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Jefferson County, KY — Fast food Saturation

How many fast food exist per person present — residents plus daytime workers — by ZIP code, compared with the U.S. average. Establishment data: Census ZBP 2023. Population: ACS 2024 5-year. 55 ZIP codes analyzed.

Includes: Fast food · Quick-service restaurants · Takeout & delivery counters · Pizza delivery · Sandwich & burger chains. Counted together because official statistics use one 722513 code.

Measured density: Range spans bands — 1.00× the U.S. rate (between 1.00× and 1.02× once withheld ZIP cells are counted)

Why a range: Census does not publish a ZIP-by-industry count when that ZIP has 0–2 businesses. 24 ZIP cells in this county are withheld, 6 of them with residents. Each could hold 0, 1, or 2 businesses: counting them all as 0 gives the low end, counting them all as 2 gives the high end — the data cannot say where the truth sits. The density range uses only the populated cells, since ZIPs without residents are excluded from per-person rates. How ranges work

In line with the U.S. rate   Jefferson County fast food — 100–102% of the U.S. rate

692 fast food are counted in Jefferson County — 6.7 per 10,000 people present (residents + daytime workers), 100% of the U.S. rate of 6.7.

On the comparable ZIP set (ZIPs with a published count in every year), the total has risen 6% between 2015 and 2023 (653 → 692). That set is smaller than today's county total. 2020–2021 were pandemic-distorted, and Census rounds counts, so small moves are within noise.

Measured supply density is highest in 40243 (Louisville), 40222 (Louisville), 40207 (Louisville) — well above the national rate. On measured density alone, the lowest-density residential ZIPs with a published count are 40210 (Louisville), 40215 (Louisville), 40212 (Louisville).

BLS QCEW puts the latest county-wide count (2026 Q1) at 827 establishments, the freshest available signal.

Measured density: Jefferson County sits at 100% of the U.S. rate for fast food. 6 ZIPs with population have no published count (each 0–2 businesses), so the true per-capita rate is between 100% and 102% of the U.S. rate. Why. The highest measured density is in 40243 and 40222; the lowest measured density is in 40210 and 40215.

This is a supply-side read: it counts existing fast food and the people present, not foot traffic, income, rent, or whether locals want more. Treat low density as a question to check, not an answer.

Fast food
692–740
published count; upper bound counts each withheld ZIP cell as 2 (24 cells) (2023)
Per 10,000 present
6.7
residents + daytime workers
U.S. average
6.7
per 10,000 present
County index
1.00×
vs. U.S.
Latest quarter (QCEW)
827
2026 Q1 — county total
Residents
809,701
37 ZIPs with data
Workers
459,852
jobs located in county

Is the area growing?

Population
793,881
Census PEP, July 1 2024
Change since 2020
+1.4%
+10,985 people
Net migration 2024
+9,201
international +13,807, domestic −4,606
Jobs located here
490,757
LODES 2022, +0.7% since 2019

Jefferson County had an estimated 793,881 residents on July 1, 2024 — 1.4% more than in 2020 (+10,985). In the latest year it gained 10,500 people: births minus deaths +1,325, international migration +13,807, domestic migration −4,606. Components are published separately and may not sum exactly.

490,757 jobs were located in the county in 2022 (+0.7% since 2019), and 363,460 employed residents lived there (−1.2% since 2019). LODES counts wage and salary jobs covered by unemployment insurance plus federal jobs; it excludes the self-employed and military, and counts jobs rather than unique people. 2019→2022 spans the pandemic, so read it as one change, not a trend.

Population and migration say whether the customer base is growing. They do not say whether people want another business of this type. Definitions and limits →  ·  Full county detail →

ZIP gaining residents
2015–19 → 2020–24
Change
40245 Louisville
+15.4%
40243 Louisville
+14.5%
ZIP losing residents
2015–19 → 2020–24
Change

No ZIP had a statistically significant decrease.

ACS 5-year estimates for 2015–2019 and 2020–2024. Only ZIPs with at least 2,000 residents in both windows and a change larger than the survey margin of error (90%) are listed — small ZIPs move a lot on paper without a real signal.

Nonemployer businesses (no paid employees)

Nonemployer businesses
237
no paid employees (2024)
Receipts
$7.5M
published gross receipts
Receipts per business
$31K
gross, not profit

Census Nonemployer Statistics counts businesses with no paid employees — a separate universe from the employer establishments counted above; a business is in one or the other, never both. They are not storefronts by definition: many are home-based, mobile, or part-time.

