Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Iowa

Fast food and sandwich shops in Lucas County, IA

The fast food and sandwich shops in Lucas 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
3
3 chain locations (100%)
Official establishments
3
All limited-service restaurants
Household spending a year
$12.4M
On food away from home · $3,332 a household
Spending per listing
$4.1M
35% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
8.1
39% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
8,847
+2.6% since 2020

See the fast food and sandwich shops around any address in Lucas 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 Lucas County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

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

What this means

Map listings as of September 2026 show 3 fast food and sandwich shops in Lucas County. That is 8.1 per 10,000 households, 39% below the U.S. rate of 13.3.

At $3,332 per household (18% below the U.S. average), households in Lucas County spend about $12.4M a year on food away from home. That is about $4.1M of household spending for each shop on map listings, 35% above 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.

Official counts show 3 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in Lucas County in 2023. That is one for every 1,236 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.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Lucas County grew 2.6%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). Counties under 10,000 people aren’t given a market score, since a few businesses can swing their figures.

How Lucas 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 Lucas County, IA compared with Iowa and the U.S.
MeasureLucas CountyIowaU.S.
Listings per 10k households8.112.213.3
Spending per listing$4.1M$3.2M$3.1M
Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants)1,236628478
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a−0.9%+6.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025+2.6%+1.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,332$3,880$4,070
Median household income$61,793$75,059$80,734
Groundwork market scoreNot scored59

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
4 → 3All limited-service restaurants
Employees, 2023
29
Annual payroll, 2023
$530K
One-person businesses, 2023
0All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
33 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
4The 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 Lucas 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 Lucas County

Population, 2025 estimate
8,847+2.6% since 2020
Households
3,708
Median age
42.4
Homes lived in by their owners
79%
Vehicles per household
2.1
Land area
431 sq. mi.
People per square mile
20
Median household income
$61,793
Average household income
$75,764
Median home value
$120,200
Jobs located here
3,102
Daytime population
7,823Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Lucas 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 Lucas 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 Lucas 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
Lucas County, IANot scored38.1$4.1M+2.6%

Other business types in Lucas 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 Lucas County, IA?

There are 3 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings in Lucas County as of September 2026. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 3 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023. That count covers all limited-service restaurants (pizza places included), not only fast food and sandwich shops.

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

About $12.4M a year, or $3,332 per household. That is 18% below the U.S. average (an index of 82, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 3 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $4.1M 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 3,708 households in Lucas County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Lucas County has 8.1 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 39% 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 national ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending, Lucas County would have about 4, against 3 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,236 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S.

How fast is Lucas County, IA growing?

Population estimates put Lucas County at 8,847 people in 2025, up 2.6% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 3,708 households. The median household income in Lucas County is $61,793 a year, 23% 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 Lucas 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 Lucas County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Lucas 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 Lucas 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.