Food and drink · Metro area · California
Fast food and sandwich shops in the Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA metro area
The fast food and sandwich shops in the Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 60 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #132 of 387 scored metro areas
#8 of 25 scored metro areas based in California
- Listings
- 114
- 75 chain locations (66%)
- Official establishments
- 206
- All limited-service restaurants · +3.5% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $469.6M
- On food away from home · $4,847 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4.1M
- 35% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 11.8
- 11% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 258,852
- −4.7% since 2020
See the fast food and sandwich shops around any address in the Santa Cruz-Watsonville 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 Santa Cruz-Watsonville 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
Household spending on food away from home in the Santa Cruz-Watsonville metro area comes to about $469.6M a year: $4,847 per household, 19% above the U.S. average. That works out to $4.1M per shop, 35% above the U.S. figure of $3.1M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only fast food and sandwich shops.
There are 114 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings in the Santa Cruz-Watsonville metro area as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 66% of them, against 79% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 11.8, 11% below the U.S. rate of 13.3.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in the Santa Cruz-Watsonville metro area was 206 in 2023, up 3.5% from 2019. That is one for every 470 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. Official counts list 18 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 7 SBA-backed loans worth $4.5M have gone to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Santa Cruz-Watsonville metro area.
Population estimates put the population change in the Santa Cruz-Watsonville metro area from 2020 to 2025 at −4.7%, against +3.1% for the U.S. For fast food and sandwich shops, the Santa Cruz-Watsonville metro area has a Groundwork market score of 60 (upper middle): #132 of 387 scored metro areas and #8 of 25 scored metro areas based in California.
How the Santa Cruz-Watsonville metro area compares
The same measures for California 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 | Santa Cruz-Watsonville metro area | California | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 11.8 | 12.9 | 13.3 |
| Spending per listing | $4.1M | $3.5M | $3.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants) | 470 | 392 | 478 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +3.5% | +6.5% | +6.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −4.7% | −0.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,847 | $4,559 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $111,093 | $99,122 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 60 | 49 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 206All limited-service restaurants · +3.5% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 3,656
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $103.2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 18All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 11475 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 154The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 7
- Amount
- $4.5M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Santa Cruz-Watsonville 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 Santa Cruz-Watsonville metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 258,852−4.7% since 2020
- Households
- 96,898
- Median age
- 40.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 60%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 445 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 595
- Median household income
- $111,093+35.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $156,435
- Median home value
- $1,027,500
- Jobs located here
- 95,587
- Daytime population
- 247,989Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Santa Cruz-Watsonville 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 Santa Cruz-Watsonville 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 California
Every California market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in California for fast food and sandwich shops, numbered among those based in California, with the Santa Cruz-Watsonville metro area marked.
Top metro areas in California
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA | 74 | 214 | 11.2 | $4.2M | −0.4% | #49 of 387 |
| 2Napa, CA | 73 | 58 | 11.7 | $4.2M | −3.3% | #53 of 387 |
| 3Yuba City, CA | 73 | 62 | 10.0 | $3.9M | +3.3% | #54 of 387 |
| 4Vallejo, CA | 65 | 202 | 12.8 | $3.5M | +0.6% | #100 of 387 |
| 5Stockton-Lodi, CA | 62 | 330 | 13.5 | $3.2M | +5.5% | #121 of 387 |
| 6San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | 61 | 777 | 11.4 | $5M | −0.6% | #124 of 387 |
| 7Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | 61 | 1,135 | 12.9 | $3.5M | +3.2% | #127 of 387 |
| 8Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA | 60 | 114 | 11.8 | $4.1M | −4.7% | #132 of 387 |
| 9San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | 59 | 1,892 | 10.8 | $4.9M | −2.4% | #137 of 387 |
| 10Redding, CA | 59 | 79 | 11.1 | $3.4M | −0.3% | #138 of 387 |
Other business types in the Santa Cruz-Watsonville metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes35
- Sit-down restaurants41
- Fast food and sandwich shops60
- Pizza59
- Coffee shops and cafes24
- Bakeries and dessert shops28
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 Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 114 fast food and sandwich shops in the Santa Cruz-Watsonville metro area. 75 of them (66%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 206 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023, up 3.5% from 2019. The official count takes in all limited-service restaurants, not only fast food and sandwich shops: pizza places are counted too. Official counts also show 18 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA metro area spend on food away from home?
About $469.6M a year, or $4,847 per household. That is 19% above the U.S. average (an index of 119, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 114 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $4.1M 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 96,898 households in the Santa Cruz-Watsonville metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA metro area compare with the U.S. for fast food and sandwich shops?
The Santa Cruz-Watsonville metro area has 11.8 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 11% below the U.S. rate of 13.3. Spending per shop is $4.1M, 35% above the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the U.S. ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending, the Santa Cruz-Watsonville metro area would have about 154, against 114 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 470 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count rose 3.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Santa Cruz-Watsonville metro area at 258,852 people in 2025, down 4.7% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 96,898 households. Median household income in the Santa Cruz-Watsonville metro area is $111,093, 38% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 35.1%, 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 Santa Cruz-Watsonville metro area scores 60 for fast food and sandwich shops (upper middle), #132 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 Santa Cruz-Watsonville 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 Santa Cruz-Watsonville metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Santa Cruz-Watsonville 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 Santa Cruz-Watsonville 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.