We show them beside the density index, not inside it. In categories such as nail and beauty salons, child care, and pet care, one-person businesses can outnumber employer establishments, so the employer-only count understates how many businesses exist. That is not evidence of higher demand.

Receipts are gross revenue reported for these businesses — not profit, and not the size of the local market. Census publishes this only at county level, so it is not shown on the ZIP map. See methodology.

Saturation map

Each ZIP area is shaded by its density of this business type per person present (residents + workers) vs. the U.S. average. Click any ZIP to zoom to its boundary, see its numbers, and switch to aerial imagery. Individual mapped shops appear as dots at street level — Show locations zooms you in to them (scroll or double-click to zoom).

Basemap:
Under 50% 50–100% 100–150% 150–250% 250%+ 0–2 (not published) / no data ZIP total (dot size) Mapped shop (OpenStreetMap, street level)

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, tiles by OpenFreeMap.

White dots are ZIP totals from the official Census count — the bigger the dot, the more fast food in that ZIP. They are aggregated, not individual shops. Turquoise dots are individual locations mapped in OpenStreetMap, shown only at street level; they are crowd-sourced and indicative, may be incomplete, and do not equal the official counts. Only the official ZIP totals feed the saturation index.

Market trend — up 6% since 2015

Number of fast food in Jefferson County across 2015–2023, on a consistent set of ZIP codes present in every year — so changes are real, not ZIP-boundary artifacts. 2015/2018 are pre-pandemic baselines; 2020/2021 are COVID-distorted.

653
2015
680
2018
683
2020
682
2021
667
2022
692
2023

Highest measured density

ZIP
vs. U.S. average
Index
40243 Louisville
288%
40222 Louisville
190%
40207 Louisville
175%
40241 Louisville
155%
40217 Louisville
155%
40208 Louisville
147%
40204 Louisville
136%
40219 Louisville
126%
40206 Louisville
112%
40220 Louisville
109%
40258 Louisville
104%
40203 Louisville
102%
40299 Louisville
98%
40291 Louisville
96%
40216 Louisville
91%

Lowest measured density

ZIP
vs. U.S. average
Index
40210 Louisville
29%
40215 Louisville
42%
40212 Louisville
49%
40245 Louisville
59%
40228 Louisville
60%
40272 Louisville
63%
40211 Louisville
66%
40229 Louisville
72%
40223 Louisville
75%
40205 Louisville
82%
40214 Louisville
85%
40059 Prospect
85%
40218 Louisville
86%
40216 Louisville
91%
40291 Louisville
96%
Low measured density is not evidence of opportunity. A ZIP with few fast food may simply lack foot traffic, retail space, or demand. We rank only residential and mixed ZIPs here; employment hubs and visitor destinations are listed separately below. ZIPs where Census did not publish a count (0–2 businesses) are not ranked: they may be the least served of all, but the data cannot tell 0 from 1 or 2. Verify those locally.

Employment hubs & destinations

These ZIPs have far more workers (or visitors) than residents, so their counts are driven by daytime and visitor demand — not a place to read "shortage" from resident numbers alone.

ZIPNeighborhoodType ResidentsWorkersFast foodIndex
40209Louisville Employment hub 6395,515 5 221%
40202Louisville Employment hub 7,26152,725 26 116%
40213Louisville Employment hub 16,05451,794 27 96%
40280Louisville Employment hub 182843 0–2 —

Scroll the table sideways to see all columns.

All ZIP codes

Click a column header to sort. Index = fast food per 10,000 people present (residents + 0.5×workers) ÷ the U.S. average. 100% = exactly average.

