Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Pennsylvania

Fast food and sandwich shops in Berks County, PA

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

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 72 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #309 of 2,222 scored counties
#12 of 63 scored counties in Pennsylvania

Listings
165
102 chain locations (62%)
Official establishments
266
All limited-service restaurants · −2.9% since 2019
Household spending a year
$643.6M
On food away from home · $3,943 a household
Spending per listing
$3.9M
28% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
10.1
24% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
440,072
+2.7% since 2020

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

At $3,943 per household (3% below the U.S. average), households in Berks County spend about $643.6M a year on food away from home. That is about $3.9M of household spending for each shop on map listings, 28% above the U.S. figure of $3.1M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only fast food and sandwich shops.

Berks County has 165 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings as of September 2026. 102 of them (62%) are chain locations, against 79% across the U.S. That comes to 10.1 for every 10,000 households, 24% below the U.S. rate of 13.3.

In 2023, official counts showed 266 businesses with payroll in Berks County classed as limited-service restaurants, down 2.9% from 2019. That is one for every 614 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. Another 70 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 12 SBA-backed loans worth $3.5M have gone to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in Berks County.

Population estimates show Berks County grew 2.7% from 2020 to 2025, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). For fast food and sandwich shops, Berks County has a Groundwork market score of 72 (upper middle): #309 of 2,222 scored counties and #12 of 63 scored counties in Pennsylvania. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.

How Berks County compares

The same measures for Pennsylvania 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 Berks County, PA compared with Pennsylvania and the U.S.
MeasureBerks CountyPennsylvaniaU.S.
Listings per 10k households10.111.013.3
Spending per listing$3.9M$3.6M$3.1M
Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants)614538478
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−2.9%+2.2%+6.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025+2.7%+0.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,943$3,973$4,070
Median household income$79,777$77,971$80,734
Groundwork market score7262

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
274 → 266All limited-service restaurants · −2.9% over the period
Employees, 2023
4,673
Annual payroll, 2023
$85.2M
One-person businesses, 2023
70All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
165102 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
211The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
12
Amount
$3.5M

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

Population, 2025 estimate
440,072+2.7% since 2020
Households
163,236
Median age
40.9
Homes lived in by their owners
71%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
856 sq. mi.
People per square mile
506
Median household income
$79,777+25.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$103,265
Median home value
$257,300
Jobs located here
179,513
Daytime population
404,462Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Berks 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 Berks 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 Pennsylvania

Every Pennsylvania market ranked →

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

Top counties in Pennsylvania

Counties in Pennsylvania ranked for fast food and sandwich shops by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Pike County, PA86239.5$4.2M+7.2%#45 of 2,222
2Chester County, PA851557.6$6.9M+4.2%#51 of 2,222
3Perry County, PA8473.8$10.1M+2.1%#64 of 2,222
4Butler County, PA78789.7$4.4M+3.2%#163 of 2,222
5Susquehanna County, PA74127.7$4.7M−0.3%#243 of 2,222
6Lancaster County, PA741939.1$4.6M+1.9%#245 of 2,222
7Franklin County, PA74619.6$4M+3.0%#250 of 2,222
8Adams County, PA73338.1$5M+3.6%#272 of 2,222
9Northampton County, PA7312910.5$4M+3.7%#281 of 2,222
10Juniata County, PA7266.6$5.3M−0.3%#296 of 2,222
12Berks County, PA7216510.1$3.9M+2.7%#309 of 2,222

Other business types in Berks 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 Berks County, PA?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 165 fast food and sandwich shops in Berks County. 102 of them (62%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 266 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023, down 2.9% 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 list 70 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Berks County, PA spend on food away from home?

About $643.6M a year, or $3,943 per household. That is 3% below the U.S. average (an index of 97, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 165 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $3.9M 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 163,236 households in Berks County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Berks County has 10.1 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 24% below the U.S. rate of 13.3. Spending per shop is $3.9M, 28% above the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the U.S. ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending, Berks County would have about 211, against 165 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 614 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count fell 2.9% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.1% for the U.S.

How fast is Berks County, PA growing?

Population estimates put Berks County at 440,072 people in 2025, up 2.7% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 163,236 households. Median household income in Berks County is $79,777, in line with the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 25.2%, 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. Berks County scores 72 for fast food and sandwich shops (upper middle), #309 of 2,222 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Berks 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 Berks 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.