Food and drink · Small-town market · South Carolina
Fast food and sandwich shops in the Gaffney, SC area
How the Gaffney, SC 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 42 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #356 of 537 scored small-town markets
#4 of 6 scored small-town markets based in South Carolina
- Listings
- 36
- 33 chain locations (92%)
- Official establishments
- 34
- All limited-service restaurants · −12.8% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $66.9M
- On food away from home · $3,034 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.9M
- 39% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 16.3
- 23% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 58,275
- +3.7% since 2020
See the fast food and sandwich shops around any address in the Gaffney 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 Gaffney 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 36 fast food and sandwich shops in the Gaffney area. 33 of them (92%) are chain locations, against 79% across the U.S. That comes to 16.3 for every 10,000 households, 23% above the U.S. rate of 13.3.
Household spending on food away from home in the Gaffney area comes to about $66.9M a year: $3,034 per household, 25% below the U.S. average. Spread across 36 fast food and sandwich shops, that is $1.9M per shop, 39% below 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.
In 2023, official counts showed 34 businesses with payroll in the Gaffney area classed as limited-service restaurants, down 12.8% from 2019. That is one for every 649 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 list 8 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $2.7M has gone to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Gaffney area.
Population estimates put the population change in the Gaffney area from 2020 to 2025 at +3.7%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). For fast food and sandwich shops, the Gaffney area has a Groundwork market score of 42 (lower middle): #356 of 537 scored small-town markets and #4 of 6 scored small-town markets based in South Carolina.
How the Gaffney area compares
The same measures for South Carolina 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 | Gaffney area | South Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 16.3 | 14.8 | 13.3 |
| Spending per listing | $1.9M | $2.5M | $3.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants) | 649 | 501 | 478 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −12.8% | +10.9% | +6.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.7% | +8.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,034 | $3,660 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $50,288 | $69,324 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 42 | 39 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 34All limited-service restaurants · −12.8% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 757
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $13.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 8All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 3633 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 22The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $2.7M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as limited-service restaurants in the Gaffney 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 Gaffney area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 58,275+3.7% since 2020
- Households
- 22,063
- Median age
- 39.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 74%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 393 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 144
- Median household income
- $50,288+36.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $67,479
- Median home value
- $142,000
- Jobs located here
- 18,680
- Daytime population
- 47,816Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Gaffney 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 Gaffney 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 South Carolina
Every South Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in South Carolina for fast food and sandwich shops, numbered among those based in South Carolina, with the Gaffney area marked.
Top small-town markets in South Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Seneca, SC | 86 | 29 | 8.4 | $4.2M | +6.3% | #10 of 537 |
| 2Murrells Inlet, SC | 70 | 34 | 12.5 | $2.9M | +3.8% | #89 of 537 |
| 3Newberry, SC | 52 | 23 | 15.0 | $2.2M | +4.8% | #269 of 537 |
| 4Gaffney, SC | 42 | 36 | 16.3 | $1.9M | +3.7% | #356 of 537 |
| 5Greenwood, SC | 34 | 59 | 15.7 | $2M | +1.7% | #418 of 537 |
| 6Orangeburg, SC | 11 | 72 | 21.8 | $1.4M | −0.9% | #526 of 537 |
Other business types in the Gaffney area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes62
- Sit-down restaurants51
- Fast food and sandwich shops42
- Pizza61
- Coffee shops and cafes74
- Bakeries and dessert shops60
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 Gaffney, SC area?
There are 36 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings in the Gaffney area as of September 2026. 33 of them (92%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 34 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023, down 12.8% from 2019. That count covers all limited-service restaurants (pizza places included), not only fast food and sandwich shops. Official counts also show 8 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Gaffney, SC area spend on food away from home?
About $66.9M a year, or $3,034 per household. That is 25% below the U.S. average (an index of 75, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 36 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $1.9M 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 22,063 households in the Gaffney area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Gaffney, SC area compare with the U.S. for fast food and sandwich shops?
The Gaffney area has 16.3 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 23% above the U.S. rate of 13.3. Spending per shop is $1.9M, 39% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the national ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending, the Gaffney area would have about 22, against 36 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 649 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count fell 12.8% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Gaffney, SC area growing?
Population estimates put the Gaffney area at 58,275 people in 2025, up 3.7% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 22,063 households. The median household income in the Gaffney area is $50,288 a year, 38% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 36.3% 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 Gaffney area scores 42 for fast food and sandwich shops (lower middle), #356 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 Gaffney 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 Gaffney area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Gaffney 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 Gaffney 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.