Food and drink · Metro area · New York
Fast food and sandwich shops in the Ithaca, NY metro area
The fast food and sandwich shops in the Ithaca, NY metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 73 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #51 of 387 scored metro areas
#1 of 13 scored metro areas based in New York
- Listings
- 38
- 25 chain locations (66%)
- Official establishments
- 64
- All limited-service restaurants · −17.9% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $169.6M
- On food away from home · $3,919 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4.5M
- 46% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 8.8
- 34% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 104,047
- −1.4% since 2020
See the fast food and sandwich shops around any address in the Ithaca metro area
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 the Ithaca metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
Households in the Ithaca metro area spend about $169.6M a year on food away from home, or $3,919 per household, 4% below the U.S. average. That is about $4.5M of household spending for each shop on map listings, 46% above the U.S. figure of $3.1M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only fast food and sandwich shops.
The Ithaca metro area has 38 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings as of September 2026. 25 of them (66%) are chain locations, against 79% across the U.S. That is 8.8 per 10,000 households, 34% below the U.S. rate of 13.3.
In 2023, official counts showed 64 businesses with payroll in the Ithaca metro area classed as limited-service restaurants, down 17.9% from 2019. That is one for every 676 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 list 6 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $189K have gone to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Ithaca metro area.
Population estimates show the Ithaca metro area declined 1.4% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Groundwork market score for fast food and sandwich shops in the Ithaca metro area is 73 (upper middle), #51 of 387 scored metro areas and #1 of 13 scored metro areas based in New York. That puts it in the top quarter of metro areas.
How the Ithaca metro area 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.
| Measure | Ithaca metro area | New York | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 8.8 | 14.1 | 13.3 |
| Spending per listing | $4.5M | $3M | $3.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants) | 676 | 433 | 478 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −17.9% | −0.8% | +6.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −1.4% | −0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,919 | $4,270 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $74,024 | $85,974 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 73 | 36 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 64All limited-service restaurants · −17.9% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 869
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $18.3M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 6All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 3825 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 56The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 4
- Amount
- $189K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Ithaca metro area, 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 the Ithaca metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 104,047−1.4% since 2020
- Households
- 43,263
- Median age
- 36.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 54%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.6
- Land area
- 475 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 220
- Median household income
- $74,024+22.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $102,718
- Median home value
- $290,900
- Jobs located here
- 46,926
- Daytime population
- 111,478Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Ithaca metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 the Ithaca metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardFast food and sandwich shops across New York
Every New York market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in New York for fast food and sandwich shops, numbered among those based in New York, with the Ithaca metro area marked.
Top metro areas in New York
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Ithaca, NY | 73 | 38 | 8.8 | $4.5M | −1.4% | #51 of 387 |
| 2Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY | 70 | 427 | 11.1 | $3.8M | +1.9% | #67 of 387 |
| 3Rochester, NY | 62 | 438 | 9.8 | $3.9M | −0.7% | #119 of 387 |
| 4Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY | 61 | 475 | 9.5 | $4M | −0.8% | #125 of 387 |
| 5Kingston, NY | 61 | 87 | 11.7 | $3.6M | +1.1% | #126 of 387 |
| 6Utica-Rome, NY | 58 | 118 | 9.8 | $3.7M | −2.0% | #145 of 387 |
| 7Syracuse, NY | 58 | 326 | 12.0 | $3.2M | −1.3% | #147 of 387 |
| 8Glens Falls, NY | 54 | 70 | 12.8 | $3M | −1.9% | #173 of 387 |
| 9Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh, NY | 53 | 395 | 15.5 | $2.9M | +3.0% | #179 of 387 |
| 10Binghamton, NY | 50 | 125 | 12.2 | $2.9M | −1.3% | #195 of 387 |
Other business types in the Ithaca metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes35
- Sit-down restaurants29
- Fast food and sandwich shops73
- Pizza52
- Coffee shops and cafes21
- Bakeries and dessert shops26
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many fast food and sandwich shops are in the Ithaca, NY metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 38 fast food and sandwich shops in the Ithaca metro area. 25 of them (66%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 64 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023, down 17.9% from 2019. The official count takes in all limited-service restaurants, not only fast food and sandwich shops: pizza places are counted too. Official counts also show 6 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Ithaca, NY metro area spend on food away from home?
About $169.6M a year, or $3,919 per household. That is 4% below the U.S. average (an index of 96, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 38 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $4.5M 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 43,263 households in the Ithaca metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Ithaca, NY metro area compare with the U.S. for fast food and sandwich shops?
The Ithaca metro area has 8.8 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 34% below the U.S. rate of 13.3. Spending per shop is $4.5M, 46% above the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the U.S. ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending, the Ithaca metro area would have about 56, against 38 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 676 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count fell 17.9% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Ithaca, NY metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Ithaca metro area at 104,047 people in 2025, down 1.4% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 43,263 households. Median household income in the Ithaca metro area is $74,024, 8% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 22.9%, 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. The Ithaca metro area scores 73 for fast food and sandwich shops (upper middle), #51 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Ithaca metro area. 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 the Ithaca metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Ithaca metro area?
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 the Ithaca metro area. 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.