Markets
Ranked: The Most Popular Fast Food Brands in America
Ranked: The Most Popular Fast Food Brands in America
Ever since the McDonald brothers created the concept of fast food in 1940, the restaurant’s golden arches have continued to beckon customers to its quick, cheap, and tasty meals.
McDonald’s is still the most popular fast food brand in America today—with $46 billion in systemwide sales last year.
This graphic uses data from a report on America’s top 50 fast food chains by Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) Magazine. The popular brands are sized by their 2021 systemwide sales and broken down into six broad categories: Burger, Chicken, Snack, Pizza, Sandwich, and Global.
Note: a number of these figures are estimates. Unofficial figures are noted in the graphic with an asterisk.
The Most Popular Fast Food Companies
It’s indisputable that McDonald’s is America’s favorite fast food restaurant, if not the world’s. McDonald’s sales are almost double the second the place restaurant’s, Starbucks—totaling $46 billion compared to the coffee shop’s $24 billion.
Here’s a closer look at the numbers:
Rank | Company | Systemwide Sales (2021) | Category |
---|---|---|---|
#1 | McDonald's | $46.0 billion | Burger |
#2 | Starbucks | $24.3 billion | Snack |
#3 | Chick-fil-A | $16.7 billion | Chicken |
#4 | Taco Bell | $12.6 billion | Global |
#5 | Wendy's | $11.1 billion | Burger |
#6 | Dunkin' | $10.4 billion | Snack |
#7 | Burger King | $10.0 billion | Burger |
#8 | Subway | $9.4 billion | Sandwich |
#9 | Domino's | $8.6 billion | Pizza |
#10 | Chipotle | $7.5 billion | Global |
#11 | Sonic Drive-In | $5.8 billion | Burger |
#12 | Panera Bread | $5.7 billion | Sandwich |
#13 | Pizza Hut | $5.5 billion | Pizza |
#14 | KFC | $5.1 billion | Chicken |
#15 | Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen | $4.8 billion | Chicken |
#16 | Dairy Queen | $4.5 billion | Snack |
#17 | Arby's | $4.5 billion | Sandwich |
#18 | Panda Express | $4.5 billion | Global |
#19 | Little Caesars | $4.2 billion | Pizza |
#20 | Jack in the Box | $4.1 billion | Burger |
#21 | Papa Johns | $3.5 billion | Pizza |
#22 | Whataburger | $2.7 billion | Burger |
#23 | Culver's | $2.5 billion | Burger |
#24 | Raising Caine's | $2.4 billion | Chicken |
#25 | Jimmy John's | $2.3 billion | Sandwich |
#26 | Wingstop | $2.3 billion | Chicken |
#27 | Zaxby's | $2.2 billion | Chicken |
#28 | Jersey Mike's | $2.2 billion | Sandwich |
#29 | Hardee's | $2.1 billion | Burger |
#30 | Five Guys | $2.1 billion | Burger |
#31 | Carl's Jr. | $1.6 billion | Burger |
#32 | Bojangles | $1.5 billion | Chicken |
#33 | In-N-Out Burger | $1.2 billion | Burger |
#34 | Firehouse Subs | $1.0 billion | Sandwich |
#35 | Krispy Kreme | $996 million | Snack |
#36 | Pel Pollo Loco | $973 million | Chicken |
#37 | Tropical Smoothie Cafe | $948 million | Snack |
#38 | Del Taco | $931 million | Global |
#39 | Checkers/Rally's | $931 million | Burger |
#40 | Marco's Pizza | $899 million | Pizza |
#41 | McAlister's Deli | $869 million | Sandwich |
#42 | Qdoba | $835 million | Global |
#43 | Papa Murphy's | $809 million | Pizza |
#44 | Church's Chicken | $776 million | Chicken |
#45 | Shake Shack | $775 million | Burger |
#46 | Freddy's Frozen Custard & Steakburger | $759 million | Burger |
#47 | Tim Hortons | $687 million | Snack |
#48 | Baskin-Robbins | $686 million | Snack |
#49 | Moe's | $661 million | Global |
#50 | White Castle | $615 million | Burger |
Most of the top 20 restaurants are extremely well known, like Chick-fil-A in third place and Taco Bell in fourth. Some of these chains, however, will be unrecognizable depending on which part of the U.S. you live in. While Bojangles is ubiquitous in the Southeast, for example, many on the West Coast may have never heard of it.
Some of the lower ranking restaurants include Shake Shack (#45), White Castle (#50), and the Canadian-founded Tim Hortons (#47).
Fast Food Industry Trends
America’s fast food industry is expected to generate $331 billion in sales in 2022, and many restaurants are capitalizing on trends shaped in part by the pandemic.
Fast food companies are already somewhat ideal for pandemic conditions with drive-thrus, fast service, and a model that doesn’t encourage sitting down to eat.
Looking to the future, Starbucks, for example, has claimed 90% of its new stores will feature drive-thrus. Digital sales and transactions that limit contact, making fast food even more quick and convenient, are growing as well. Starbucks’ mobile order service has grown 400% over the last five years. And in 2021, the delivery side of their business grew 30% year-over-year, according to the QSR report.
