Food and drink · Small-town market · Tennessee
Fast food and sandwich shops in the Athens, TN area
How the Athens, TN 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 60 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #182 of 537 scored small-town markets
#7 of 17 scored small-town markets based in Tennessee
- Listings
- 37
- 34 chain locations (92%)
- Official establishments
- 42
- All limited-service restaurants · 0.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $88.7M
- On food away from home · $3,353 a household
- Spending per listing
- $2.4M
- 21% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 14.0
- 5% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 71,590
- +8.2% since 2020
See the fast food and sandwich shops around any address in the Athens 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 Athens 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
At $3,353 per household (18% below the U.S. average), households in the Athens area spend about $88.7M a year on food away from home. That is about $2.4M of household spending for each shop on map listings, 21% 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 37 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings in the Athens area as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 92% of them, against 79% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 14.0, 5% above the U.S. rate of 13.3.
In 2023, official counts showed 42 businesses with payroll in the Athens area classed as limited-service restaurants, unchanged from 2019. That is one for every 630 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 3 one-person businesses without payroll.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Athens area grew 8.2%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Athens area scores 60 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for fast food and sandwich shops, ranking #182 of 537 scored small-town markets and #7 of 17 scored small-town markets based in Tennessee.
How the Athens area compares
The same measures for Tennessee 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 | Athens area | Tennessee | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 14.0 | 15.1 | 13.3 |
| Spending per listing | $2.4M | $2.4M | $3.1M |
| Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants) | 630 | 492 | 478 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | 0.0% | +6.2% | +6.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +8.2% | +5.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,353 | $3,670 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $61,438 | $69,595 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 60 | 34 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 42All limited-service restaurants · 0.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 986
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $16.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 3All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 3734 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 29The 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 Athens 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 Athens area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 71,590+8.2% since 2020
- Households
- 26,453
- Median age
- 43.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 77%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.2
- Land area
- 625 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 109
- Median household income
- $61,438
- Average household income
- $81,180
- Median home value
- $205,300
- Jobs located here
- 19,824
- Daytime population
- 61,141Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Athens 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 Athens 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 Tennessee
Every Tennessee market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Tennessee for fast food and sandwich shops, numbered among those based in Tennessee, with the Athens area marked.
Top small-town markets in Tennessee
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Winchester, TN | 84 | 13 | 7.5 | $4.6M | +6.4% | #12 of 537 |
| 2Fayetteville, TN | 77 | 17 | 11.4 | $3M | +4.3% | #48 of 537 |
| 3Shelbyville, TN | 69 | 26 | 13.3 | $2.6M | +9.7% | #95 of 537 |
| 4Lewisburg, TN | 69 | 19 | 13.9 | $2.6M | +10.5% | #96 of 537 |
| 5Crossville, TN | 63 | 37 | 13.1 | $2.5M | +8.0% | #155 of 537 |
| 6Newport, TN | 60 | 18 | 11.6 | $2.5M | +5.1% | #181 of 537 |
| 7Athens, TN | 60 | 37 | 14.0 | $2.4M | +8.2% | #182 of 537 |
| 8McMinnville, TN | 58 | 20 | 12.3 | $2.5M | +6.5% | #204 of 537 |
| 9Cookeville, TN | 48 | 84 | 14.3 | $2.3M | +7.6% | #294 of 537 |
| 10Union City, TN | 47 | 15 | 12.0 | $2.6M | −2.3% | #299 of 537 |
Other business types in the Athens area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes80
- Sit-down restaurants80
- Fast food and sandwich shops60
- Pizza69
- Coffee shops and cafes66
- Bakeries and dessert shops73
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 Athens, TN area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 37 fast food and sandwich shops in the Athens area. 34 of them (92%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 42 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023, unchanged 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 3 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Athens, TN area spend on food away from home?
About $88.7M a year, or $3,353 per household. That is 18% below the U.S. average (an index of 82, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 37 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $2.4M 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 26,453 households in the Athens area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Athens, TN area compare with the U.S. for fast food and sandwich shops?
The Athens area has 14.0 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 5% above the U.S. rate of 13.3. Spending per shop is $2.4M, 21% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the U.S. ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending, the Athens area would have about 29, against 37 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 630 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count held level from 2019 to 2023, against +6.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Athens, TN area growing?
Population estimates put the Athens area at 71,590 people in 2025, up 8.2% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 26,453 households. Median household income in the Athens area is $61,438, 24% below the U.S. median of $80,734.
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 Athens area scores 60 for fast food and sandwich shops (upper middle), #182 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 Athens 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 Athens area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Athens 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 Athens 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.