Food and drink · Metro area · Alabama
Fast food and sandwich shops in the Tuscaloosa, AL metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for fast food and sandwich shops in the Tuscaloosa, AL metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 30 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #314 of 387 scored metro areas
#6 of 12 scored metro areas based in Alabama
- Listings
- 160
- 147 chain locations (92%)
- Official establishments
- 220
- All limited-service restaurants · +14.7% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $363.9M
- On food away from home · $3,443 a household
- Spending per listing
- $2.3M
- 25% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 15.1
- 14% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 281,850
- +2.9% since 2020
See the fast food and sandwich shops around any address in the Tuscaloosa metro area
The site report maps the fast food and sandwich shops 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 Tuscaloosa metro 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
The Groundwork market score for fast food and sandwich shops in the Tuscaloosa metro area is 30 (lower middle), #314 of 387 scored metro areas and #6 of 12 scored metro areas based in Alabama. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 160 fast food and sandwich shops in the Tuscaloosa metro area. Of those, 147 are chain locations, or 92%, against 79% across the U.S. That is 15.1 per 10,000 households, 14% above the U.S. rate of 13.3.
Household spending on food away from home in the Tuscaloosa metro area comes to about $363.9M a year: $3,443 per household, 15% below the U.S. average. That is about $2.3M of household spending for each shop on map listings, 25% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. That spending covers all food away from home, which fast food and sandwich shops share with other businesses in the trade.
In 2023, official counts showed 220 businesses with payroll in the Tuscaloosa metro area classed as limited-service restaurants, up 14.7% from 2019. That is one for every 480 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count takes in all limited-service restaurants, not only fast food and sandwich shops: pizza places are counted too. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $2.1M have gone to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Tuscaloosa metro area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Tuscaloosa metro area grew 2.9%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Tuscaloosa metro area compares
The same measures for Alabama and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all food away from home by the fast food and sandwich shops 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 | Tuscaloosa metro area | Alabama | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 15.1 | 15.1 | 13.3 |
| Spending per listing | $2.3M | $2.3M | $3.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants) | 480 | 450 | 478 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +14.7% | +8.8% | +6.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.9% | +3.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,443 | $3,519 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $61,517 | $63,999 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 30 | 20 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 220All limited-service restaurants · +14.7% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 4,558
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $82.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 28All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 160147 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 119The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $2.1M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Tuscaloosa metro 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. These official figures cover all limited-service restaurants, not only fast food and sandwich shops.
Population and households in the Tuscaloosa metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 281,850+2.9% since 2020
- Households
- 105,683
- Median age
- 36.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 63%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 3,493 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 80
- Median household income
- $61,517+22.0% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $84,019
- Median home value
- $230,700
- Jobs located here
- 106,684
- Daytime population
- 281,020Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Tuscaloosa metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the fast food and sandwich shops on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Tuscaloosa metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardFast food and sandwich shops across Alabama
Every Alabama market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Alabama for fast food and sandwich shops, numbered among those based in Alabama, with the Tuscaloosa metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Alabama
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, AL | 58 | 140 | 14.2 | $2.7M | +14.8% | #155 of 387 |
| 2Huntsville, AL | 56 | 314 | 15.2 | $2.7M | +12.5% | #161 of 387 |
| 3Decatur, AL | 49 | 73 | 11.6 | $3.1M | +2.5% | #199 of 387 |
| 4Birmingham, AL | 32 | 691 | 14.9 | $2.5M | +1.4% | #299 of 387 |
| 5Auburn-Opelika, AL | 32 | 113 | 14.7 | $2.4M | +7.1% | #302 of 387 |
| 6Tuscaloosa, AL | 30 | 160 | 15.1 | $2.3M | +2.9% | #314 of 387 |
| 7Florence-Muscle Shoals, AL | 29 | 90 | 14.2 | $2.4M | +3.5% | #319 of 387 |
| 8Mobile, AL | 19 | 245 | 15.2 | $2.2M | −0.7% | #361 of 387 |
| 9Dothan, AL | 17 | 113 | 18.5 | $1.8M | +3.4% | #370 of 387 |
| 10Montgomery, AL | 16 | 270 | 17.8 | $2M | +0.9% | #372 of 387 |
Other business types in the Tuscaloosa metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes65
- Sit-down restaurants60
- Fast food and sandwich shops30
- Pizza57
- Coffee shops and cafes69
- Bakeries and dessert shops70
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 fast food and sandwich shops are in the Tuscaloosa, AL metro area?
There are 160 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings in the Tuscaloosa metro area as of September 2026. 147 of them (92%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 220 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023, up 14.7% from 2019. That count covers all limited-service restaurants (pizza places included), not only fast food and sandwich shops. Official counts list 28 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Tuscaloosa, AL metro area spend on food away from home?
About $363.9M a year, or $3,443 per household. That is 15% below the U.S. average (an index of 85, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 160 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $2.3M per shop. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only fast food and sandwich shops. It is estimated from the incomes of the 105,683 households in the Tuscaloosa metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Tuscaloosa, AL metro area compare with the U.S. for fast food and sandwich shops?
The Tuscaloosa metro area has 15.1 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 14% above the U.S. rate of 13.3. Spending per shop is $2.3M, 25% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the national ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending, the Tuscaloosa metro area would have about 119, against 160 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 480 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count rose 14.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Tuscaloosa, AL metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Tuscaloosa metro area at 281,850 people in 2025, up 2.9% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 105,683 households. The median household income in the Tuscaloosa metro area is $61,517 a year, 24% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 22.0% from the 2015–2019 survey, 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. 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 Tuscaloosa metro area scores 30 for fast food and sandwich shops (lower middle), #314 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Tuscaloosa metro area. It maps the fast food and sandwich shops 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 fast food and sandwich shops · All 56 business types in the Tuscaloosa metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Tuscaloosa metro 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 Tuscaloosa metro 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.