More than a chicken sandwich
Here’s one of the most remarkable realities about the fast-food industry, told by the numbers. At the end of 2018, there were only five restaurant brands in America with at least $10 billion in total U.S. systemwide sales—McDonald’s, Starbucks, Subway, Taco Bell, and Chick-fil-A (Wendy’s and Burger King were knocking at the door). While that sounds like a standard heavy-hitters list of quick-service chains, there is one thing that separates them: Unit count. And this is where Chick-fil-A’s rise in recent years is eye-popping. The brand has the 19th most restaurants in the country, yet ranks fifth in total sales.
Heading into 2019, Chick-fil-A stood at $10 billion across 2,400 restaurants.
McDonald’s had 13,914 locations; Starbucks 14,825; Subway 24,798; and Taco Bell 6,588. Not to mention, Chick-fil-A is closed on Sundays. As you’ll see in the following list, Chick-fil-A has climbed to rare heights despite being significantly smaller than the restaurants it measures against (and being open 52 fewer days a year). The key figure: The chicken chain’s restaurants averaged $4.167 million last year. The nearest competitor was Raising Cane’s, at $2.963 million. But that was counting just 400 restaurants. Of brands with 1,000 locations or more, McDonald’s is the closest at $2.769 million per location. Panera, which had 2,093 stores at year’s end, was next at $2.74 million. Chipotle clocked in at $2 million.
What this all illustrates is something we probably knew already—Chick-fil-A’s surge over the past 12 years, a span in which it doubled its U.S. store count—remains one of the biggest success stories the industry has seen to date. And there’s no reason to think the brand is slowing down.
Here’s a look at where the top-earning restaurants in America stack up by total systemwide sales.
Note: These figures reflect end of year fiscal 2018 results.
1. McDonald’s
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $38,524.05
Previous year: $37,480.67
Average sales per unit (thousands): $2,768.73
Unit count: 13,914
Franchised stores: 13,229
Company stores: 685
Total change in units from 2017: -122
2. Starbucks
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $19,700.00
Previous year: $13,167.61
Average sales per unit (thousands): $1,349.32
Unit count: 14,825
Franchised stores: 6,332
Company stores: 8,493
Total change in units from 2017: 895
3. Subway
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $10,410.34
Previous year: $10,800.00
Average sales per unit (thousands): $420.00
Unit count: 24,798
Franchised stores: 24,798
Company stores: 0
Total change in units from 2017: –1,110
4. Taco Bell
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $10,300.00
Previous year: $9,790.15
Average sales per unit (thousands): $1,600.00
Unit count: 6,588
Franchised stores: 6,126
Company stores: 462
Total change in units from 2017: 142
5. Chick-fil-A
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $10,000.00
Previous year: $9,000.00
Average sales per unit (thousands): $4,166.67
Unit count: 2,400
Franchised stores: 2,400
Company stores: 0
Total change in units from 2017: 175
6. Wendy’s
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $9,993.70
Previous year: $9,288.09
Average sales per unit (thousands): $1,636.40
Unit count: 6,711
Franchised stores: 5,825
Company stores: 353
Total change in units from 2017: 77
7. Burger King
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $9,950.00
Previous year: $10,028.32
Average sales per unit (thousands): $1,357.00
Unit count: 7,327
Franchised stores: 7,278
Company stores: 49
Total change in units from 2017: 101
8. Dunkin’
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $8,787.00
Previous year: $9,192.00
Average sales per unit (thousands): $933.00
Unit count: 9,419
Franchised stores: 9,419
Company stores: 0
Total change in units from 2017: 278
9. Domino’s
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $6,600.00
Previous year: $5,900.00
Average sales per unit (thousands): $1,123.00
Unit count: 5,876
Franchised stores: 5,486
Company stores: 390
Total change in units from 2017: 258
10. Panera Bread
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $5,734.63
Previous year: $5,503.64
Average sales per unit (thousands): $2,739.91
Unit count: 2,093
Franchised stores: 1,131
Company stores: 963
Total change in units from 2017: 50
11. Pizza Hut
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $5,500.00
Previous year: $5,510.84
Average sales per unit (thousands): $878.00
Unit count: 7,456
Franchised stores: 7,432
Company stores: 24
Total change in units from 2017: -41
12. Chipotle
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $4,800.00
Previous year: $4,476.41
Average sales per unit (thousands): $2,000.00
Unit count: 2,491
Franchised stores: 0
Company stores: 2,491
Total change in units from 2017: 83
13. Sonic Drive-In
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $4,447.10
Previous year: $4,408.16
Average sales per unit (thousands): $1,250.00
Unit count: 3,606
Franchised stores: 3,427
Company stores: 179
Total change in units from 2017: 13
