Food and drink · Metro area · Iowa
Fast food and sandwich shops in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for fast food and sandwich shops in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 55 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #166 of 387 scored metro areas
#6 of 8 scored metro areas based in Iowa
- Listings
- 89
- 81 chain locations (91%)
- Official establishments
- 115
- All limited-service restaurants · +1.8% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $258.5M
- On food away from home · $3,725 a household
- Spending per listing
- $2.9M
- 5% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 12.8
- 4% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 169,189
- +0.5% since 2020
See the fast food and sandwich shops around any address in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area
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 Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area. 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 89 fast food and sandwich shops in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area. Chain locations make up 91% of them, against 79% across the U.S. That is 12.8 per 10,000 households, 4% below the U.S. rate of 13.3.
At $3,725 per household (8% below the U.S. average), households in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area spend about $258.5M a year on food away from home. That works out to $2.9M per shop, 5% 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 the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area was 115 in 2023, up 1.8% from 2019. That is one for every 603 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. Official counts list 12 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 3 SBA-backed loans worth $1.1M have gone to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area grew 0.5%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for fast food and sandwich shops in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area is 55 (upper middle), #166 of 387 scored metro areas and #6 of 8 scored metro areas based in Iowa.
How the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area 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.
| Measure | Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area | Iowa | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 12.8 | 12.2 | 13.3 |
| Spending per listing | $2.9M | $3.2M | $3.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants) | 603 | 628 | 478 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +1.8% | −0.9% | +6.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +0.5% | +1.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,725 | $3,880 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $70,811 | $75,059 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 55 | 59 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 115All limited-service restaurants · +1.8% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 2,314
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $41.2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 12All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 8981 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 85The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 3
- Amount
- $1.1M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area, 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 Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 169,189+0.5% since 2020
- Households
- 69,396
- Median age
- 37.8
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 69%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 1,503 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 112
- Median household income
- $70,811+23.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $92,709
- Median home value
- $194,800
- Jobs located here
- 88,619
- Daytime population
- 179,403Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area. 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 Iowa
Every Iowa market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Iowa for fast food and sandwich shops, numbered among those based in Iowa (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Iowa
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA | 80 | 362 | 12.3 | $3.5M | +6.7% | #27 of 387 |
| 2Cedar Rapids, IA | 70 | 138 | 12.1 | $3.3M | +1.0% | #69 of 387 |
| Omaha, NE-IA | 69 | 523 | 13.4 | $3.1M | +4.2% | #78 of 387 |
| 3Iowa City, IA | 64 | 106 | 14.7 | $2.7M | +4.1% | #111 of 387 |
| 4Ames, IA | 58 | 68 | 13.6 | $2.8M | +2.2% | #153 of 387 |
| 5Dubuque, IA | 56 | 59 | 14.4 | $2.7M | +0.1% | #160 of 387 |
| 6Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA | 55 | 89 | 12.8 | $2.9M | +0.5% | #166 of 387 |
| 7Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL | 45 | 221 | 13.7 | $2.8M | −0.9% | #227 of 387 |
| 8Sioux City, IA-NE-SD | 39 | 93 | 16.8 | $2.3M | +1.0% | #267 of 387 |
Other business types in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes53
- Sit-down restaurants59
- Fast food and sandwich shops55
- Pizza39
- Coffee shops and cafes43
- Bakeries and dessert shops43
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 Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA metro area?
The Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area has 89 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings as of September 2026. 81 of them (91%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 115 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023, up 1.8% from 2019. That count covers all limited-service restaurants (pizza places included), not only fast food and sandwich shops. Official counts also show 12 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA metro area spend on food away from home?
About $258.5M a year, or $3,725 per household. That is 8% below the U.S. average (an index of 92, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 89 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $2.9M 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 69,396 households in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA metro area compare with the U.S. for fast food and sandwich shops?
The Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area has 12.8 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 4% below the U.S. rate of 13.3. Spending per shop is $2.9M, 5% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the national ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending, the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area would have about 85, against 89 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 603 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count rose 1.8% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area at 169,189 people in 2025, up 0.5% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 69,396 households. The median household income in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area is $70,811 a year, 12% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 23.2% 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. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area scores 55 for fast food and sandwich shops (upper middle), #166 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area. 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 Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area?
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 Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area. 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.