Groundwork

Food and drink · County · West Virginia

Fast food and sandwich shops in Nicholas County, WV

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

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 21 out of 100: Low

Ranked #2,037 of 2,222 scored counties
#28 of 38 scored counties in West Virginia

Listings
16
13 chain locations (81%)
Official establishments
17
All limited-service restaurants
Household spending a year
$29.4M
On food away from home · $3,110 a household
Spending per listing
$1.8M
40% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
16.9
27% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
23,848
−2.9% since 2020

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

Nicholas County scores 21 (low) on the Groundwork market score for fast food and sandwich shops, ranking #2,037 of 2,222 scored counties and #28 of 38 scored counties in West Virginia. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

Household spending on food away from home in Nicholas County comes to about $29.4M a year: $3,110 per household, 24% below the U.S. average. That is about $1.8M of household spending for each shop on map listings, 40% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only fast food and sandwich shops.

Nicholas County has 16 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 81% of them, against 79% across the U.S. That comes to 16.9 for every 10,000 households, 27% above the U.S. rate of 13.3.

Official counts show 17 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in Nicholas County in 2023. That is one for every 557 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. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Nicholas County declined 2.9%, against +3.1% for the U.S.

How Nicholas County compares

The same measures for West Virginia 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 Nicholas County, WV compared with West Virginia and the U.S.
MeasureNicholas CountyWest VirginiaU.S.
Listings per 10k households16.914.113.3
Spending per listing$1.8M$2.4M$3.1M
Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants)557564478
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a−1.5%+6.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025−2.9%−1.4%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,110$3,343$4,070
Median household income$54,639$59,608$80,734
Groundwork market score2124

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
18 → 17All limited-service restaurants
Employees, 2023
277
Annual payroll, 2023
$4.5M
One-person businesses, 2023
0All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
1613 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
10The 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 Nicholas 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 Nicholas County

Population, 2025 estimate
23,848−2.9% since 2020
Households
9,466
Median age
45.2
Homes lived in by their owners
82%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
647 sq. mi.
People per square mile
38
Median household income
$54,639+36.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$74,713
Median home value
$121,600
Jobs located here
6,859
Daytime population
22,538Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Nicholas 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 Nicholas 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 West Virginia

Every West Virginia market ranked →

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

Top counties in West Virginia

Counties in West Virginia ranked for fast food and sandwich shops by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Jefferson County, WV822812.3$3.6M+9.2%#101 of 2,222
2Berkeley County, WV795510.8$3.6M+13.7%#153 of 2,222
3Morgan County, WV72810.9$3.2M+5.5%#319 of 2,222
4Mineral County, WV6798.1$4.3M−0.4%#461 of 2,222
5Wayne County, WV63106.3$5.1M−4.0%#595 of 2,222
6Preston County, WV571410.9$3M−0.6%#862 of 2,222
7Mason County, WV5687.8$3.9M−2.7%#885 of 2,222
8Marshall County, WV55118.8$3.7M−4.4%#936 of 2,222
9Hardy County, WV5558.4$3.6M+0.7%#937 of 2,222
10Boone County, WV51810.1$3.1M−6.9%#1,097 of 2,222
28Nicholas County, WV211616.9$1.8M−2.9%#2,037 of 2,222

Other business types in Nicholas County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Funeral services

Questions

How many fast food and sandwich shops are in Nicholas County, WV?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 16 fast food and sandwich shops in Nicholas County. 13 of them (81%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 17 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023. The official count takes in all limited-service restaurants, not only fast food and sandwich shops: pizza places are counted too.

How much do households in Nicholas County, WV spend on food away from home?

About $29.4M a year, or $3,110 per household. That is 24% below the U.S. average (an index of 76, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 16 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $1.8M 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 9,466 households in Nicholas County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Nicholas County has 16.9 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 27% above the U.S. rate of 13.3. Spending per shop is $1.8M, 40% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the U.S. ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending, Nicholas County would have about 10, against 16 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 557 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S.

How fast is Nicholas County, WV growing?

Population estimates put Nicholas County at 23,848 people in 2025, down 2.9% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 9,466 households. Median household income in Nicholas County is $54,639, 32% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 36.3%, 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. Nicholas County scores 21 for fast food and sandwich shops (low), #2,037 of 2,222 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Nicholas 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 Nicholas County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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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.