Additionally, the report featured 50 up-and-coming fast food companies to watch in the industry. Here’s a look:
Rank | Company | Systemwide Sales (2021) | Category |
---|---|---|---|
#1 | Smoothie King | $602 million | Snack |
#2 | Habit Burger | $600 million | Burger |
#3 | Auntie Anne's | $576 million | Snack |
#4 | Captain D's | $567 million | Seafood |
#5 | Steak 'N' Shake | $539 million | Burger |
#6 | Portillo's | $526 million | Snack |
#7 | Jamba | $505 million | Snack |
#8 | Schlotzsky's | $332 million | Sandwich |
#9 | Krystal | $323 million | Burger |
#10 | Fazoli's | $298 million | Global |
#11 | Pizza Ranch | $279 million | Pizza |
#12 | Scooter's Coffee | $263 million | Snack |
#13 | Penn Station | $258 million | Sandwich |
#14 | Chicken Salad Chick | $255 million | Chicken |
#15 | Mountain Mike's | $254 million | Pizza |
#16 | Smashburger | $253 million | Burger |
#17 | Cinnabon | $224 million | Snack |
#18 | Wetzel's | $219 million | Snack |
#19 | Donatos | $211 million | Pizza |
#20 | Newk's | $208 million | Sandwich |
#21 | Bonchon | $173 million | Chicken |
#22 | Waba Grill | $170 million | Global |
#23 | The Human Bean | $109 million | Snack |
#24 | Capriotti's | $108 million | Sandwich |
#25 | Great Harvest Bread Company | $108 million | Sandwich |
#26 | Teriyaki Madness | $90 million | Global |
#27 | Roy Rogers | $82 million | Burger |
#28 | Pizza Guys | $79 million | Pizza |
#29 | Mooyah | $71 million | Burger |
#30 | Salsarita's | $68 million | Global |
#31 | Dog Haus | $67 million | Snack |
#32 | Gold Star | $61 million | Burger |
#33 | Hawaiian Bros | $55 million | Global |
#34 | Honeygrow | $55 million | Global |
#35 | Robeks | $50 million | Snack |
#36 | PJ’s Coffee of New Orleans | $46 million | Snack |
#37 | Kolache Factory | $46 million | Snack |
#38 | Juice it Up! | $43 million | Snack |
#39 | Happy Joe's | $38 million | Pizza |
#40 | Rusty Taco | $35 million | Global |
#41 | Wing Zone | $34 million | Chicken |
#42 | Swig | $29 million | Snack |
#43 | Pickleman's | $29 million | Sandwich |
#44 | Killer Burger | $17 million | Burger |
#45 | Wing Snob | $15 million | Chicken |
#46 | Sobol | $13 million | Global |
#47 | Bad Ass Coffee of Hawaii | $12 million | Snack |
#48 | Asian Box | $11 million | Global |
#49 | Sauce on the Side | $9 million | Global |
#50 | Mici Italian | $6 million | Global |
Some of these are well-established fast food joints that are simply growing their sales, like Cinnabon, while others are newer to the scene.
America’s Favorite Fast Food
Using the ranking’s food categories, we calculated the total sales in each category from the top 50 to figure out which foods are America’s favorites. The winner is evidently burgers, with $92.2 billion in collective sales. Here’s a look at the breakdown:
Rank | Food Category | Category Cumulative Sales |
---|---|---|
#1 | Burger | $92.2 billion |
#2 | Snack | $42.5 billion |
#3 | Chicken | $36.7 billion |
#4 | Global | $27.0 billion |
#5 | Sandwich | $25.9 billion |
#6 | Pizza | $23.5 billion |
Sales at Burger restaurants were more than double the runner-up, which was Snacks. After all, nothing is more American than a classic hamburger and fries.
Maps
Mapped: The 10 U.S. States With the Lowest Real GDP Growth
In this graphic, we show where real GDP lagged the most across America in 2023 as high interest rates weighed on state economies.
The Top 10 U.S. States, by Lowest Real GDP Growth
This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.
While the U.S. economy defied expectations in 2023, posting 2.5% in real GDP growth, several states lagged behind.
Last year, oil-producing states led the pack in terms of real GDP growth across America, while the lowest growth was seen in states that were more sensitive to the impact of high interest rates, particularly due to slowdowns in the manufacturing and finance sectors.
This graphic shows the 10 states with the least robust real GDP growth in 2023, based on data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Weakest State Economies in 2023
Below, we show the states with the slowest economic activity in inflation-adjusted terms, using chained 2017 dollars:
Rank | State | Real GDP Growth 2023 YoY | Real GDP 2023 |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Delaware | -1.2% | $74B |
2 | Wisconsin | +0.2% | $337B |
3 | New York | +0.7% | $1.8T |
4 | Missississippi | +0.7% | $115B |
5 | Georgia | +0.8% | $661B |
6 | Minnesota | +1.2% | $384B |
7 | New Hampshire | +1.2% | $91B |
8 | Ohio | +1.2% | $698B |
9 | Iowa | +1.3% | $200B |
10 | Illinois | +1.3% | $876B |
U.S. | +2.5% | $22.4T |
Delaware witnessed the slowest growth in the country, with real GDP growth of -1.2% over the year as a sluggish finance and insurance sector dampened the state’s economy.
Like Delaware, the Midwestern state of Wisconsin also experienced declines across the finance and insurance sector, in addition to steep drops in the agriculture and manufacturing industries.
America’s third-biggest economy, New York, grew just 0.7% in 2023, falling far below the U.S. average. High interest rates took a toll on key sectors, with notable slowdowns in the construction and manufacturing sectors. In addition, falling home prices and a weaker job market contributed to slower economic growth.
Meanwhile, Georgia experienced the fifth-lowest real GDP growth rate. In March 2024, Rivian paused plans to build a $5 billion EV factory in Georgia, which was set to be one of the biggest economic development initiatives in the state in history.
These delays are likely to exacerbate setbacks for the state, however, both Kia and Hyundai have made significant investments in the EV industry, which could help boost Georgia’s manufacturing sector looking ahead.
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