The 2021 QSR® magazine Drive-Thru Study Methodology:

The FoodserviceResults team, in partnership with QSR magazine, conducted a comprehensive, nationally representative survey of drive-thru consumers in the U.S. using an online survey sample. Additionally, onsite audits were conducted at the top 10 drive-thru chains in the U.S. Both waves of the research were conducted in July 2021. Leveraging insights from numerous industry experts, the finalized survey was completed by 1,007 drive-thru consumers during fieldwork. To ensure a relevant respondent base was achieved, all participants were screened to only include those who had at least one drive-thru occasion in the last 30 days. The onsite drive-thru audits were balanced against geographic region (West, South, Midwest, and Northeast) and were conducted to coincide with breakfast, lunch, and dinner dayparts. In total, 312 audits were conducted at 10 top quick-service restaurant chains across the U.S. An extensive cross tabulation of the respondent sample data was conducted in order to identify major trends, demographic/behavioral themes, and other nuances in the data.