• by Teresa Buyikian , April 10, 2025

Americans certainly love their Quarter Pounders with Cheese -- and cold brewed, extra triple shot, vanilla sweet cream, extra foam coffees.

Consumer behavior advisory Circana’s recent 2025 Definitive U.S. Restaurant Ranking Report looked at consumer spending trends, key growth drivers and category performance for restaurants across the country for 2024.

McDonald’s, Starbucks and Chick-fil-A expectedly topped the list. The top three restaurant behemoths collectively generated over $100 billion per year, comprising a whopping 32% of the top 50’s overall sales. Taco Bell and Dunkin’ were fourth and fifth, respectively. Rounding out the top 10 were Wendy’s, Burger King, Chipotle, Subway and lastly, Domino’s.

Olive Garden was the largest fast casual at 18^th on the list, while IHOP, considered a mid-scale chain in the report, was 30^th.

“As the industry moves forward, value will remain a crucial strategy, although the most effective approaches will extend beyond mere pricing,” said David Portalatin, senior vice president and food industry advisor for Circana, in the announcement. “For instance, nostalgia has emerged as a compelling tactic that consistently drives traffic gains for restaurants and will be a trend that we continue to watch.”

Overall, thirty-four of the top 50 restaurants are QSRs, with 11 fast casuals, and the remaining five midscale chains. The top 50 may only account for 24% of all restaurant locations, per the report, but they make up 61% of the entire restaurant industry’s spending. Twenty-eight of the top 50 grew in overall sales, and 31 brands increased locations.

Drive-thru coffee chain Dutch Bros. which has grown to over 900 locations across the country to date, made its first appearance on the annual report, coming in at 43.

Consumers spent $1 million at restaurants every second of 2024, which was an increase of 2% over 2023, and continued what is now a four year growth trajectory.

Consumers must have spent more than $1.35 billion in a chain for it to be considered for the top 50. Circana utilizes multiple data sources and services combined with analyst estimates to create the annual report.