Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Missouri

Fast food and sandwich shops in Phelps County, MO

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

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 39 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,533 of 2,222 scored counties
#49 of 74 scored counties in Missouri

Listings
24
24 chain locations (100%)
Official establishments
33
All limited-service restaurants · −8.3% since 2019
Household spending a year
$58.4M
On food away from home · $3,368 a household
Spending per listing
$2.4M
20% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
13.8
4% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
45,247
+1.6% since 2020

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

Map listings as of September 2026 show 24 fast food and sandwich shops in Phelps County. All of them are chain locations, against 79% across the U.S. That is 13.8 per 10,000 households, 4% above the U.S. rate of 13.3.

Household spending on food away from home in Phelps County comes to about $58.4M a year: $3,368 per household, 17% below the U.S. average. That is about $2.4M of household spending for each shop on map listings, 20% 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.

Official counts show 33 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in Phelps County in 2023, down 8.3% from 2019. That is one for every 525 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. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $645K have gone to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in Phelps County.

Population estimates show Phelps County grew 1.6% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). Phelps County scores 39 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for fast food and sandwich shops, ranking #1,533 of 2,222 scored counties and #49 of 74 scored counties in Missouri.

How Phelps County compares

The same measures for Missouri 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 Phelps County, MO compared with Missouri and the U.S.
MeasurePhelps CountyMissouriU.S.
Listings per 10k households13.813.313.3
Spending per listing$2.4M$2.9M$3.1M
Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants)525521478
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−8.3%+8.4%+6.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025+1.6%+1.9%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,368$3,799$4,070
Median household income$58,396$70,702$80,734
Groundwork market score3944

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
36 → 33All limited-service restaurants · −8.3% over the period
Employees, 2023
905
Annual payroll, 2023
$15.8M
One-person businesses, 2023
0All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
2424 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
19The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
2
Amount
$645K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in Phelps 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 Phelps County

Population, 2025 estimate
45,247+1.6% since 2020
Households
17,329
Median age
37.8
Homes lived in by their owners
62%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
672 sq. mi.
People per square mile
67
Median household income
$58,396+32.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$77,261
Median home value
$206,500
Jobs located here
19,214
Daytime population
46,987Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Phelps 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 Phelps 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 Missouri

Every Missouri market ranked →

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

Top counties in Missouri

Counties in Missouri ranked for fast food and sandwich shops by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Lincoln County, MO92187.9$5.1M+11.4%#9 of 2,222
2Warren County, MO89107.2$5.6M+9.2%#23 of 2,222
3Christian County, MO80329.1$4.4M+8.3%#124 of 2,222
4Ste. Genevieve County, MO7668.4$4.4M+1.1%#208 of 2,222
5Ray County, MO7588.8$4.3M+1.1%#224 of 2,222
6Stone County, MO75118.1$4.2M+4.1%#225 of 2,222
7Cass County, MO755312.3$3.4M+7.1%#236 of 2,222
8Platte County, MO745813.2$3.4M+6.7%#261 of 2,222
9McDonald County, MO7367.0$4.6M+3.1%#274 of 2,222
10Jefferson County, MO738910.1$4M+2.7%#282 of 2,222
49Phelps County, MO392413.8$2.4M+1.6%#1,533 of 2,222

Other business types in Phelps 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 Phelps County, MO?

There are 24 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings in Phelps County as of September 2026. 24 of them (100%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 33 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023, down 8.3% from 2019. That count covers all limited-service restaurants (pizza places included), not only fast food and sandwich shops.

How much do households in Phelps County, MO spend on food away from home?

About $58.4M a year, or $3,368 per household. That is 17% below the U.S. average (an index of 83, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 24 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $2.4M 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 17,329 households in Phelps County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Phelps County has 13.8 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 4% above the U.S. rate of 13.3. Spending per shop is $2.4M, 20% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the national ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending, Phelps County would have about 19, against 24 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 525 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count fell 8.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.1% for the U.S.

How fast is Phelps County, MO growing?

Population estimates put Phelps County at 45,247 people in 2025, up 1.6% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 17,329 households. The median household income in Phelps County is $58,396 a year, 28% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 32.3% 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. Phelps County scores 39 for fast food and sandwich shops (lower middle), #1,533 of 2,222 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Phelps 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 Phelps 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.