Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Kentucky

Fast food and sandwich shops in Lawrence County, KY

How Lawrence County, KY 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 27 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,930 of 2,222 scored counties
#59 of 82 scored counties in Kentucky

Listings
10
8 chain locations (80%)
Official establishments
9
All limited-service restaurants
Household spending a year
$18.9M
On food away from home · $2,972 a household
Spending per listing
$1.9M
38% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
15.8
19% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
15,765
−3.3% since 2020

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

The Groundwork market score for fast food and sandwich shops in Lawrence County is 27 (lower middle), #1,930 of 2,222 scored counties and #59 of 82 scored counties in Kentucky. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

As of September 2026, map listings count 10 fast food and sandwich shops in Lawrence County. Chain locations make up 80% of them, against 79% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 15.8, 19% above the U.S. rate of 13.3.

Household spending on food away from home in Lawrence County comes to about $18.9M a year: $2,972 per household, 27% below the U.S. average. That is about $1.9M of household spending for each shop on map listings, 38% 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 Lawrence County was 9 in 2023. That is one for every 705 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 Lawrence County from 2020 to 2025 at −3.3%, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How Lawrence 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 Lawrence County, KY compared with Kentucky and the U.S.
MeasureLawrence CountyKentuckyU.S.
Listings per 10k households15.814.813.3
Spending per listing$1.9M$2.4M$3.1M
Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants)705519478
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+5.7%+6.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025−3.3%+2.2%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$2,972$3,489$4,070
Median household income$46,772$63,726$80,734
Groundwork market score2728

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
8 → 9All limited-service restaurants
Employees, 2023
295
Annual payroll, 2023
$4.8M
One-person businesses, 2023
0All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
108 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
6The 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 Lawrence 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 Lawrence County

Population, 2025 estimate
15,765−3.3% since 2020
Households
6,342
Median age
42.1
Homes lived in by their owners
78%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
416 sq. mi.
People per square mile
39
Median household income
$46,772+42.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$65,772
Median home value
$111,700
Jobs located here
3,850
Daytime population
14,920Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Lawrence 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 Lawrence County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

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 Lawrence 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
59Lawrence County, KY271015.8$1.9M−3.3%#1,930 of 2,222

Other business types in Lawrence 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 Lawrence County, KY?

Lawrence County has 10 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings as of September 2026. 8 of them (80%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 9 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 Lawrence County, KY spend on food away from home?

About $18.9M a year, or $2,972 per household. That is 27% below the U.S. average (an index of 73, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 10 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $1.9M 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 6,342 households in Lawrence County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Lawrence County has 15.8 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 19% above the U.S. rate of 13.3. Spending per shop is $1.9M, 38% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the national ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending, Lawrence County would have about 6, against 10 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 705 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S.

How fast is Lawrence County, KY growing?

Population estimates put Lawrence County at 15,765 people in 2025, down 3.3% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 6,342 households. The median household income in Lawrence County is $46,772 a year, 42% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 42.6% 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. Lawrence County scores 27 for fast food and sandwich shops (lower middle), #1,930 of 2,222 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Lawrence 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 Lawrence 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.