Fast Food Industry Statistics 2023: Facts & Trends on the $907 Billion Global Fast Food Industry

The fast food industry is a billion dollar industry. This article explains facts and trends about the global industry.

Fast food is mass-produced and intended for commercial resale with a focus on quick service. It was designed to serve workers, commuters and tourists.

I did a deep-dive on fast food industry statistics and compiled the following:

Quick Facts:

  • As of 2023, there are 201,865 fast food restaurants operating in the United States.
  • As of 2022, the US fast food market was worth $331.41 billion.
  • The US fast food industry’s anticipated CAGR (compound annual growth rate) from 2020 to 2027 is 5.1%.
  • By 2023, the global fast food market will be valued $907 billion.
  • 50 million Americans, or 37% of the population, eat fast food daily.
  • The majority of Americans eat fast food 1-3 times a week.
  • One third of Americans eat fast food daily.
  • On any given day, people between the ages of 20 and 39 consume the most fast food.
  • Compared to women, men eat more fast food.
  • Families in America eat at fast food establishments 83% of the time.
  • Fast food accounts for 10% of the annual income of the typical American household.
  • Individuals with higher earnings are more likely to consume fast food than those with lower incomes.
  • The most popular time to eat fast food is during lunch.
  • On any one day, 34% of youngsters eat fast food.
  • Regular fast food consumption raises your risk for depression, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and obesity.
  • The average annual rise in fast food consumption is 2.2%.
  • McDonald’s is still the most popular restaurant in the fast food sector.

I divided the information into the following categories for additional analysis:

General Statistics for the Fast Food Industry 

In the US, the restaurant business has always been big. Fast food establishments are a piece of the pie. It is estimated that 36.6% of adults in America, or 84.4 million people, eat fast food on any given day.

Given these facts, it should come as no surprise that this sector of the restaurant industry is still expanding despite COVID-19’s negative effects on the US economy. Consider the following figures:

By revenue, the US fast food business had a $331.41 billion market in 2022.

The yearly revenue is over a quarter of a trillion dollars. For many years, the fast food sector has maintained an annual growth rate of around 1.1%. In contrast, the fast food sector had a $239.2 billion market value in 2000.

In the United States, there were 785,316 franchise owners of fast food businesses as of 2020.

Fast food businesses can grow more quickly without using borrowed money thanks to franchising. Franchise owners profit from this since they have access to well-run national advertising campaigns, fast food industry knowledge, and other resources that independent business owners do not always have.

A fast food meal typically costs $5 to $7, but during the pandemic, that price increased by an average of 6%.

The typical American spends $1,200 on a single meal each year. Additionally, the typical American household spends 10% of its annual revenue on fast food.

In 2021, the global fast-food market brought in $797.7 billion.

Although fast food success is more commonly linked with the US, it is also prevalent in other nations. However, the fact that 37% of the world’s fast food sales come from America does speak a lot about the demand for this style of dining.

Consumption of Fast Food

Most Americans visit fast food establishments 1-3 times per week to eat. A little over one-third (36.6%) of American adults, according to data from a survey by the National Center for Health Statistics, consume it every day. 

That is around 84.8 million adults who eat fast food daily! Yikes!

Age

I discovered that 44.9% of Americans between the ages of 20 and 39 regularly consume fast food. Only 24.1% of those aged 60 and beyond indulge in fast food, compared to 37.7% of those in the 40–59 age group. 

Fast Food Consumption By Age

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Because they are still working and earning money, do people under 60 eat out more frequently? Maybe. 

People over 60 are typically leaving the workforce and have more time to prepare meals for themselves at home. Regular fast food is pricey.  Seniors seem to decide to cook at home to eat healthier and spend less money. 

Gender

According to the  CDC research, 38% of men and 35.4% of women respectively consume fast food every day, indicating that males do so more frequently than women do. 

fast food statistics by gender

Race

fast food statistics by raceThe research suggests that African Americans were the group that consumed fast food the most, with 42.4% of them doing so on any given day. Only 30.6% of Asian Americans visited fast food places, which was the lowest consumption group.

Compared to non-Hispanic white (37.6%), non-Hispanic Asian (30.6%), and Hispanic (35.5%) adults, non-Hispanic black adults (42.4%) consume more fast food. 

Men and women of the same race and Hispanic origin group did not significantly differ in their percentage of fast food consumption.

Fast Food Restaurants Statistics

Is this any fast food place in your local area? You most likely can already name a couple. 

