Burger King has been clear about the company’s urgency to modernize. It even built a 40,000-square-foot “Royal Innovation Center,” complete with a life-sized “Sizzle” prototype at the center. Here, Burger King simulates operations and tests layouts before rolling out to market. But financially speaking, Burger King laid out $2 billion on the table. That unpacks as $400 million from the “Reclaim the Flame” turnaround plan announced in September 2022, the $1 billion acquisition of its largest franchisee Carrols Restaurant Group, a $500 million remodel commitment for those Carrols stores, and an additional $300 million co-investment in remodels to get Burger King between 85–90 percent updated by 2028.
There is myriad reasons Burger King pulled the $1 billion trigger on Carrols, a group that ran roughly one in seven stores across the U.S. Yet perhaps none were as viable as the fact parent company Restaurant Brands International wanted to fast track to a modern fleet.
As of February, Burger King had opened 80 Sizzle prototypes, showcasing modernized décor, kiosks, in-store mobile order and pickup, and mobile order and pickup at the drive-thru. Overall, RBI completed 370 remodels last year (not just Sizzle), bringing the system to 51 percent modern. The plan for 2025 is to remodel roughly 400 stores and keep pace with a larger aim of 85 to 90 percent evolved image by 2028.
Burger King on its Q4 earnings call said about 220 remodels had been open for more than six months and averaged a mid-teens sales uplift in Year 1.
Further details surfaced in the chain’s recently released FDD.
A total of 930 traditional Burger King locations, with an estimated CapEx outlay of $650,000 or more, were completely remodeled in the U.S. to the company’s modern standards between January 1, 2018, and December 31, 2023 (this goes beyond just Sizzle stores, as noted, and includes Garden Grill and Pavilion images). Of these, 921 were open and operating for the entire 12-month period that ended December 31. And 893 had sufficient data to be included in the “remodel” sample unveiled below. Twenty-eight were excluded because of date-related issues and nine stores had permanently closed. These remodeled units were comped against traditional stores during the same timeframes in the same DMAs—stores that have been opened between seven and 70 years.
With remodels, 840 underwent a full update and 53 were scraped and rebuilt (the entire site removed and constructed again).
For full rebuilds:
- Average sales uplift percentage: 11.4 percent
- Median sales uplift percentage: 9.9 percent
- Number above average sales uplift: 393
- Percentage above average sales uplift: 46.7 percent
- Average traffic uplift: 10.3 percent
- Median traffic uplift: 9 percent
- Number above average traffic uplift: 386
- Percentage above average traffic uplift: 45.9 percent
Scrape and rebuilds
- Average sales uplift percentage: 26.1 percent
- Median sales uplift percentage: 21.2 percent
- Number above average sales uplift: 19
- Percentage above average sales uplift: 35.8 percent
- Average traffic uplift: 24.5 percent
- Median traffic uplift: 20.3 percent
- Number above average traffic uplift: 22
- Percentage above average traffic uplift: 41.5 percent
Total
- Average sales uplift percentage: 12.3 percent
- Median sales uplift percentage: 10.7 percent
- Number above average sales uplift: 412
- Percentage above average sales uplift: 46.1 percent
- Average traffic uplift: 11.1 percent
- Median traffic uplift: 9.5 percent
- Number above average traffic uplift: 408
- Percentage above average traffic uplift: 46.5 percent
Among the remodels, 315 underwent a conversion from a single drive-thru to a double-drive setup, leaving 577 stores that did not at the time of the remodel.
Conversion to double drive-thru
- Average sales uplift: 15.8 percent
- Median sales uplift: 13.3 percent
- Number above average sales uplift: 133
- Percentage above average sales uplift: 42.1 percent
- Average traffic uplift: 14.3 percent
- Median traffic uplift: 11.2 percent
- Number above average traffic uplift: 126
- Percentage above average traffic uplift: 39.9 percent
No drive-thru conversion (still single lane, but remodeled otherwise)
- Average sales uplift: 10.3 percent
- Median sales uplift: 9.7 percent
- Number above average sales uplift: 280
- Percentage above average sales uplift: 48.5 percent
- Average traffic uplift: 9.4 percent
- Median traffic uplift: 8.3 percent
- Number above average traffic uplift: 272
- Percentage above average traffic uplift: 47.1 percent
Total
- Average sales uplift: 12.3 percent
- Median sales uplift: 10.7 percent
- Number above average sales uplift: 413
- Percentage above average sales uplift: 46.2 percent
- Average traffic uplift: 11.1 percent
- Median traffic uplift: 9.5 percent
- Number above average traffic uplift: 398
- Percentage above average traffic uplift: 44.6 percent
In the remodeled pool, 705 underwent a change to Burger King’s modern standard from legacy image types. “Legacy image” includes restaurants that before the remodel had 1999, ROC, or other similar models. These operated between 13 and 63 years. Also, Burger King called out 177 locations that upgraded from 20/20 Light image types. That definition includes stores that before the change had 20/20 Light, 20/20 Standards, 20/20 Hybrid, or other similar images. These ranged from 12 to 70 years old. Lastly, 11 restaurants could not be identified in terms of what they upgraded from (listed as other to modern image).
