The evolution of the limited-service restaurant industry continued in 2014, as traditional powerhouses faltered while fast casuals and other rising concepts asserted themselves as forces to be reckoned with. For the first time in the history of the QSR 50, a fast casual entered the top 10, as Panera Bread leapfrogged KFC to land a spot in the industry elite. Meanwhile, Subway ceded the No. 2 spot to Starbucks after an $800 million sales tumble, Chick-fil-A grew by $700 million to become larger than every pizza brand in the country, and Wingstop claimed the biggest jump of the year, with an 11-spot leap.
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*Includes figures estimated by Technomic Inc. 1Includes figures estimated by QSR 2 Average unit volume excludes licensed units 3 Sales include wholesale revenue
| Rank | Company/Chain Name | 2014 U.S. Systemwide Sales (millions) | 2014 U.S. Average Sales per Unit (thousands) | Number of Franchised Units in 2014 | Number of Company Units in 2014 | Total Units in 2014 | Total Change in Units from 2013 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | McDonald's | $35,447.0 | $2,500.0 | 12,836 | 1,514 | 14,350 | 72 |
| 2 | Starbucks*^1 | $12,688.9 | $1,048.1 | 4,769 | 7,338 | 12,107 | 650 |
| 3 | Subway* | $11,900.0 | $475.0 | 27,205 | 0 | 27,205 | 778 |
| 4 | Burger King* | $8,640.1 | $1,210.0 | 7,090 | 52 | 7,142 | -13 |
| 5 | Wendy's* | $8,512.8 | $1,594.0 | 4,895 | 885 | 5,780 | -41 |
| 6 | Taco Bell^2 | $8,200.0 | $1,441.0 | 4,995 | 926 | 5,921 | 152 |
| 7 | Dunkin' Donuts* | $7,175.0 | $911.0 | 8,047 | 35 | 8,082 | 405 |
| 8 | Chick-fil-A | $5,782.2 | $3,064.2 | 1,837 | 50 | 1,887 | 112 |
| 9 | Pizza Hut^2 | $5,500.0 | $843.0 | 7,337 | 526 | 7,863 | 17 |
| 10 | Panera Bread | $4,500.0 | $2,500.0 | 955 | 925 | 1,880 | 103 |
| 11 | KFC^2 | $4,200.0 | $960.0 | 4,164 | 206 | 4,370 | -121 |
| 12 | Domino's | $4,100.0 | $809.2 | 4,690 | 377 | 5,067 | 81 |
| 13 | Sonic Drive-In* | $4,099.4 | $1,153.0 | 3,128 | 389 | 3,517 | 0 |
| 14 | Chipotle* | $4,049.1 | $2,472.0 | 0 | 1,755 | 1,755 | 183 |
| 15 | Carl's Jr./Hardee's | $3,569.7 | $1,330.0 | 2,128 | 785 | 2,913 | 55 |
| 16 | Little Caesars* | $3,231.9 | $815.0 | 3,478 | 547 | 4,025 | 119 |
| 17 | Dairy Queen | $3,210.0 | $1,268.1 | 4,510 | 2 | 4,512 | -18 |
| 18 | Arby's | $3,200.0 | $983.0 | 2,286 | 940 | 3,226 | -43 |
| 19 | Jack in the Box | $3,179.8 | $1,412.0 | 1,819 | 431 | 2,250 | -1 |
| 20 | Papa John's* | $2,673.9 | $1,060.0 | 2,564 | 686 | 3,250 | 43 |
| 21 | Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen* | $2,433.6 | $1,340.0 | 2,314 | 65 | 2,379 | 154 |
| 22 | Panda Express | $2,246.4 | $1,366.0 | 75 | 1,633 | 1,708 | 101 |
| 23 | Whataburger | $1,801.1 | $2,327.0 | 118 | 656 | 774 | 16 |
| 24 | Jimmy John's | $1,756.7 | $898.8 | 2,071 | 38 | 2,109 | 307 |
| 25 | Zaxby's | $1,257.5 | $2,030.0 | 546 | 114 | 660 | 63 |
| 26 | Five Guys | $1,208.3 | $1,081.0 | 785 | 378 | 1,163 | 45 |
| 27 | Culver's | $1,035.7 | $2,015.7 | 521 | 7 | 528 | 33 |
| 28 | Bojangles' | $1,033.2 | $1,774.0 | 365 | 254 | 619 | 45 |
| 29 | Steak 'n Shake | $955.8 | $1,800.0 | 116 | 414 | 530 | 7 |
| 30 | Church's Chicken | $861.3 | $737.5 | 907 | 261 | 1,168 | -36 |
| 31 | Papa Murphy's | $849.7 | $586.2 | 1,370 | 91 | 1,461 | 43 |
| 32 | El Pollo Loco | $723.0 | $1,700.0 | 243 | 172 | 415 | 14 |
| 33 | Checkers/Rally's* | $717.2 | $908.0 | 471 | 331 | 802 | 20 |
| 34 | Wingstop | $678.8 | $1,073.0 | 652 | 41 | 693 | 78 |
| 35 | Qdoba | $669.4 | $1,070.0 | 328 | 310 | 638 | 23 |
| 36 | Krispy Kreme*^3 | $659.6 | $2,480.0 | 167 | 111 | 278 | 24 |
| 37 | Del Taco | $656.1 | $1,278.9 | 243 | 304 | 547 | 0 |
| 38 | White Castle | $653.5 | $1,322.0 | 0 | 391 | 391 | -9 |
| 39 | Tim Hortons* | $636.5 | $1,143.0 | 881 | 3 | 884 | 25 |
| 40 | Jason's Deli | $615.5 | $2,657.0 | 106 | 147 | 253 | 5 |
| 41 | Boston Market | $602.0 | $1,314.0 | 3 | 453 | 456 | -4 |
| 42 | In-n-Out Burger* | $584.6 | $1,975.0 | 0 | 301 | 301 | 10 |
| 43 | Moe's Southwest Grill | $571.3 | $1,092.9 | 576 | 4 | 580 | 53 |
| 44 | Long John Silver's | $555.1 | $681.1 | 815 | 0 | 815 | -75 |
| 45 | Firehouse Subs | $552.4 | $700.9 | 818 | 32 | 850 | 128 |
| 46 | Baskin-Robbins* | $544.0 | $220.0 | 2,478 | 6 | 2,484 | 17 |
| 47 | Jersey Mike's Subs* | $525.0 | $667.0 | 823 | 34 | 857 | 144 |
| 48 | Jamba Juice* | $512.7 | $684.0 | 543 | 263 | 806 | 3 |
| 49 | Captain D's | $499.9 | $978.4 | 238 | 273 | 511 | -1 |
| 50 | Einstein Bros. Bagels | $496.0 | $670.0 | 360 | 398 | 758 | 34 |