Fast food establishments can be found both inside of larger stores, malls, or rest areas, as well as in separate, standalone locations. Here are some figures to illustrate just how large this business is:

a) Thirty-one percent of fast-food outlets specialize in hamburgers

Burgers are frequently the first food that comes to mind when people think of fast food. This is supported by the fact that roughly one-third of American fast food establishments (including McDonald’s and Burger King) specialize primarily in hamburgers. Sandwiches and pizza are the second most popular menu items.

b) With 20,622 outlets nationwide, Subway is the largest franchised retailer in the US

The retailer’s yearly system-wide sales in the United States total $10.4 billion. With 2,014 locations (or 10% of all Subway stores), California has the most Subway locations.

The fast food chain Subway wins the top spot in terms of the quantity of franchised locations. The third spot goes to McDonald’s, which is most known for its hamburger sales. Starbucks and Dunkin’, two fast food companies that sell coffee and breakfast items, are ranked second and fourth, respectively.

c) In the United States, the fast food business employs about 3,450,120 people

These workers make an average of $11.80 per hour, and their mean age is $24,540 per year. Alabama is the state with the most fast food restaurants per capita in America, with 6.3 eateries for every 10,000 citizens.

West Virginia and Nebraska come in second and third, with 5.4 and 5.3 restaurants per person, respectively. 

Vermont is the state with the least fast food restaurants in America, with 1.9 restaurants per 10,000 population, making it the state with the lowest fast food restaurant density. New York is second with 2.1 per capita, followed by New Jersey with 2.0.

How COVID Affected the Fast Food Industry

The world’s landscape changed as a result of COVID-19. With the establishment of social distancing, mask-wearing, and limits across the states, the restaurant business was dramatically impacted.

But compared to eateries that solely offer sit-down or dine-in service, restaurants that offer delivery or drive-through service had a superior competitive advantage. At the height of the pandemic, people preferred drive-throughs or deliveries.

Online orders for pickup and delivery thrived, increasing by over 12% on weekdays, despite the fact that restaurant foot traffic and online bookings almost completely disappeared.

Online orders were more likely to occur on weekdays, whereas takeout orders were more frequent on the weekends. Lunch orders climbed 18% while dinner orders were up 3%.

Since the start of lockdown policies, foot traffic to fast food and casual dining restaurants plummeted by 45% and 67%, respectively.

Fast food establishments had to reevaluate their personnel priorities as a result of this change and stress their commitment to deliveries and drive-through orders.

Fast Food Chains Popularity

The fast food sector continues to be popular both domestically and overseas despite all the media coverage and health advisories. Statistics reveal that McDonald’s is the top fast-food chain in terms of sales.  

Adults spent a staggering $130.4 billion at McDonald’s worldwide in 2019. Starbucks ranked second globally in terms of consumer expenditure in 2019 ($45,9 billion). 

While it is true that McDonald’s has more locations, I’m not sure if this makes up for the fact that customers spend roughly three times as much money there. Starbucks had 29,324 outlets around the world as of the end of 2018, compared to 37,855 for McDonald’s.

In every state in the US, McDonald’s continues to be the most well-liked fast food establishment. They sell 75 hamburgers on average per second. That works up to 4500 each minute or 270,000 per hour. 

When we look at sales, the top 10 fast food restaurants in 2019 also include KFC, Subway, Domino’s, Pizza Hut, Burger King, Tim Hortons, Chipotle, and Taco Bell in addition to McDonald’s and Starbucks. 

Health Statistics for the Fast Food Industry

Fast food has always had a poor reputation. Many people appreciate its convenience but still recognize the potential health risks that a fast food meal may have.

Numerous fast-food organizations have tried to influence the public’s perception of calorie intake with advertising campaigns that address the quality of food. 

Still, as shown by the following figures, the health consequences of fast food consumption are alarming:

a) The typical adult consumes 836 calories per fast food meal and consumes 175 calories less than they think they did

A healthy dinner for an adult who is fully grown is thought to be around 500 calories or fewer. Nutritional information can be found on many fast food restaurants’ websites or franchise locations, and they now frequently offer healthier selections.

b) The market for hamburgers has grown by 23% during the last 20 years

While soft drinks have grown in size by 52%, a Mexican food plate has grown in size by 27%. Snacks are 60% bigger, whether they are potato chips, pretzels, or crackers.

Health Hazards of Fast Food

If you frequently eat at fast food restaurants, you can generally find healthier options like salads and unsweetened tea. 

Americans love a good price, and value meals frequently contain french fries and a sweet beverage! What does it actually cost though?

While there are other factors, such as stress and a sedentary lifestyle, that contribute to health issues. 

These two reasons—to save time and lessen the stress associated with food preparation—might be the main reasons why we turn to fast food in the first place.  Fast food is not something you should eat frequently if you want to watch your health.

A fast food meal contains 836 calories on average. Additionally, fast food accounts for 11.3% of adults’ daily caloric consumption in the United States on average. 

