Food and drink · County · Connecticut
Fast food and sandwich shops in the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, CT
How the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, CT compares with other counties and the U.S. for fast food and sandwich shops: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 68 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #439 of 2,222 scored counties
#5 of 9 scored counties in Connecticut
- Listings
- 223
- 129 chain locations (58%)
- Official establishments
- 332
- All limited-service restaurants
- Household spending a year
- $757.3M
- On food away from home · $4,205 a household
- Spending per listing
- $3.4M
- 11% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 12.4
- 7% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 463,349
- +3.2% since 2020
See the fast food and sandwich shops around any address in the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region
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 Naugatuck Valley Planning Region. 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
Households in the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region spend about $757.3M a year on food away from home, or $4,205 per household, 3% above the U.S. average. Spread across 223 fast food and sandwich shops, that is $3.4M per shop, 11% 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 223 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings in the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region as of September 2026. Of those, 129 are chain locations, or 58%, against 79% across the U.S. That is 12.4 per 10,000 households, 7% below the U.S. rate of 13.3.
Official counts show 332 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region in 2023. That is one for every 543 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. Another 86 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $655K have gone to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region.
Population estimates put the population change in the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region from 2020 to 2025 at +3.2%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). For fast food and sandwich shops, the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region has a Groundwork market score of 68 (upper middle): #439 of 2,222 scored counties and #5 of 9 scored counties in Connecticut. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.
How the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region compares
The same measures for Connecticut 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 | Naugatuck Valley Planning Region | Connecticut | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 12.4 | 13.0 | 13.3 |
| Spending per listing | $3.4M | $3.5M | $3.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants) | 543 | 497 | 478 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +7.5% | +6.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.2% | +3.0% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,205 | $4,498 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $86,191 | $95,781 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 68 | 65 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 332All limited-service restaurants
- Employees, 2023
- 4,428
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $96.2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 86All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 223129 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 248The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 4
- Amount
- $655K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, 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 Naugatuck Valley Planning Region
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 463,349+3.2% since 2020
- Households
- 180,116
- Median age
- 42.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 69%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 413 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,102
- Median household income
- $86,191
- Average household income
- $114,324
- Median home value
- $317,700
- Jobs located here
- 164,434
- Daytime population
- 395,318Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region?
These figures cover the whole county. 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 Naugatuck Valley Planning Region. 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 Connecticut
Every Connecticut market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Connecticut for fast food and sandwich shops, numbered among those based in Connecticut, with the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region marked.
Top counties in Connecticut
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Northeastern Connecticut Planning Region, CT | 84 | 36 | 9.1 | $4.7M | +3.0% | #77 of 2,222 |
| 2Northwest Hills Planning Region, CT | 81 | 43 | 9.0 | $4.9M | +2.2% | #109 of 2,222 |
| 3Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region, CT | 76 | 69 | 9.3 | $5M | +2.3% | #202 of 2,222 |
| 4Capitol Planning Region, CT | 69 | 453 | 11.6 | $3.8M | +3.1% | #400 of 2,222 |
| 5Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, CT | 68 | 223 | 12.4 | $3.4M | +3.2% | #439 of 2,222 |
| 6Western Connecticut Planning Region, CT | 63 | 359 | 15.3 | $3.5M | +3.5% | #614 of 2,222 |
| 7Southeastern Connecticut Planning Region, CT | 61 | 137 | 11.8 | $3.5M | +2.0% | #691 of 2,222 |
| 8Greater Bridgeport Planning Region, CT | 60 | 182 | 15.2 | $2.9M | +4.1% | #759 of 2,222 |
| 9South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT | 52 | 367 | 15.9 | $2.7M | +2.5% | #1,072 of 2,222 |
Other business types in the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes63
- Sit-down restaurants62
- Fast food and sandwich shops68
- Pizza59
- Coffee shops and cafes66
- Bakeries and dessert shops60
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 Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, CT?
As of September 2026, map listings count 223 fast food and sandwich shops in the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region. 129 of them (58%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 332 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023. The official count takes in all limited-service restaurants, not only fast food and sandwich shops: pizza places are counted too. Official counts list 86 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, CT spend on food away from home?
About $757.3M a year, or $4,205 per household. That is 3% above the U.S. average (an index of 103, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 223 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $3.4M 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 180,116 households in the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, CT compare with the U.S. for fast food and sandwich shops?
The Naugatuck Valley Planning Region has 12.4 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 7% below the U.S. rate of 13.3. Spending per shop is $3.4M, 11% above the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the U.S. ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending, the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region would have about 248, against 223 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 543 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S.
How fast is the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, CT growing?
Population estimates put the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region at 463,349 people in 2025, up 3.2% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 180,116 households. Median household income in the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region is $86,191, 7% above 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 Naugatuck Valley Planning Region scores 68 for fast food and sandwich shops (upper middle), #439 of 2,222 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region. 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 Naugatuck Valley Planning Region
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region?
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 Naugatuck Valley Planning Region. 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.