The most-visited quick-serve chains by region are...
New foot traffic data shows that America’s most popular fast-food chains aren’t necessarily the ones with the most locations.
Wendy’s is the most popular quick-serve chain when it comes to visits, followed by Raising Cane’s, Chick-fil-A, Five Guys and McDonald’s, according to new research by Dataplor.
Two restaurant giants, McDonald’s and Subway, were tied as the most widespread chains overall, with Burger King, Wendy’s, Dairy Queen, and Sonic Drive-In rounding out the list. Only two of those most common restaurants (Wendy’s and McDonald’s) are also present in the top five for most foot traffic, which Dataplor says suggests that “being everywhere doesn’t mean you’re going to be everyone’s top choice.”
Dataplor also found that by region, consumer tastes are often very different.
Southeast
Wendy’s led in foot traffic in the Southeast, followed by McDonald’s, Raising Cane’s, Chick-fil-A, and then a tie between Five Guys and Culver’s. Subway, Burger King, Sonic and Dairy Queen all appear on the list for most common restaurants, yet they are absent from the top foot traffic rankings.
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West
Regional favorite In-N-Out Burger secured a number-one ranking in five Western states for having the highest foot traffic, despite not cracking the top five for total number of stores in any state in the region. Taking a broader view of brands that achieved a top five ranking for foot traffic in at least one Western state, In-N-Out was tied for fourth place with fellow burger joint Five Guys, with the top spots belonging to Wendy’s, Chick-fil-A and Raising Cane’s.
Southwest
Maintaining its western dominance, In-N-Out also stood out as a beloved chain in the Southwest region, achieving the most first-place rankings for foot traffic in a given state, taking the top honor in two of the four states in the region. The list of brands to make the top five for foot traffic in at least one state in the Southwest were Wendy’s, Raising Cane’s, McDonald’s, Five Guys, In-n-Out, Culver’s, Chick-fil-A and Freddy’s Frozen Custard and Steakburgers. However, of these, only Wendy’s and McDonald’s ever made the top five for total number of stores in at least one state.
Northeast
Five Guys, founded in Washington, D.C., and Jersey Mike's, which was founded in its namesake state, ranked second and third in the region in terms of the number of times they cracked the top five for total number of stores in a given state. When it comes to overall popularity, Wendy’s, Chick-fil-A and Five Guys took the top three spots for restaurants most likely to rank in the top five for foot traffic. However, Raising Cane’s emerged as perhaps the most well-loved restaurant, taking the top spot for foot traffic in six states in the Northeast.
Midwest
Wisconsin-born Culver’s is most popular in its home region, showing up in the top five for both number of locations and foot traffic. It’s the second-most likely brand, behind Wendy’s, to be in the top five for foot traffic for states in the region, snagging the number one overall spot for popularity in one state (Ohio).
