Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Wisconsin

Fast food and sandwich shops in Rock County, WI

How Rock County, WI compares with other counties and the U.S. for fast food and sandwich shops: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 58 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #834 of 2,222 scored counties
#44 of 60 scored counties in Wisconsin

Listings
91
81 chain locations (89%)
Official establishments
107
All limited-service restaurants · −4.5% since 2019
Household spending a year
$254.8M
On food away from home · $3,791 a household
Spending per listing
$2.8M
8% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
13.5
2% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
166,472
+1.7% since 2020

See the fast food and sandwich shops around any address in Rock 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 Rock County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

At $3,791 per household (7% below the U.S. average), households in Rock County spend about $254.8M a year on food away from home. That is about $2.8M of household spending for each shop on map listings, 8% 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 91 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings in Rock County as of September 2026. Of those, 81 are chain locations, or 89%, against 79% across the U.S. That is 13.5 per 10,000 households, 2% above the U.S. rate of 13.3.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in Rock County was 107 in 2023, down 4.5% from 2019. That is one for every 628 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 12 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

Population estimates show Rock County grew 1.7% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). For fast food and sandwich shops, Rock County has a Groundwork market score of 58 (upper middle): #834 of 2,222 scored counties and #44 of 60 scored counties in Wisconsin.

How Rock County compares

The same measures for Wisconsin 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 Rock County, WI compared with Wisconsin and the U.S.
MeasureRock CountyWisconsinU.S.
Listings per 10k households13.511.613.3
Spending per listing$2.8M$3.4M$3.1M
Households per official establishment (all limited-service restaurants)628632478
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−4.5%+3.8%+6.1%
Population growth, 2020–2025+1.7%+1.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,791$3,959$4,070
Median household income$75,673$77,485$80,734
Groundwork market score5863

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
112 → 107All limited-service restaurants · −4.5% over the period
Employees, 2023
2,595
Annual payroll, 2023
$45.1M
One-person businesses, 2023
12All limited-service restaurants with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
9181 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
84The 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 Rock 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 Rock County

Population, 2025 estimate
166,472+1.7% since 2020
Households
67,201
Median age
40.7
Homes lived in by their owners
71%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
718 sq. mi.
People per square mile
229
Median household income
$75,673+30.8% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$91,984
Median home value
$231,600
Jobs located here
69,632
Daytime population
154,793Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Rock 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 Rock 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 Wisconsin

Every Wisconsin market ranked →

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

Top counties in Wisconsin

Counties in Wisconsin ranked for fast food and sandwich shops by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Calumet County, WI89125.6$7.5M+2.9%#17 of 2,222
2Pierce County, WI88138.2$5.2M+3.1%#29 of 2,222
3Lafayette County, WI8657.4$5.1M+5.2%#40 of 2,222
4Vernon County, WI8464.8$7.7M+2.4%#65 of 2,222
5Oconto County, WI84116.5$5.9M+2.9%#67 of 2,222
6Kewaunee County, WI8356.0$6.6M+1.0%#83 of 2,222
7Sawyer County, WI8255.7$6.1M+4.0%#91 of 2,222
8St. Croix County, WI824311.5$4.1M+4.7%#99 of 2,222
9Iowa County, WI8198.9$4.5M+1.0%#113 of 2,222
10Polk County, WI80157.7$5M+1.7%#119 of 2,222
44Rock County, WI589113.5$2.8M+1.7%#834 of 2,222

Other business types in Rock 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 Rock County, WI?

As of September 2026, map listings count 91 fast food and sandwich shops in Rock County. 81 of them (89%) are chain locations. The listings count fast food, sandwich shops, delis and bagel shops. Official counts show 107 businesses with payroll classed as limited-service restaurants in 2023, down 4.5% 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 12 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Rock County, WI spend on food away from home?

About $254.8M a year, or $3,791 per household. That is 7% below the U.S. average (an index of 93, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 91 fast food and sandwich shops on map listings, it comes to $2.8M 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 67,201 households in Rock County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Rock County has 13.5 fast food and sandwich shops per 10,000 households, 2% above the U.S. rate of 13.3. Spending per shop is $2.8M, 8% below the U.S. figure of $3.1M. At the U.S. ratio of fast food and sandwich shops to household spending, Rock County would have about 84, against 91 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 628 households, against one for every 478 across the U.S. The official count fell 4.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.1% for the U.S.

How fast is Rock County, WI growing?

Population estimates put Rock County at 166,472 people in 2025, up 1.7% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 67,201 households. Median household income in Rock County is $75,673, 6% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 30.8%, 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. Rock County scores 58 for fast food and sandwich shops (upper middle), #834 of 2,222 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Rock 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 Rock 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.