Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Kentucky

Fast food and sandwich shops in Rowan County, KY

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

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 10 out of 100: Low

Ranked #2,192 of 2,222 scored counties
#79 of 82 scored counties in Kentucky

Listings
24
23 chain locations (96%)
Official establishments
26
All limited-service restaurants · +18.2% since 2019
Household spending a year
$30.2M
On food away from home · $3,149 a household
Spending per listing
$1.3M
59% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
25.0
88% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
24,476
−1.0% since 2020

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

Rowan County scores 10 (low) on the Groundwork market score for fast food and sandwich shops, ranking #2,192 of 2,222 scored counties and #79 of 82 scored counties in Kentucky. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

Household spending on food away from home in Rowan County comes to about $30.2M a year: $3,149 per household, 23% below the U.S. average. That is about $1.3M of household spending for each shop on map listings, 59% 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 24 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings in Rowan County as of September 2026. 23 of them (96%) are chain locations, against 79% across the U.S. That comes to 25.0 for every 10,000 households, 88% above the U.S. rate of 13.3.

Official counts show 26 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in Rowan County in 2023, up 18.2% from 2019. That is one for every 369 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. Population estimates put the population change in Rowan County from 2020 to 2025 at −1.0%, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How Rowan 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 Rowan County, KY compared with Kentucky and the U.S.
MeasureRowan CountyKentuckyU.S.
Listings per 10k households25.014.813.3
Spending per listing$1.3M$2.4M$3.1M
Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants)369519478
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+18.2%+5.7%+6.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025−1.0%+2.2%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,149$3,489$4,070
Median household income$54,321$63,726$80,734
Groundwork market score1028

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
22 → 26All limited-service restaurants · +18.2% over the period
Employees, 2023
691
Annual payroll, 2023
$12.5M
One-person businesses, 2023
0All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
2423 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 Rowan 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 Rowan County

Population, 2025 estimate
24,476−1.0% since 2020
Households
9,592
Median age
34.4
Homes lived in by their owners
62%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
280 sq. mi.
People per square mile
88
Median household income
$54,321+42.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$75,885
Median home value
$161,800
Jobs located here
10,474
Daytime population
25,662Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Rowan 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 Rowan 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 Rowan 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
79Rowan County, KY102425.0$1.3M−1.0%#2,192 of 2,222

Other business types in Rowan 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 Rowan County, KY?

As of September 2026, map listings count 24 fast food and sandwich shops in Rowan County. 23 of them (96%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 26 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023, up 18.2% from 2019. 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 Rowan County, KY spend on food away from home?

About $30.2M a year, or $3,149 per household. That is 23% below the U.S. average (an index of 77, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 24 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $1.3M 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 9,592 households in Rowan County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Rowan County has 25.0 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 88% above the U.S. rate of 13.3. Spending per shop is $1.3M, 59% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the U.S. ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending, Rowan County would have about 10, against 24 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 369 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count rose 18.2% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.1% for the U.S.

How fast is Rowan County, KY growing?

Population estimates put Rowan County at 24,476 people in 2025, down 1.0% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 9,592 households. Median household income in Rowan County is $54,321, 33% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 42.1%, 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. Rowan County scores 10 for fast food and sandwich shops (low), #2,192 of 2,222 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Rowan 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 Rowan County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Run a site report See plans
Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Screening many markets at once? Talk to us

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.