Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Kentucky

Fast food and sandwich shops in Knox County, KY

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

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 17 out of 100: Low

Ranked #2,099 of 2,222 scored counties
#70 of 82 scored counties in Kentucky

Listings
14
14 chain locations (100%)
Official establishments
25
All limited-service restaurants · 0.0% since 2019
Household spending a year
$30.2M
On food away from home · $2,576 a household
Spending per listing
$2.2M
29% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
12.0
10% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
29,532
−2.2% since 2020

See the fast food and sandwich shops around any address in Knox 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 Knox 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, Knox County has a Groundwork market score of 17 (low): #2,099 of 2,222 scored counties and #70 of 82 scored counties in Kentucky. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

Map listings as of September 2026 show 14 fast food and sandwich shops in Knox County. All of them are chain locations, against 79% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 12.0, 10% below the U.S. rate of 13.3.

Households in Knox County spend about $30.2M a year on food away from home, or $2,576 per household, 37% below the U.S. average. That works out to $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.

In 2023, official counts showed 25 businesses with payroll in Knox County classed as limited-service restaurants, unchanged from 2019. That is one for every 468 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. Population estimates put the population change in Knox County from 2020 to 2025 at −2.2%, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How Knox County compares

The same measures for Kentucky 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 Knox County, KY compared with Kentucky and the U.S.
MeasureKnox CountyKentuckyU.S.
Listings per 10k households12.014.813.3
Spending per listing$2.2M$2.4M$3.1M
Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants)468519478
Official establishment growth, 2019–20230.0%+5.7%+6.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025−2.2%+2.2%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$2,576$3,489$4,070
Median household income$32,527$63,726$80,734
Groundwork market score1728

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
25 → 25All limited-service restaurants · 0.0% over the period
Employees, 2023
638
Annual payroll, 2023
$10.9M
One-person businesses, 2023
5All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
1414 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
10The 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 Knox 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 Knox County

Population, 2025 estimate
29,532−2.2% since 2020
Households
11,711
Median age
40.6
Homes lived in by their owners
65%
Vehicles per household
1.7
Land area
386 sq. mi.
People per square mile
77
Median household income
$32,527+7.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$50,707
Median home value
$118,700
Jobs located here
8,810
Daytime population
28,691Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Knox 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 Knox 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 Kentucky

Every Kentucky market ranked →

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

Top counties in Kentucky

Counties in Kentucky ranked for fast food and sandwich shops by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Spencer County, KY90810.9$4M+7.7%#16 of 2,222
2Oldham County, KY832611.3$4.4M+4.9%#88 of 2,222
3Meade County, KY7698.2$4.6M+2.2%#206 of 2,222
4Allen County, KY7467.5$4.3M+9.5%#248 of 2,222
5Garrard County, KY7369.0$3.6M+7.3%#288 of 2,222
6Kenton County, KY728011.9$3.4M+3.9%#316 of 2,222
7Lincoln County, KY6988.2$3.8M+4.6%#401 of 2,222
8Scott County, KY693113.7$3M+8.2%#414 of 2,222
9Nelson County, KY68199.9$3.6M+4.8%#436 of 2,222
10Larue County, KY6758.3$4M+2.1%#467 of 2,222
70Knox County, KY171412.0$2.2M−2.2%#2,099 of 2,222

Other business types in Knox 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 Knox County, KY?

There are 14 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings in Knox County as of September 2026. 14 of them (100%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 25 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023, unchanged from 2019. That count covers all limited-service restaurants (pizza places included), not only fast food and sandwich shops. Official counts list 5 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Knox County, KY spend on food away from home?

About $30.2M a year, or $2,576 per household. That is 37% below the U.S. average (an index of 63, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 14 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 11,711 households in Knox County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Knox County has 12.0 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 10% below 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, Knox County would have about 10, against 14 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 468 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count held level from 2019 to 2023, against +6.1% for the U.S.

How fast is Knox County, KY growing?

Population estimates put Knox County at 29,532 people in 2025, down 2.2% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 11,711 households. The median household income in Knox County is $32,527 a year, 60% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 7.8% 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. Knox County scores 17 for fast food and sandwich shops (low), #2,099 of 2,222 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Knox County?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

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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.