Food and drink · Small-town market · Pennsylvania
Fast food and sandwich shops in the Oil City, PA area
How the Oil City, PA 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 66 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #118 of 537 scored small-town markets
#6 of 20 scored small-town markets based in Pennsylvania
- Listings
- 17
- 16 chain locations (94%)
- Official establishments
- 27
- All limited-service restaurants · +12.5% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $70.5M
- On food away from home · $3,294 a household
- Spending per listing
- $4.1M
- 36% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 7.9
- 41% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 49,346
- −2.0% since 2020
See the fast food and sandwich shops around any address in the Oil City 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 Oil City 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
Map listings as of September 2026 show 17 fast food and sandwich shops in the Oil City area. Chain locations make up 94% of them, against 79% across the U.S. That is 7.9 per 10,000 households, 41% below the U.S. rate of 13.3.
Households in the Oil City area spend about $70.5M a year on food away from home, or $3,294 per household, 19% below the U.S. average. Spread across 17 fast food and sandwich shops, that is $4.1M per shop, 36% above 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.
Official counts show 27 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in the Oil City area in 2023, up 12.5% from 2019. That is one for every 792 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. Official counts also show 3 one-person businesses without payroll.
Population estimates show the Oil City area declined 2.0% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S. For fast food and sandwich shops, the Oil City area has a Groundwork market score of 66 (upper middle): #118 of 537 scored small-town markets and #6 of 20 scored small-town markets based in Pennsylvania. That puts it in the top quarter of small-town markets.
How the Oil City area 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.
| Measure | Oil City area | Pennsylvania | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 7.9 | 11.0 | 13.3 |
| Spending per listing | $4.1M | $3.6M | $3.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants) | 792 | 538 | 478 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +12.5% | +2.2% | +6.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −2.0% | +0.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,294 | $3,973 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $61,522 | $77,971 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 66 | 62 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 27All limited-service restaurants · +12.5% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 427
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $6.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 3All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 1716 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 23The 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 the Oil City 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 Oil City area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 49,346−2.0% since 2020
- Households
- 21,397
- Median age
- 47.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 75%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 674 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 74
- Median household income
- $61,522+23.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $75,995
- Median home value
- $119,800
- Jobs located here
- 16,142
- Daytime population
- 45,367Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Oil City 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 Oil City 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 Pennsylvania
Every Pennsylvania market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Pennsylvania for fast food and sandwich shops, numbered among those based in Pennsylvania, with the Oil City area marked.
Top small-town markets in Pennsylvania
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Hemlock Farms, PA | 94 | 23 | 9.5 | $4.2M | +7.2% | #2 of 537 |
| 2Pottsville, PA | 79 | 55 | 9.5 | $3.7M | +1.5% | #33 of 537 |
| 3Lock Haven, PA | 76 | 12 | 7.8 | $4.4M | +1.3% | #49 of 537 |
| 4Sayre, PA | 72 | 22 | 8.9 | $3.9M | −0.6% | #73 of 537 |
| 5Sunbury, PA | 68 | 39 | 8.5 | $4.1M | −1.7% | #98 of 537 |
| 6Oil City, PA | 66 | 17 | 7.9 | $4.1M | −2.0% | #118 of 537 |
| 7Huntingdon, PA | 66 | 15 | 9.2 | $3.8M | −2.4% | #120 of 537 |
| 8St. Marys, PA | 64 | 13 | 9.8 | $3.5M | −3.3% | #140 of 537 |
| 9Meadville, PA | 62 | 27 | 8.0 | $4.1M | −2.4% | #159 of 537 |
| 10Somerset, PA | 62 | 30 | 10.2 | $3.3M | −2.7% | #160 of 537 |
Other business types in the Oil City area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes65
- Sit-down restaurants61
- Fast food and sandwich shops66
- Pizza55
- Coffee shops and cafes62
- Bakeries and dessert shops37
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 Oil City, PA area?
There are 17 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings in the Oil City area as of September 2026. 16 of them (94%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 27 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023, up 12.5% from 2019. That count covers all limited-service restaurants (pizza places included), not only fast food and sandwich shops. Another 3 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Oil City, PA area spend on food away from home?
About $70.5M a year, or $3,294 per household. That is 19% below the U.S. average (an index of 81, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 17 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $4.1M 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 21,397 households in the Oil City area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Oil City, PA area compare with the U.S. for fast food and sandwich shops?
The Oil City area has 7.9 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 41% below the U.S. rate of 13.3. Spending per shop is $4.1M, 36% above the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the national ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending, the Oil City area would have about 23, against 17 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 792 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count rose 12.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Oil City, PA area growing?
Population estimates put the Oil City area at 49,346 people in 2025, down 2.0% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 21,397 households. The median household income in the Oil City area is $61,522 a year, 24% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 23.2% 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. 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 Oil City area scores 66 for fast food and sandwich shops (upper middle), #118 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 Oil City 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 Oil City area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Oil City 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 Oil City 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.