When they dine at a fast food restaurant, children typically consume 120 extra calories per day, and 34% of kids eat fast food every day. On days when fast food is consumed, both adults and children consume more fat, sugar, and sodium than on days when all meals are prepared at home. 

The occasional lunch at a fast food restaurant doesn’t present a substantial risk to health, but frequent intake does. Living near a fast food restaurant is associated with a 5.2% higher risk of obesity, and eating fast food at least twice a week can increase your risk of type 2 diabetes by promoting insulin resistance.

Obesity and type 2 diabetes both raise your risk of heart disease and a host of other disorders. In fact, eating fast food frequently can raise your chance of depression by up to 51%, in addition to raising your risk of heart disease. 

Fast food preparation deprives the food of its essential nutrients to produce food that can be swiftly cooked and be reasonably shelf stable. 

It’s understandable why eating a lot of fast food makes us feel unwell because it’s deficient in the right nutrients and contains excessive amounts of sodium and sugar. 

Fast Food Industry Trends and Projections 

The fast food business does not look to be slowing down any time soon, despite COVID-19 or any health issues. These figures illustrate how this sector has grown steadily and is predicted to continue doing so:

a) Between 2016 and 2021, the US fast food restaurant market size increased by an average of 1.1% year

In 2021, the fast-food restaurant market grew by 8.9%. With a CAGR of 5.1% from 2020 to 2027, the worldwide fast food market is expected to grow from $647.7 billion in 2019 to $931.7 billion by 2027.

b) The index for eating out increased 5.8% between 2020 and 2021

Since 1982, that is the biggest one-year rise. The virus obviously prevented Americans from dining out, but the sharp spike in demand over 2021 is making up for it.

Reasons Why People Love Fast Food

1. Saves Time

Because it’s so quick, fast food is very popular in the United States. Families and those who are constantly on the go can choose it easily due to its ease and speed. 

83% of American families consume it at least once a week. Even 20% of fast food meals are consumed in vehicles. 

2. More Affordable Than Other Options

Fast food is reasonably priced when compared to other dining options. But it’s a lot more expensive than cooking your own meals. In fact, 32% of those who eat fast food do so because they believe it to be less expensive than the alternatives.

Additionally, despite the widespread belief that lower-income families consume more fast food due to its “cheap cost,” this claim is not supported by the available data.

 The statistics demonstrate that those with greater earnings have a tendency to eat more fast food than people with lower incomes.

According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics, only 31.7% of individuals in lower income categories and 42% of those with higher family income levels regularly consume fast food. 

3. Widely Available

Fast food meals are widely available because to the 826,000 fast food outlets globally. 43.7% of customers consume it during lunchtime while 42% eat it as dinner.  

4. Good Flavor

Fast food contains a lot of fat, sugar, and salt and is rich in calories. Due to processing, the majority of the nourishment that would have been there has been removed, so those ingredients are added to improve the food’s flavor. 

When you add that to a caffeine- and sugar-filled soft drink, it makes sense why everyone experiences a slump around 3 o’clock in the afternoon. Although fast food may be tasty, it is not healthy for you.

FAQS

How large is the US fast food industry?

The $331.41 billion fast food sector in the United States is a sizable one. Based on market size, the fast food restaurant sector in the US is the 35th largest and is rated second among accommodation and food services.

Which fast food chain is the most popular in the US?

Depending on the comparison metric, Subway or McDonald’s is the top fast food establishment in the US. For instance, Subway is the biggest fast food company based on franchised locations. However, McDonald’s is the biggest fast food chain in the US based on average sales per unit.

How quickly is the US fast food sector expanding?

The fast food sector in the US is expanding on average 2.4% yearly. Moreover, the industry is projected to develop at a compound annual growth rate of 4.6% between 2020 and 2027.

Is there a rise in fast food consumption?

The fast food sector is still expanding by 2.2% annually. It is fair to state that despite all the health dangers associated with frequent fast food intake, it is still rising. With 826,000 restaurants and institutions worldwide and 13 million people employed by the fast food sector, it is reasonable to say that it is not going anywhere anytime soon. 

Wrap Up

Since the first fish and chip shops opened in Britain in the 1860s, fast food has advanced significantly. The market provides employment to many people who live in the states and serves a sizable percentage of the United States. Fast food stands apart in the restaurant sector thanks to how quickly it is cooked and served.

The world’s largest fast food market is in the United States, and there are American fast food outlets in more than a hundred other nations as well. 

Despite increased expenses and the effects of COVID-19, US adults continue to eat fast food despite health concerns. This business doesn’t appear to be slowing down anytime soon.

Sources:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

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