In 2023, the market size of the quick service restaurant industry worldwide reached *** trillion U.S. dollars, representing a slight increase over the previous year. Quick service restaurants, also known as limited service or fast food restaurants, are establishments which typically serve food to customers quickly while having minimal table service. What are the leading fast food restaurant chains worldwide? As of 2024, ********* held the title of the highest-valued restaurant brand in the world. With a brand value exceeding ** billion U.S. dollars, it was nearly double that of the second most valuable brand, **********. In the ranking of the leading food and drink service chains by global sales, ********* was among the top three, generating over ** billion U.S. dollars. The company closely followed the UK-based food service leader, *****************. Which country has the highest number of Starbucks locations? In 2023, the country with the most Starbucks stores was *************************************, where there were over *********** locations. The coffee shop chain also had a significant presence in China and Korea. In the U.S., ********* was the coffee shop chain with the highest sales, generating approximately ** billion U.S. dollars more than its closest competitor, *******. Additionally, Starbucks enjoyed popularity among U.S. consumers, receiving an average American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) score of *************.

The size of the global food service market reached **** trillion U.S. dollars in 2021. This figure was forecast to grow to **** trillion U.S. dollars in 2028, showing a CAGR of *** percent from 2021 to 2028.

The market size of the restaurant industry in the United Kingdom was predicted to rise to ** billion British pounds in 2024, which would represent an increase of *** percent over 2023. That year, the industry's market value stood at ***** billion British pounds.

The market size of the quick service restaurant (QSR) industry in the United States surpassed *** billion U.S. dollars in 2024. This represented an increase of around *** percent over the previous year.

The quick service restaurant sector (QSR) in the United States has seen a near year-over-year growth since 2004, with its peak consumer spending exceeding ***** billion U.S. dollars in 2024. Consumer spending in this sector saw a notable decline in 2020, however, as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Fast food industry in the U.S. - additional information Quick service restaurants (QSRs) are fast food restaurants, set apart from full service or table restaurants by their limited menus, minimal table service and, as their name implies, fast service. According to the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) carried out in 2024, the quick service restaurant chain in the United States with the highest ACSI score was Chick-fil-A. With a score of ** out of 100. McDonald’s scored the lowest with a score of **. Is McDonald's the largest QSR chain? Despite McDonald's low score on the American Customer Satisfaction Index, ********** was the largest fast food company worldwide in terms of brand value in 2022. That year, the company generated a global brand value of almost ***** billion U.S. dollars. McDonald's closest competitor in terms of brand value was Starbucks, with **** billion U.S. dollars. KFC followed with **** billion U.S. dollars.

In 2024, the market size of the full-service restaurant sector in the United Kingdom decreased by ****percent from the previous year, reaching ***** billion British pounds. This figure was forecast to increase in 2025 to ******billion British pounds.

In June 2025, the U.S. restaurant industry received a performance index score of ***. One year prior, the industry received an index score of *****. The restaurant industry performance index is a statistical barometer measuring the overall health of the U.S. restaurant industry. The index is based on the results of the monthly Restaurant Industry Tracking Survey composed of a variety of indicators including sales, traffic, labor and capital expenditures. A value above 100 indicates a period of expansion while a value below 100 indicates a period of contraction.

This statistic shows the revenue of casual dining restaurants in the United States from 2002 to 2014, with a forecast to 2020. In 2013, the revenue of the casual restaurant industry in the United States generated **** billion U.S. dollars.
Casual dining restaurants – additional information

Restaurants in the casual dining segment are generally defined as those which serve moderately priced food in an informal atmosphere. These restaurants usually provide table service, albeit to a lower standard than upscale restaurants. Since the year 2000, the revenue of casual restaurants in the United States has grown annually with the exclusion of 2009 when there was a *** percent drop. The industry is forecasted to increase by around ** billion U.S. dollars between 2014 and 2020, despite predicted negative growth in 2017.

According to a brand index ranking, which scored restaurants by consumers’ positive or negative perception of the brand, Olive Garden ranked the highest in the U.S. casual restaurant industry, followed by Panera Bread and Outback Steakhouse. Olive Garden is a subsidiary of Darden Restaurants Inc., which owns several other casual dining restaurant chains including LongHorn Steakhouse, The Capital Grille, Bahama Breeze, and the Yard House. In the 2016 fiscal year, the revenue of Darden Restaurants reached **** billion U.S. dollars, the highest revenue the company had seen since a peak of **** billion U.S. dollars in 2009.

In a 2015 ranking of full-service restaurant companies, Darden restaurants ranked third in terms of number of units in operation, with ***** restaurants. DineEquity ranked first with ***** units, more than double that of Darden. DineEquity is the umbrella company for the casual restaurant brands Applebee’s Grill & Bar and the International House of Pancakes (IHOP). The revenue of DineEquity has been in decline since 2008, reaching its apex in 2013 at *** million U.S. dollars. As of 2015, revenues had increased to *** million U.S. dollars, but this is still almost *** billion U.S. dollars less than the amount seen in 2008.

