Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Indiana

Fast food and sandwich shops in Delaware County, IN

How Delaware County, IN 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 31 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,810 of 2,222 scored counties
#76 of 81 scored counties in Indiana

Listings
70
64 chain locations (91%)
Official establishments
93
All limited-service restaurants · +4.5% since 2019
Household spending a year
$151.2M
On food away from home · $3,270 a household
Spending per listing
$2.2M
29% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
15.1
14% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
113,106
+1.2% since 2020

See the fast food and sandwich shops around any address in Delaware 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 Delaware 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

For fast food and sandwich shops, Delaware County has a Groundwork market score of 31 (lower middle): #1,810 of 2,222 scored counties and #76 of 81 scored counties in Indiana. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

As of September 2026, map listings count 70 fast food and sandwich shops in Delaware County. Of those, 64 are chain locations, or 91%, against 79% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 15.1, 14% above the U.S. rate of 13.3.

Household spending on food away from home in Delaware County comes to about $151.2M a year: $3,270 per household, 20% below the U.S. average. Spread across 70 fast food and sandwich shops, that is $2.2M per shop, 29% 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.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in Delaware County was 93 in 2023, up 4.5% from 2019. That is one for every 497 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 $325K have gone to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in Delaware County. Population estimates put the population change in Delaware County from 2020 to 2025 at +1.2%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Delaware County compares

The same measures for Indiana 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 Delaware County, IN compared with Indiana and the U.S.
MeasureDelaware CountyIndianaU.S.
Listings per 10k households15.114.013.3
Spending per listing$2.2M$2.7M$3.1M
Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants)497503478
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+4.5%+9.1%+6.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025+1.2%+2.7%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,270$3,802$4,070
Median household income$58,127$71,957$80,734
Groundwork market score3137

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
89 → 93All limited-service restaurants · +4.5% over the period
Employees, 2023
2,452
Annual payroll, 2023
$39.2M
One-person businesses, 2023
19All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
7064 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
50The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
2
Amount
$325K

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

Population, 2025 estimate
113,106+1.2% since 2020
Households
46,256
Median age
38.6
Homes lived in by their owners
66%
Vehicles per household
1.8
Land area
392 sq. mi.
People per square mile
286
Median household income
$58,127+33.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$73,454
Median home value
$139,400
Jobs located here
44,237
Daytime population
112,299Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Delaware 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 Delaware 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 Indiana

Every Indiana market ranked →

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

Top counties in Indiana

Counties in Indiana ranked for fast food and sandwich shops by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1LaGrange County, IN84107.8$5.2M+1.9%#69 of 2,222
2Morgan County, IN803111.0$3.7M+4.4%#135 of 2,222
3Hancock County, IN804413.1$3.4M+13.5%#137 of 2,222
4Warrick County, IN772911.5$3.7M+4.4%#195 of 2,222
5Posey County, IN7687.6$5.2M−0.8%#200 of 2,222
6Hamilton County, IN7217412.7$4.1M+10.9%#305 of 2,222
7Franklin County, IN7155.4$7.2M+2.2%#321 of 2,222
8Boone County, IN714816.7$3M+13.5%#342 of 2,222
9Owen County, IN7055.8$5.9M+2.6%#347 of 2,222
10Starke County, IN7066.7$5M+0.1%#348 of 2,222
76Delaware County, IN317015.1$2.2M+1.2%#1,810 of 2,222

Other business types in Delaware County

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

Questions

How many fast food and sandwich shops are in Delaware County, IN?

Delaware County has 70 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings as of September 2026. 64 of them (91%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 93 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023, up 4.5% from 2019. That count covers all limited-service restaurants (pizza places included), not only fast food and sandwich shops. Official counts also show 19 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Delaware County, IN spend on food away from home?

About $151.2M a year, or $3,270 per household. That is 20% below the U.S. average (an index of 80, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 70 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $2.2M 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 46,256 households in Delaware County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Delaware County 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 $2.2M, 29% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the national ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending, Delaware County would have about 50, against 70 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 497 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count rose 4.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.1% for the U.S.

How fast is Delaware County, IN growing?

Population estimates put Delaware County at 113,106 people in 2025, up 1.2% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 46,256 households. The median household income in Delaware County is $58,127 a year, 28% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 33.6% 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. Delaware County scores 31 for fast food and sandwich shops (lower middle), #1,810 of 2,222 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Delaware 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 Delaware County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Delaware 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 Delaware County. 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.