ZIPNeighborhood ResidentsWorkersFast food Per 10kIndexStatus
40243Louisville 12,0028,262 31 19.2 288% Very high density
40209Louisville 6395,515 5 14.7 221% High density
40222Louisville 21,47020,053 40 12.7 190% High density
40207Louisville 28,90324,457 48 11.7 175% High density
40241Louisville 30,69621,693 43 10.4 155% High density
40217Louisville 11,6635,685 15 10.3 155% High density
40208Louisville 15,6055,529 18 9.8 147% Above average
40204Louisville 14,0347,104 16 9.1 136% Above average
40219Louisville 39,90919,727 42 8.4 126% Above average
40202Louisville 7,26152,725 26 7.7 116% Above average
40206Louisville 20,16113,222 20 7.5 112% Above average
40220Louisville 35,0789,424 29 7.3 109% Above average
40258Louisville 26,84112,415 23 7.0 104% Above average
40203Louisville 17,7428,514 15 6.8 102% Above average
40299Louisville 42,20740,713 41 6.6 98% Below average
40213Louisville 16,05451,794 27 6.4 96% Below average
40291Louisville 41,2224,971 28 6.4 96% Below average
40216Louisville 44,04710,317 30 6.1 91% Below average
40218Louisville 33,73619,818 25 5.7 86% Below average
40059Prospect 20,8923,862 13 5.7 85% Below average
40214Louisville 45,40511,903 29 5.6 85% Below average
40205Louisville 24,6649,094 16 5.5 82% Below average
40223Louisville 22,79841,958 22 5.0 75% Below average
40229Louisville 41,2998,463 22 4.8 72% Below average
40211Louisville 20,4074,888 10 4.4 66% Below average
40272Louisville 38,2894,867 17 4.2 63% Below average
40228Louisville 18,0853,765 8 4.0 60% Below average
40245Louisville 39,83517,109 19 3.9 59% Below average
40212Louisville 14,6611,319 5 3.3 49% Far below average
40215Louisville 20,5321,876 6 2.8 42% Far below average
40210Louisville 13,5184,456 3 1.9 29% Far below average
40018Eastwood —55 0–2 — — Not published
40023Fisherville 6,870477 0–2 — — Not published
40025Glenview 56515 0–2 — — Not published
40027Harrods Creek —85 0–2 — — Not published
40041Masonic Home 564345 0–2 — — Not published
40118Fairdale 10,6971,313 0–2 — — Not published
40201Louisville —270 0–2 — — Not published
40221Louisville 037 0–2 — — Not published
40225Louisville —10,383 0–2 — — Not published
40232Louisville —1,029 0–2 — — Not published
40233Louisville —189 0–2 — — Not published
40242Louisville 11,1681,361 0–2 — — Not published
40250Louisville —45 0–2 — — Not published
40252Louisville —24 0–2 — — Not published
40253Louisville —90 0–2 — — Not published
40255Louisville —9 0–2 — — Not published
40256Louisville —102 0–2 — — Not published
40257Louisville —72 0–2 — — Not published
40259Louisville —264 0–2 — — Not published
40268Louisville —18 0–2 — — Not published
40269Louisville —98 0–2 — — Not published
40270Louisville —107 0–2 — — Not published
40280Louisville 182843 0–2 — — Not published
40292Louisville —489 0–2 — — Not published

Scroll the table sideways to see all columns.

Find an actual space in Louisville

The numbers above tell you how the market looks. To find a specific storefront, these marketplaces list available retail space for lease.

LoopNet
Largest commercial marketplace
Browse Louisville retail space →
Crexi
Free listings + market data
Browse Louisville retail space →
CityFeet
Retail space for lease
Browse Louisville retail space →

Open vacancy data (actual empty units) is only published by some cities; where it exists we show it directly. Listings above are third-party.

Census withholds some ZIP-by-industry cells to protect small businesses. 0–2 means the cell was not published (Census publishes industry counts only at 3+ per ZIP), so the ZIP is left unranked rather than counted as zero. ~ means the count is estimated from the broader industry group and can be off by a business or two.

Follow Jefferson County and fast food

When a data vintage changes or a section of this report is revised, we post it to a public update feed. No email address, no account, no tracking — and nothing is sent unless something actually changed.

Subscribe to updates (RSS) How these numbers are built →

Methodology & sources

Establishments. U.S. Census ZIP Code Business Patterns (ZBP 2023), NAICS 722513 — limited-service restaurants. Counts establishments with paid employees. ZBP is published annually with a ~2-year lag.

Fresh county signal. BLS QCEW (quarterly) is newer than ZBP — 2026 Q1 shows 827 establishments county-wide for this industry. It cannot be broken down by ZIP.

Population. U.S. Census American Community Survey 2024 5-year ZCTA population (table B01003). Workers are the ZIP's total employment from the same 2023 ZBP file.

Demand ("people present"). Demand comes from residents and daytime workers: residents + 0.5 × workers. This is the single documented assumption in the model and can be tuned.

Index. index = (ZIP establishments ÷ ZIP demand × 10,000) ÷ the U.S. average for this industry (6.67 per 10,000 present). It is a supply-side density measure; it does not capture income, rent, tourism, or whether locals actually want more.

Read the full methodology →  ·  Data sources & vintages →

BizGapMap — free, no-login small-business saturation reports for major U.S. counties. Built entirely from public U.S. Census, BLS, and IRS data (ZBP 2023, ACS 2024 5-year, PEP 2024, LODES, QCEW, IRS SOI). No forecasts, no revenue guesses — withheld cells are marked, and the few derived counts are labelled as estimates.