Full-service restaurants refer to sit down establishments where food is served directly to the customer's table. In 2023, the market size of the full service restaurant sector in Canada reached **** billion U.S. dollars, up from the previous year's total of ***** billion U.S. dollars.

The number of people employed in the restaurant industry in the United States fluctuated throughout the past decade. As of May 2024, this figure reached **** million, representing an increase from the previous year's total of **** million. The number of employees in the restaurant industry in the U.S. peaked in 2016 at **** million. What are the hourly wages of fast-food employees in the U.S.? The hourly wages of U.S. fast food and counter workers varied throughout 2023. As of May of that year, fast food employees in the United States had a median hourly wage of **** U.S. dollars. In total, approximately ** percent of fast-food employees earned less than ***** U.S. dollars per hour, and ** percent of those same workers earned less than ***** U.S. dollars per hour. Leading U.S. restaurant chain The leading restaurant chain in the U.S., by a measure of sales, was McDonald’s in 2022. During that year, the quick service chain experienced sales amounting to ***** billion U.S. dollars. McDonald’s was also the most valuable quick service restaurant brand in the world in 2023, with an estimated brand value of over *** billion U.S. dollars. Starbucks, who came second in the ranking, had an estimated brand value of approximately **** billion U.S. dollars.

In 2025, 10 restaurants in Great Britain and Ireland were awarded three Michelin stars, the highest recognition given to restaurants by the Michelin Guide. Meanwhile, the number of restaurants holding one or two stars that year totaled 181 and 29, respectively.

In 2023, consumer spending in the quick service restaurant (QSR) industry in Italy grew by *** percent over the previous year. Overall, consumer spending in the Italian QSR industry totaled roughly **** billion euros in 2023. This figure was expected to reach an estimated **** billion euros in 2024.

In 2024, China ranked first by revenue in the food market among the 25 countries presented in the ranking. China's revenue amounted to ************* U.S. dollars, while the United States and India, the second and third countries, had records amounting to ************** U.S. dollars and ************** U.S. dollars, respectively.Further information about the methodology, more market segments, and metrics can be found on the dedicated Market Insights page on Food.

In 2024, the pizza restaurant industry's market value in the United States exceeded ** billion U.S. dollars. This showed a decline of *** percent over the previous year.

In 2022/23, an average of 14 grams of Indian, Chinese and Thai food were consumed per person per week in the United Kingdom. This denoted a slight decrease from 2022/2023, and was less than half the amount recorded in 2019/20.

The quick service restaurant (QSR) industry in the United States generated a revenue of ***** billion U.S. dollars in 2009. Major players in the QSR industry include household names such as McDonald’s, Burger King, and Yum Brands (KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell). Out of the leading QSR chains, McDonald's contributed the most to the overall revenue of the U.S. fast food industry, with Starbucks following in a not-so-close second place.

Employment figures in the food services industry in India amounted to over ************* in 2021. Despite over *********** jobs lost during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the industry is expected to make a full recovery, back to its growth trajectory in the coming years, an estimated *********** by 2025.

The market size of the quick service restaurant sector in Canada increased in 2022. That year, the sector reached an all-time high of **** billion U.S. dollars, up from the previous year's total of **** billion U.S. dollars.

The average revenue per user is forecast to experience significant growth in all segments in 2028. As part of the positive trend, the indicator reaches the maximum value for all two different segments at the end of the comparison period. Particularly noteworthy is the segment Grocery Delivery, which has the highest value of 845.06 euro. Find other insights concerning similar markets and segments, such as a comparison of revenue in Europe and a comparison of revenue in Italy. The Statista Market Insights cover a broad range of additional markets.

The German restaurant industry has been achieving growing revenues, but 2020 slashed this trend due to restrictions implemented during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. However, the tide seems to be turning. Compared to **** billion euros generated in 2019, around *****billion euros were recorded in 2023. Eating out and ordering in Germany has a lot to offer for fans of eating out, with a wide choice of international cuisine and budget options, especially in urban areas. Germany also has its share of Michelin star restaurants. Among the German population, around **** million people ate out sometimes in 2023, and **** million did so often. While figures did not change significantly compared to the previous year, Germany's inflation and rising energy costs throughout 2023 undoubtedly played a role in the population's decisions to eat out or stay in. An additional factor in possible future changes to actually going to restaurants may be the increasing number of locations connected to the online food delivery platform Lieferando. Future business Regardless of the eating out frequency among Germans, the industry is expected to keep on growing and making money. Forecasts regarding revenues in the restaurant industry are looking positive for the 2020s, predicting over ** billion U.S. dollars by 2025. The COVID-19 years left their mark. The same can be said for event catering.