Groundwork

Food and drink · County · New York

Fast food and sandwich shops in Albany County, NY

How Albany County, NY 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 50 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #1,134 of 2,222 scored counties
#45 of 60 scored counties in New York

Listings
190
119 chain locations (63%)
Official establishments
339
All limited-service restaurants · −2.6% since 2019
Household spending a year
$558M
On food away from home · $4,142 a household
Spending per listing
$2.9M
4% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
14.1
6% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
321,225
+2.2% since 2020

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

Household spending on food away from home in Albany County comes to about $558M a year: $4,142 per household, 2% above the U.S. average. That works out to $2.9M per shop, 4% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only fast food and sandwich shops.

Albany County has 190 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 119 are chain locations, or 63%, against 79% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 14.1, 6% above the U.S. rate of 13.3.

Official counts show 339 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in Albany County in 2023, down 2.6% from 2019. That is one for every 397 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. Official counts also show 54 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 8 SBA-backed loans worth $3.5M have gone to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in Albany County.

Population estimates put the population change in Albany County from 2020 to 2025 at +2.2%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). Albany County scores 50 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for fast food and sandwich shops, ranking #1,134 of 2,222 scored counties and #45 of 60 scored counties in New York.

How Albany County compares

The same measures for New York 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 Albany County, NY compared with New York and the U.S.
MeasureAlbany CountyNew YorkU.S.
Listings per 10k households14.114.113.3
Spending per listing$2.9M$3M$3.1M
Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants)397433478
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−2.6%−0.8%+6.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025+2.2%−0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$4,142$4,270$4,070
Median household income$85,333$85,974$80,734
Groundwork market score5036

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
348 → 339All limited-service restaurants · −2.6% over the period
Employees, 2023
4,138
Annual payroll, 2023
$81.5M
One-person businesses, 2023
54All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
190119 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
183The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
8
Amount
$3.5M

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

Population, 2025 estimate
321,225+2.2% since 2020
Households
134,703
Median age
40.3
Homes lived in by their owners
57%
Vehicles per household
1.5
Land area
523 sq. mi.
People per square mile
606
Median household income
$85,333+28.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$111,519
Median home value
$294,600
Jobs located here
249,261
Daytime population
417,371Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Albany 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 Albany 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 York

Every New York market ranked →

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

Top counties in New York

Counties in New York ranked for fast food and sandwich shops by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Saratoga County, NY81838.1$5.6M+2.3%#105 of 2,222
2Schoharie County, NY76118.6$4.3M+1.4%#209 of 2,222
3Orleans County, NY7195.5$6.3M−0.5%#322 of 2,222
4Wayne County, NY69266.8$5.5M+0.1%#382 of 2,222
5Tompkins County, NY69388.8$4.5M−1.4%#388 of 2,222
6Tioga County, NY69199.3$4M−1.9%#394 of 2,222
7Washington County, NY68135.3$6.8M−2.9%#418 of 2,222
8Delaware County, NY68157.8$4.5M+0.2%#420 of 2,222
9Lewis County, NY6898.1$4.3M−0.3%#422 of 2,222
10Rensselaer County, NY67659.7$4.2M−0.2%#463 of 2,222
45Albany County, NY5019014.1$2.9M+2.2%#1,134 of 2,222

Other business types in Albany 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 Albany County, NY?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 190 fast food and sandwich shops in Albany County. 119 of them (63%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 339 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023, down 2.6% from 2019. The official count takes in all limited-service restaurants, not only fast food and sandwich shops: pizza places are counted too. Another 54 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in Albany County, NY spend on food away from home?

About $558M a year, or $4,142 per household. That is 2% above the U.S. average (an index of 102, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 190 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $2.9M 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 134,703 households in Albany County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Albany County has 14.1 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 6% above the U.S. rate of 13.3. Spending per shop is $2.9M, 4% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the U.S. ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending, Albany County would have about 183, against 190 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 397 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count fell 2.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.1% for the U.S.

How fast is Albany County, NY growing?

Population estimates put Albany County at 321,225 people in 2025, up 2.2% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 134,703 households. Median household income in Albany County is $85,333, 6% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 28.8%, 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. Albany County scores 50 for fast food and sandwich shops (upper middle), #1,134 of 2,222 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Albany 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.