Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Iowa

Fast food and sandwich shops in Clarke County, IA

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

Groundwork market score

Not scored

Counties under 10,000 people aren’t scored, since a few businesses can swing their figures.

Listings
5
5 chain locations (100%)
Official establishments
6
All limited-service restaurants
Household spending a year
$15M
On food away from home · $3,688 a household
Spending per listing
$3M
2% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
12.3
8% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
9,574
−1.6% since 2020

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

Households in Clarke County spend about $15M a year on food away from home, or $3,688 per household, 9% below the U.S. average. That is about $3M of household spending for each shop on map listings, 2% below 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 5 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings in Clarke County as of September 2026. All of them are chain locations, against 79% across the U.S. That comes to 12.3 for every 10,000 households, 8% below the U.S. rate of 13.3.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in Clarke County was 6 in 2023. That is one for every 679 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.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Clarke County declined 1.6%, against +3.1% for the U.S. Counties under 10,000 people aren’t given a market score, since a few businesses can swing their figures.

How Clarke County compares

The same measures for Iowa 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 Clarke County, IA compared with Iowa and the U.S.
MeasureClarke CountyIowaU.S.
Listings per 10k households12.312.213.3
Spending per listing$3M$3.2M$3.1M
Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants)679628478
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a−0.9%+6.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025−1.6%+1.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,688$3,880$4,070
Median household income$71,641$75,059$80,734
Groundwork market scoreNot scored59

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
6 → 6All limited-service restaurants
Employees, 2023
109
Annual payroll, 2023
$2M
One-person businesses, 2023
0All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
55 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
5The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
0
Amount
$0

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

Population, 2025 estimate
9,574−1.6% since 2020
Households
4,071
Median age
40.6
Homes lived in by their owners
72%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
431 sq. mi.
People per square mile
22
Median household income
$71,641
Average household income
$95,019
Median home value
$161,100
Jobs located here
4,411
Daytime population
9,348Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Clarke 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 Clarke 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 Iowa

Every Iowa market ranked →

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

Top counties in Iowa

Counties in Iowa ranked for fast food and sandwich shops by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Madison County, IA8957.5$5.6M+3.8%#22 of 2,222
2Warren County, IA882110.2$4.3M+9.0%#33 of 2,222
3Jones County, IA8467.3$5.1M+2.9%#71 of 2,222
4Dallas County, IA835011.8$4M+17.8%#89 of 2,222
5Bremer County, IA8099.3$4.3M+1.1%#128 of 2,222
6Buchanan County, IA7978.5$4.4M+1.3%#149 of 2,222
7Delaware County, IA7856.8$5.6M+1.3%#156 of 2,222
8Boone County, IA781110.1$4M+0.4%#169 of 2,222
9Winneshiek County, IA7378.6$4.5M−1.6%#275 of 2,222
10Jackson County, IA7378.5$4.4M−0.8%#276 of 2,222
Clarke County, IANot scored512.3$3M−1.6%

Other business types in Clarke County

None has a Groundwork market score here. Counties under 10,000 people aren’t scored, since a few businesses can swing their figures.

Questions

How many fast food and sandwich shops are in Clarke County, IA?

As of September 2026, map listings count 5 fast food and sandwich shops in Clarke County. 5 of them (100%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 6 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.

How much do households in Clarke County, IA spend on food away from home?

About $15M a year, or $3,688 per household. That is 9% below the U.S. average (an index of 91, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 5 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $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 4,071 households in Clarke County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Clarke County has 12.3 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 8% below the U.S. rate of 13.3. Spending per shop is $3M, 2% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. The count on map listings matches the U.S. ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 679 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S.

How fast is Clarke County, IA growing?

Population estimates put Clarke County at 9,574 people in 2025, down 1.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 4,071 households. Median household income in Clarke County is $71,641, 11% 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 score leaves out counties under 10,000 people, where a handful of businesses would swing it.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Clarke 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 Clarke 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.