14. KFC
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $4,400.00
Previous year: $4,417.05
Average sales per unit (thousands): $1,210.00
Unit count: 4,074
Franchised stores: 4,019
Company stores: 55
Total change in units from 2017: -35
15. Arby’s
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $3,886.90
Previous year: $3,634.00
Average sales per unit (thousands): $1,177.00
Unit count: 3,329
Franchised stores: 2,197
Company stores: 1,132
Total change in units from 2017: 46
16. Little Caesars
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $3,800.00
Previous year: $3,530.58
Average sales per unit (thousands): $874.00
Unit count: 4,262
Franchised stores: 3,700
Company stores: 562
Total change in units from 2017: -74
17. Dairy Queen
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $3,650.00
Previous year: $3,640.00
Average sales per unit (thousands): $1,204.58
Unit count: 4,406
Franchised stores: 4,404
Company stores: 2
Total change in units from 2017: -49
18. Jack in the Box
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $3,466.13
Previous year: $3,469.17
Average sales per unit (thousands): $1,553.00
Unit count: 2,237
Franchised stores: 2,100
Company stores: 137
Total change in units from 2017: -14
19. Panda Express
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $3,400.00
Previous year: $3,114.80
Average sales per unit (thousands): $1,616.00
Unit count: 2,104
Franchised stores: 125
Company stores: 1,979
Total change in units from 2017: 93
20. Popeyes
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $3,325.00
Previous year: $3,213.06
Average sales per unit (thousands): $1,415.00
Unit count: 2,368
Franchised stores: 2,327
Company stores: 41
Total change in units from 2017: 148
21. Papa John’s
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $2,720.00
Previous year: $3,209.30
Average sales per unit (thousands): $815.00
Unit count: 3,337
Franchised stores: 2,691
Company stores: 646
Total change in units from 2017: 23
22. Whataburger
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $2,416.00
Previous year: $2,278.62
Average sales per unit (thousands): $2,928.50
Unit count: 825
Franchised stores: 126
Company stores: 699
Total change in units from 2017: 4
23. Jimmy John’s
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $2,200.00
Previous year: $2,139.62
Average sales per unit (thousands): $772.00
Unit count: 2,803
Franchised stores: 2,748
Company stores: 55
Total change in units from 2017: 48
24. Hardee’s
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $2,120.00
Previous year: $2,168.00
Average sales per unit (thousands): $1,131.00
Unit count: 1,864
Franchised stores: 1,745
Company stores: 119
Total change in units from 2017: 16
25. Zaxby’s
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $1,850.00
Previous year: $2,091.50
Average sales per unit (thousands): $2,060.00
Unit count: 898
Franchised stores: 757
Company stores: 141
Total change in units from 2017: 21
26. Five Guys
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $1,615.84
Previous year: $1,436.52
Average sales per unit (thousands): $1,274.80
Unit count: 1,358
Franchised stores: 866
Company stores: 492
Total change in units from 2017: 37
27. Culver’s
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $1,580.00
Previous year: $1,400.00
Average sales per unit (thousands): $2,390.00
Unit count: 686
Franchised stores: 680
Company stores: 6
Total change in units from 2017: 45
28. Carl’s Jr.
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $1,261.03
Previous year: $1,487.00
Average sales per unit (thousands): $1,425.00
Unit count: 1,156
Franchised stores: 1,106
Company stores: 50
Total change in units from 2017: -7
29. Bojangles’
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $1,296.21
Previous year: $1,278.00
Average sales per unit (thousands): $1,741.06
Unit count: 759
Franchised stores: 440
Company stores: 319
Total change in units from 2017: -5
30. Wingstop
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $1,261.03
Previous year: $1,087.43
Average sales per unit (thousands): $1,139.00
Unit count: 1,252
Franchised stores: 1,095
Company stores: 29
Total change in units from 2017: 225
31. Raising Cane’s
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $1,185.00
Average sales per unit (thousands): $2,963.00
Unit count: 400
Franchised stores: 70
Company stores: 330
Total change in units from 2017: 0
32. Jersey Mike’s
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $1,148.49
Previous year: $974.78
Average sales per unit (thousands): $769.00
Unit count: 1,494
Franchised stores: 1,412
Company stores: 82
Total change in units from 2017: 151
33. Steak ‘n’ Shake
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $1,035.00
Previous year: $939.99
Average sales per unit (thousands): $1,739.00
Unit count: 594
Franchised stores: 185
Company stores: 409
Total change in units from 2017: 9
34. In-N-Out Burger
U.S. systemwide sales (millions): $950.00
Previous year: $647.80
Average sales per unit (thousands): $2,794.00
Unit count: 338
Franchised stores: 0
Company stores: 338
Total change in units from 2017: 10