Food and drink · Metro area · Arkansas
Fast food and sandwich shops in the Fort Smith, AR-OK metro area
The fast food and sandwich shops in the Fort Smith, AR-OK metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 30 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #312 of 387 scored metro areas
#3 of 5 scored metro areas based in Arkansas
- Listings
- 128
- 115 chain locations (90%)
- Official establishments
- 189
- All limited-service restaurants · +18.1% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $298.6M
- On food away from home · $3,282 a household
- Spending per listing
- $2.3M
- 24% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 14.1
- 6% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 234,140
- +3.1% since 2020
See the fast food and sandwich shops around any address in the Fort Smith 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 Fort Smith 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 Fort Smith metro area scores 30 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for fast food and sandwich shops, ranking #312 of 387 scored metro areas and #3 of 5 scored metro areas based in Arkansas. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
Households in the Fort Smith metro area spend about $298.6M a year on food away from home, or $3,282 per household, 19% below the U.S. average. That works out to $2.3M per shop, 24% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only fast food and sandwich shops.
The Fort Smith metro area has 128 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 90% of them, against 79% across the U.S. That comes to 14.1 for every 10,000 households, 6% above the U.S. rate of 13.3.
In 2023, official counts showed 189 businesses with payroll in the Fort Smith metro area classed as limited-service restaurants, up 18.1% from 2019. That is one for every 481 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. That count covers all limited-service restaurants (pizza places included), not only fast food and sandwich shops. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $25K has gone to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Fort Smith metro area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Fort Smith metro area grew 3.1%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Fort Smith metro area compares
The same measures for Arkansas 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 | Fort Smith metro area | Arkansas | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 14.1 | 14.2 | 13.3 |
| Spending per listing | $2.3M | $2.4M | $3.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants) | 481 | 506 | 478 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +18.1% | +11.1% | +6.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.1% | +3.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,282 | $3,400 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $58,468 | $60,773 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 30 | 31 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 189All limited-service restaurants · +18.1% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 4,160
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $73.2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 38All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 128115 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 98The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $25K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Fort Smith 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 Fort Smith metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 234,140+3.1% since 2020
- Households
- 90,992
- Median age
- 39.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 67%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 1,800 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 128
- Median household income
- $58,468
- Average household income
- $82,344
- Median home value
- $171,200
- Jobs located here
- 98,120
- Daytime population
- 234,865Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Fort Smith 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 Fort Smith 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 Arkansas
Every Arkansas market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Arkansas for fast food and sandwich shops, numbered among those based in Arkansas (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Fort Smith metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Arkansas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR | 60 | 309 | 14.3 | $2.8M | +13.1% | #135 of 387 |
| 2Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR | 39 | 446 | 14.3 | $2.5M | +3.8% | #264 of 387 |
| 3Fort Smith, AR-OK | 30 | 128 | 14.1 | $2.3M | +3.1% | #312 of 387 |
| Memphis, TN-MS-AR | 28 | 808 | 15.5 | $2.3M | −0.3% | #324 of 387 |
| 4Hot Springs, AR | 23 | 56 | 12.8 | $2.5M | −0.6% | #347 of 387 |
| 5Jonesboro, AR | 20 | 93 | 17.5 | $1.9M | +3.6% | #359 of 387 |
| Texarkana, TX-AR | 6 | 115 | 20.4 | $1.6M | −0.4% | #387 of 387 |
Other business types in the Fort Smith metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes30
- Sit-down restaurants28
- Fast food and sandwich shops30
- Pizza25
- Coffee shops and cafes39
- Bakeries and dessert shops33
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 Fort Smith, AR-OK metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 128 fast food and sandwich shops in the Fort Smith metro area. 115 of them (90%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 189 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023, up 18.1% from 2019. The official count takes in all limited-service restaurants, not only fast food and sandwich shops: pizza places are counted too. Another 38 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Fort Smith, AR-OK metro area spend on food away from home?
About $298.6M a year, or $3,282 per household. That is 19% below the U.S. average (an index of 81, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 128 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $2.3M per shop. That spending covers all food away from home, which fast food and sandwich shops share with other businesses in the trade. It is estimated from the incomes of the 90,992 households in the Fort Smith metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Fort Smith, AR-OK metro area compare with the U.S. for fast food and sandwich shops?
The Fort Smith metro area has 14.1 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 6% above the U.S. rate of 13.3. Spending per shop is $2.3M, 24% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the U.S. ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending, the Fort Smith metro area would have about 98, against 128 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 481 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count rose 18.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Fort Smith, AR-OK metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Fort Smith metro area at 234,140 people in 2025, up 3.1% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 90,992 households. Median household income in the Fort Smith metro area is $58,468, 28% below the U.S. median of $80,734.
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 Fort Smith metro area scores 30 for fast food and sandwich shops (lower middle), #312 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 Fort Smith 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 Fort Smith metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Fort Smith 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 Fort Smith 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.