Food and drink · Small-town market · Ohio
Fast food and sandwich shops in the Defiance, OH area
How the Defiance, OH area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for fast food and sandwich shops: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 53 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #248 of 537 scored small-town markets
#13 of 29 scored small-town markets based in Ohio
- Listings
- 21
- 20 chain locations (95%)
- Official establishments
- 30
- All limited-service restaurants · −6.2% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $56M
- On food away from home · $3,656 a household
- Spending per listing
- $2.7M
- 13% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 13.7
- 3% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 38,292
- +0.1% since 2020
See the fast food and sandwich shops around any address in the Defiance 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 Defiance 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
Household spending on food away from home in the Defiance area comes to about $56M a year: $3,656 per household, 10% below the U.S. average. Spread across 21 fast food and sandwich shops, that is $2.7M per shop, 13% 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 21 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings in the Defiance area as of September 2026. 20 of them (95%) are chain locations, against 79% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 13.7, 3% above the U.S. rate of 13.3.
Official counts show 30 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in the Defiance area in 2023, down 6.2% from 2019. That is one for every 511 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 6 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $35K have gone to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Defiance area.
Population estimates show the Defiance area grew 0.1% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Defiance area scores 53 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for fast food and sandwich shops, ranking #248 of 537 scored small-town markets and #13 of 29 scored small-town markets based in Ohio.
How the Defiance area compares
The same measures for Ohio 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 | Defiance area | Ohio | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 13.7 | 13.6 | 13.3 |
| Spending per listing | $2.7M | $2.8M | $3.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants) | 511 | 467 | 478 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −6.2% | +7.0% | +6.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +0.1% | +0.9% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,656 | $3,829 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $73,064 | $71,389 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 53 | 31 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 30All limited-service restaurants · −6.2% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 800
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $11.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 6All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 2120 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 18The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $35K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Defiance 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 Defiance area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 38,292+0.1% since 2020
- Households
- 15,327
- Median age
- 40.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 79%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 411 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 93
- Median household income
- $73,064+21.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $88,073
- Median home value
- $163,200
- Jobs located here
- 14,922
- Daytime population
- 36,059Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Defiance area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 Defiance 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 Ohio
Every Ohio market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Ohio for fast food and sandwich shops, numbered among those based in Ohio, with the Defiance area marked.
Top small-town markets in Ohio
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Urbana, OH | 79 | 15 | 9.6 | $3.9M | +0.2% | #31 of 537 |
| 2Greenville, OH | 70 | 21 | 9.9 | $3.6M | −0.7% | #86 of 537 |
| 3Sidney, OH | 67 | 25 | 13.2 | $2.9M | −0.2% | #114 of 537 |
| 4Mount Vernon, OH | 66 | 24 | 10.2 | $3.7M | +1.9% | #121 of 537 |
| 5Bellefontaine, OH | 65 | 22 | 11.2 | $3.3M | +0.4% | #130 of 537 |
| 6Wilmington, OH | 65 | 22 | 13.1 | $2.8M | +0.6% | #134 of 537 |
| 7Wooster, OH | 61 | 57 | 12.8 | $2.9M | −0.1% | #167 of 537 |
| 8Tiffin, OH | 59 | 28 | 12.6 | $2.8M | −1.0% | #190 of 537 |
| 9Celina, OH | 57 | 20 | 12.2 | $3.1M | +0.5% | #211 of 537 |
| 10Wapakoneta, OH | 57 | 24 | 12.7 | $3.1M | −1.2% | #212 of 537 |
| 13Defiance, OH | 53 | 21 | 13.7 | $2.7M | +0.1% | #248 of 537 |
Other business types in the Defiance area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes56
- Sit-down restaurants60
- Fast food and sandwich shops53
- Pizza39
- Coffee shops and cafes54
- Bakeries and dessert shops34
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 Defiance, OH area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 21 fast food and sandwich shops in the Defiance area. 20 of them (95%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 30 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023, down 6.2% from 2019. The official count takes in all limited-service restaurants, not only fast food and sandwich shops: pizza places are counted too. Another 6 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Defiance, OH area spend on food away from home?
About $56M a year, or $3,656 per household. That is 10% below the U.S. average (an index of 90, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 21 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $2.7M 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 15,327 households in the Defiance area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Defiance, OH area compare with the U.S. for fast food and sandwich shops?
The Defiance area has 13.7 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 3% above the U.S. rate of 13.3. Spending per shop is $2.7M, 13% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the U.S. ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending, the Defiance area would have about 18, against 21 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 511 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count fell 6.2% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Defiance, OH area growing?
Population estimates put the Defiance area at 38,292 people in 2025, up 0.1% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 15,327 households. Median household income in the Defiance area is $73,064, 10% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 21.9%, 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Defiance area scores 53 for fast food and sandwich shops (upper middle), #248 of 537 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Defiance 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 Defiance area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Defiance 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 Defiance 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.