity: Few Restrictions · Light Restrictions · Some Restrictions · Significant Restrictions · Heavy Restrictions

Food Truck Permits

Licenses and health permits required to operate a food truck, including fees, inspections, and renewal requirements.

Tennessee: statewide

StatewideHeavy Restrictions

Tennessee Department of Health regulates mobile food units statewide through Rule 1200-23-01, requiring food service…

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Clarksville

Heavy Restrictions

Food trucks operating in Clarksville need the annual transient vendor permit issued under the peddler chapter, at a…

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Hendersonville

Significant Restrictions

Mobile food vendors in Hendersonville need Planning Department approval, a displayed business license, and a Health…

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Jackson

Significant Restrictions

A mobile food unit operating in the City of Jackson must carry a valid peddler's/solicitor's permit and business…

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Kingsport

Significant Restrictions

No one can vend under Kingsport's street vendor article without a permit from the city manager or designee and proof of…

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Knoxville

Significant Restrictions

Knoxville requires every food truck to obtain a $200 mobile food unit permit before vending, with a separate $75…

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Memphis

Significant Restrictions

No mobile food preparation vehicle may operate in Memphis without a permit issued under City Code § 9-52-86, which…

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Chattanooga

Some Restrictions

Chattanooga requires every mobile food unit operator to get a Mobile Food Unit Permit from the city treasurer, valid…

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Franklin

Some Restrictions

Franklin requires a City-issued mobile food vending permit for every food truck, trailer, or pushcart before it can…

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Murfreesboro

Some Restrictions

Murfreesboro requires a City-issued mobile food service permit, displayed at all times, before any food truck operates…

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Nashville

Some Restrictions

Selling food from a truck parked in Metro Nashville's public rights-of-way requires a truck vending permit from NDOT…

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Shelby County

Some Restrictions

Operating a food truck in unincorporated Shelby County requires a permit for each vehicle from the county health…

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Williamson County

Some Restrictions

A food truck operating on private property in Williamson County needs a Temporary Use Permit, good for six months per…

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Vending Zones

Designated areas where food trucks and mobile vendors can operate, including time limits, distance from restaurants, and residential area restrictions.

Collierville

Significant Restrictions

In the Town of Collierville, mobile frozen dessert vendors cannot sell from stationary locations on streets, Town…

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Jackson

Significant Restrictions

Jackson does not zone specific mobile-vending districts; instead, Municipal Code § 9-104(1)(k) requires the city…

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Kingsport

Significant Restrictions

In the City of Kingsport, Tennessee, vending on a street or sidewalk needs a permit and is confined to fire district…

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Knox County

Significant Restrictions

Knox County treats a mobile food vehicle as a "transient vendor" under Code section 12-31 and bars it from ever setting…

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Knoxville

Significant Restrictions

Knoxville limits mobile food vending on private property to commercial, industrial, office, and open-space zones…

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Memphis

Significant Restrictions

Memphis confines mobile food preparation vehicles to specific zoning districts under City Code § 9-52-93, Office…

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Nashville

Significant Restrictions

Metro Nashville confines licensed street vending to downtown's DTC and CF zoning districts, carving out no-vending…

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Smyrna

Significant Restrictions

In the Town of Smyrna, Tennessee, a permitted peddler or vendor gets no exclusive right to a location in the public…

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Chattanooga

Some Restrictions

Chattanooga allows individual food trucks on private property only as a temporary use under a city permit, while…

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Clarksville

Some Restrictions

Clarksville sets no mapped food truck zones. Instead it bars selling from a vehicle in the business district or within…

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Franklin

Some Restrictions

Franklin limits food truck vending by right to office, commercial, industrial, mixed-use, and institutional zoning…

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Hendersonville

Some Restrictions

Stand-alone mobile food vendors in Hendersonville must sit on a one-acre-plus commercial lot, at least 100 feet from…

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Murfreesboro

Some Restrictions

Mobile food trucks may vend from City-designated right-of-way spots, City parks and property at posted times, or…

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Shelby County

Some Restrictions

Shelby County limits mobile food trucks to specific zoning districts, plus set distances from schools, restaurants, and…

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Williamson County

Some Restrictions

Williamson County confines food trucks on private property to sites at least 200 feet from any existing…

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Sidewalk & Mobile Vending

Permits and rules for sidewalk vendors and pushcarts, where vending is allowed, cart and equipment standards, and the distance and hours rules that come with a vendor permit.

Shelby County

Heavy Restrictions

Selling food or drinks directly off public streets, highways or rights-of-way in unincorporated Shelby County is…

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Chattanooga

Significant Restrictions

Chattanooga bans mobile food units from city streets, sidewalks, and public property unless they operate inside a…

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Collierville

Significant Restrictions

Section 92.01 bars any person in the Town of Collierville from using a public street, alley, sidewalk or right-of-way…

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Jackson

Significant Restrictions

Municipal Code § 9-105 bars any peddler, street barker, or solicitor, including a mobile food vendor operating under…

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Kingsport

Significant Restrictions

Kingsport's street vendor article lists what a sidewalk vendor cannot do: leave a stand unattended, park it overnight…

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Murfreesboro

Significant Restrictions

Every mobile food truck operating in Murfreesboro needs a city-issued permit, applied for with a $50 fee and a full set…

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Nashville

Significant Restrictions

Nashville bans pushcarts, wagons and vending stands on public property and rights-of-way unless the vendor holds a…

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Franklin

Some Restrictions

Pushcart food vendors in Franklin need a mobile food vending permit and cannot operate in the street right-of-way where…

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Hendersonville

Some Restrictions

Mobile food, produce, and merchandise vendors are permitted in Hendersonville's commercial zoning districts under…

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Knoxville

Some Restrictions

Mobile food units operating from Knoxville's designated sidewalk vending zones cannot shrink the clear pedestrian path…

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Memphis

Some Restrictions

Memphis requires anyone selling food as a pedestrian vendor or push cart operator, from a non-motorized cart in a mall…

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Spring Hill

Some Restrictions

In the City of Spring Hill, Tennessee, a permitted peddler cannot hold a stationary location in the public streets or…

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