Legacy to modern image
- Average sales uplift: 13.2 percent
- Median sales uplift: 12.3 percent
- Number above average sales uplift: 330
- Percentage above average sales uplift: 46.8 percent
- Average traffic uplift: 11.9 percent
- Media traffic uplift: 10.6 percent
- Number above average traffic uplift: 320
- Percentage above average traffic uplift: 45.4 percent
20/20 Light to modern image
- Average sales uplift: 9.3 percent
- Median sales uplift: 7.4 percent
- Number above average sales uplift: 76
- Percentage above average sales uplift: 42.9 percent
- Average traffic uplift: 8.6 percent
- Media traffic uplift: 7.1 percent
- Number above average traffic uplift: 74
- Percentage above average traffic uplift: 41.8 percent
Other to modern image
- Average sales uplift: 2.7 percent
- Median sales uplift: 2.9 percent
- Number above average sales uplift: 6
- Percentage above average sales uplift: 54.5 percent
- Average traffic uplift: 1.7 percent
- Media traffic uplift: 2 percent
- Number above average traffic uplift: 7
- Percentage above average traffic uplift: 63.6 percent
Total
- Average sales uplift: 12.3 percent
- Median sales uplift: 10.7 percent
- Number above average sales uplift: 412
- Percentage above average sales uplift: 46.1 percent
- Average traffic uplift: 11.1 percent
- Media traffic uplift: 9.5 percent
- Number above average traffic uplift: 401
- Percentage above average traffic uplift: 44.9 percent
Getting into the annual sales ranges below:
Zeroing in on Reclaim the Flame itself, franchisees can earn incentives by completing remodels by certain deadlines (again, going back to the urgency). This chart shows how Reclaim the Flame updates are faring. The company set aside 118 units enrolled in Reclaim the Flame that completed a remodel on or before December 31, 2023 and open and operating for the entire 12-month period ending December 31, 2024. Of those, 23 were scraped and rebuilt. These operated between 13 and 57 years. Ninety-five were also identified as units that underwent a full remodel (operating between 12 and 70 years).
Additionally, Burger King pulled back results to paint a multi-year picture. It reviewed sales data of remodeled locations for the three-year period following the completion of the remodel for all units included that had at least one full year of post-remodel performance as of December 31, as measured from the project completion data. For each of the years following, it comped the cumulative same-store sales of each against control restaurants.
Broader trends
Burger King ended Q4 with some momentum. It outperformed major burger peers with a 1.5 percent rise in same-store sales, lapping a 6.4 percent increase in Q4 2023. Comps rose 1.2 percent for full-year 2024, building off a 7.5 percent increase.
In 2024, Burger King U.S. earned $205,000 in average profitability per store, essentially flat compared to 2023. However, “A” operators achieved average profitability of more than $275,000—35 percent higher than the system average. That, too, has been part of RBI’s pitch to franchisees to update and align on operational improvements.
The brand previously announced a goal of eclipsing $230,000 in average profitability by the end of 2026 and a longer-term goal of reaching $300,000. One of the clearest paths to get there is restaurant remodels, RBI executive chairman Patrick Doyle said in Q4, noting some renovated stores were already approaching that $300,000 figure.
Along this path, Burger King reworked its splits. The company retracted in the U.S. by 77 stores in 2024 after pulling back 264 in 2023 and 62 the year before. So it’s gone from a total of 7,042 U.S. restaurants year-end 2022 to 6,701 at 2024’s exit—a 403-unit decrease over three years.
Thanks to the Carrols acquisition (1,023), Burger King also ended 2024 with 1,039 more corporate locations than the year before (the franchise side declined by a total of 1,116). The year-end split was 5,524 franchises and 1,177 corporate restaurants. The company reacquired 1,061 outlets in 2024. That number was just 88 in 2023, a more typical year without a massive $1 billion deal tossed in.
Burger King had 254 transfers of stores from franchisees to new owners (not corporate) last year as well. That followed 245 in 2023 and 103 in 2022.
Important to note, Burger King does not plan to run this large a corporate fleet for long. It announced in Q4 it initiated work to start selling locations in 2025, two years ahead of schedule. It expects to further accelerate efforts in 2026. Burger King’s new preference is for operators to have no more than 50 units; the chain currently has 300 franchisees, but that is expected to move to roughly 400–500 in the next few years.
Texas closed the year as the largest Burger King franchised market with 575 (down from 582 the prior year). California was next with 482 (a decrease from 504 in 2023) followed by Florida at 408 (slide from 419 the previous calendar and 497 year-end 2022).
North Carolina was the loftiest company-run state with 154 locations at the end of 2024. New York had 124 and Ohio 115.
Burger King projected 48 new franchised outlets for fiscal 2025 and two company stores.
Store-level results
As of December 31, there were 6,701 franchisee-owned stores open and operating in the U.S. and 1,177 company. Of that group in total, there were 5,527 franchises and 1,174 corporate open and operating during the entire 12-month period that ended December 31. There were 874 stores fitted as “non-traditional.”
The summary is the company, consolidated, averaged $1.671.6 million in average-unit volume on traditional units last year ($1.173.6 for company and $1.658.4 for franchised).
Burger King included results for Fuel Co-Branded units as well. The data backs 320 open and operating for the 12-month stretch. These are attached to a branded gas station, other than truck stops and gas stations on interstate highways. In many cases, a convenience store is also located at the co-branded restaurants.
Burger King broke it down by full size (2,300 square feet and larger; seats 50–70); large (1,500–2,300; seats 40–65); small (1,200 to 1,500; seats 30–40); and kiosk (200 to 1,200; seats zero to 30).
Burger King closed 2024 with $9.022 billion in total revenues, up from $8.707 billion in 2023.
RBI, which also owns Popeyes, Tim Hortons, and Firehouse Subs, is scheduled to report Q1 2025 earnings on May 8.
