Groundwork

Food and drink · County · New Mexico

Fast food and sandwich shops in Lea County, NM

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for fast food and sandwich shops in Lea County, NM, set against other counties and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 35 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,669 of 2,222 scored counties
#14 of 24 scored counties in New Mexico

Listings
37
33 chain locations (89%)
Official establishments
56
All limited-service restaurants · −1.7% since 2019
Household spending a year
$89.9M
On food away from home · $3,645 a household
Spending per listing
$2.4M
20% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
15.0
13% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
74,749
+0.2% since 2020

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

Lea County scores 35 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for fast food and sandwich shops, ranking #1,669 of 2,222 scored counties and #14 of 24 scored counties in New Mexico. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

Map listings as of September 2026 show 37 fast food and sandwich shops in Lea County. 33 of them (89%) are chain locations, against 79% across the U.S. That comes to 15.0 for every 10,000 households, 13% above the U.S. rate of 13.3.

Household spending on food away from home in Lea County comes to about $89.9M a year: $3,645 per household, 10% 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.

In 2023, official counts showed 56 businesses with payroll in Lea County classed as limited-service restaurants, down 1.7% from 2019. That is one for every 441 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 Lea County from 2020 to 2025 at +0.2%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Lea County compares

The same measures for New Mexico 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 Lea County, NM compared with New Mexico and the U.S.
MeasureLea CountyNew MexicoU.S.
Listings per 10k households15.012.913.3
Spending per listing$2.4M$2.7M$3.1M
Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants)441507478
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−1.7%+6.8%+6.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025+0.2%+0.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,645$3,547$4,070
Median household income$68,015$64,059$80,734
Groundwork market score3530

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
57 → 56All limited-service restaurants · −1.7% over the period
Employees, 2023
1,141
Annual payroll, 2023
$23.5M
One-person businesses, 2023
19All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
3733 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
30The 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 Lea 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 Lea County

Population, 2025 estimate
74,749+0.2% since 2020
Households
24,670
Median age
32.5
Homes lived in by their owners
71%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
4,392 sq. mi.
People per square mile
17
Median household income
$68,015+12.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$91,389
Median home value
$184,000
Jobs located here
33,256
Daytime population
77,341Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Lea 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 Lea 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 New Mexico

Every New Mexico market ranked →

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

Top counties in New Mexico

Counties in New Mexico ranked for fast food and sandwich shops by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Sandoval County, NM84549.5$4.3M+6.9%#79 of 2,222
2Los Alamos County, NM6956.1$9.1M0.0%#380 of 2,222
3Santa Fe County, NM67679.5$4.2M+1.2%#462 of 2,222
4Rio Arriba County, NM62127.7$4.3M−1.0%#639 of 2,222
5Valencia County, NM583211.6$2.9M+7.2%#831 of 2,222
6Otero County, NM582811.4$2.9M+3.7%#832 of 2,222
7Doña Ana County, NM569511.2$2.9M+4.1%#914 of 2,222
8Torrance County, NM55813.2$2.4M+6.9%#967 of 2,222
9Taos County, NM52159.6$3.5M+0.3%#1,054 of 2,222
10Eddy County, NM453615.2$2.5M+0.3%#1,349 of 2,222
14Lea County, NM353715.0$2.4M+0.2%#1,669 of 2,222

Other business types in Lea 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 Lea County, NM?

There are 37 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings in Lea County as of September 2026. 33 of them (89%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 56 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023, down 1.7% from 2019. That count covers all limited-service restaurants (pizza places included), not only fast food and sandwich shops. Another 19 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in Lea County, NM spend on food away from home?

About $89.9M a year, or $3,645 per household. That is 10% below the U.S. average (an index of 90, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 37 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 24,670 households in Lea County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Lea County has 15.0 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 13% 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, Lea County would have about 30, against 37 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 441 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count fell 1.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.1% for the U.S.

How fast is Lea County, NM growing?

Population estimates put Lea County at 74,749 people in 2025, up 0.2% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 24,670 households. The median household income in Lea County is $68,015 a year, 16% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 12.3% 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. Lea County scores 35 for fast food and sandwich shops (lower middle), #1,669 of 2,222 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Lea 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.