Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Illinois

Fast food and sandwich shops in Lake County, IL

The fast food and sandwich shops in Lake County, IL, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 61 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #686 of 2,222 scored counties
#21 of 80 scored counties in Illinois

Listings
347
281 chain locations (81%)
Official establishments
574
All limited-service restaurants · −2.5% since 2019
Household spending a year
$1.3B
On food away from home · $4,958 a household
Spending per listing
$3.7M
21% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
13.4
In line with the U.S.
Population, 2025
719,339
+0.8% since 2020

See the fast food and sandwich shops around any address in Lake County

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 Lake County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

At $4,958 per household (22% above the U.S. average), households in Lake County spend about $1.3B a year on food away from home. That is about $3.7M of household spending for each shop on map listings, 21% above the U.S. figure of $3.1M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only fast food and sandwich shops.

Lake County has 347 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 81% of them, against 79% across the U.S. That is 13.4 per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 13.3.

In 2023, official counts showed 574 businesses with payroll in Lake County classed as limited-service restaurants, down 2.5% from 2019. That is one for every 450 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 88 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 20 SBA-backed loans worth $17.3M have gone to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in Lake County.

Population estimates show Lake County grew 0.8% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). For fast food and sandwich shops, Lake County has a Groundwork market score of 61 (upper middle): #686 of 2,222 scored counties and #21 of 80 scored counties in Illinois.

How Lake County compares

The same measures for Illinois 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.

Fast food and sandwich shops in Lake County, IL compared with Illinois and the U.S.
MeasureLake CountyIllinoisU.S.
Listings per 10k households13.413.613.3
Spending per listing$3.7M$3.1M$3.1M
Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants)450474478
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−2.5%+2.0%+6.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025+0.8%−0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$4,958$4,215$4,070
Median household income$110,416$83,390$80,734
Groundwork market score6141

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
589 → 574All limited-service restaurants · −2.5% over the period
Employees, 2023
10,558
Annual payroll, 2023
$226.5M
One-person businesses, 2023
88All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
347281 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
420The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
20
Amount
$17.3M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in Lake County, 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 Lake County

Population, 2025 estimate
719,339+0.8% since 2020
Households
258,455
Median age
40.0
Homes lived in by their owners
75%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
444 sq. mi.
People per square mile
1,610
Median household income
$110,416+23.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$155,726
Median home value
$345,700
Jobs located here
328,525
Daytime population
712,545Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Lake County?

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 Lake County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Fast food and sandwich shops across Illinois

Every Illinois market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Illinois for fast food and sandwich shops, numbered among those based in Illinois, with Lake County marked.

Top counties in Illinois

Counties in Illinois ranked for fast food and sandwich shops by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Piatt County, IL80710.1$4.2M+0.6%#130 of 2,222
2Woodford County, IL79138.9$4.9M−0.8%#142 of 2,222
3Moultrie County, IL7358.6$4.3M−0.8%#277 of 2,222
4Bond County, IL7158.1$4.5M+0.6%#326 of 2,222
5Kendall County, IL715612.3$3.9M+9.9%#331 of 2,222
6McHenry County, IL7013311.3$4.2M+2.5%#355 of 2,222
7Bureau County, IL68128.6$4.3M−2.1%#423 of 2,222
8Monroe County, IL681712.3$3.8M−0.3%#431 of 2,222
9Clinton County, IL682013.7$3M+0.6%#452 of 2,222
10Macoupin County, IL67169.1$4.2M−2.6%#465 of 2,222
21Lake County, IL6134713.4$3.7M+0.8%#686 of 2,222

Other business types in Lake County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Funeral services

Questions

How many fast food and sandwich shops are in Lake County, IL?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 347 fast food and sandwich shops in Lake County. 281 of them (81%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 574 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023, down 2.5% 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 88 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Lake County, IL spend on food away from home?

About $1.3B a year, or $4,958 per household. That is 22% above the U.S. average (an index of 122, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 347 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $3.7M 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 258,455 households in Lake County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Lake County, IL compare with the U.S. for fast food and sandwich shops?

Lake County has 13.4 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 13.3. Spending per shop is $3.7M, 21% above the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the U.S. ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending, Lake County would have about 420, against 347 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 450 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count fell 2.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.1% for the U.S.

How fast is Lake County, IL growing?

Population estimates put Lake County at 719,339 people in 2025, up 0.8% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 258,455 households. Median household income in Lake County is $110,416, 37% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 23.5%, 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. Lake County scores 61 for fast food and sandwich shops (upper middle), #686 of 2,222 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Lake County. 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 Lake County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Lake County?

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 Lake County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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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.