In September 2023, the U.S. restaurant industry received a performance index score of 100.4. One year prior, the industry received an index score of 101. 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 restaurant industry food and drink sales in the United States from 1970 to 2017. In 2016, food and drink sales of the U.S. restaurant industry amounted to approximately 766 billion U.S. dollars.

More statistics and facts on fast food, the U.S. restaurant industry and the pizza (delivery) market.

U.S. restaurant industry - additional information

In 2016, food and drink sales in the United States restaurant industry amounted to 766 billion U.S. dollars, up from 798.7 billion U.S. dollars in the previous year. Restaurants in the United States have created a booming industry that employed more than 14 million people nationwide in 2015.

Unsurprisingly, the majority of food and drink sales in the U.S. restaurant industry take place in commercial restaurants. In 2016, full-service restaurant sales amounted to 254 billion U.S. dollars and limited-service sales were 222 U.S. dollars. The second largest contributor in 2015 was retail, vending, recreation and mobile vendors with sales of 70.82 billion U.S. dollars. The smallest proportion came from came from bars and taverns.

As of December 2016, things were still looking up for the U.S. restaurant industry: the monthly Restaurant Industry Tracking Survey, conducted by the National Restaurant Association, recorded a performance index score of 100.5 – any score over 100 indicates a period of expansion. The lowest performance index score between 2011 and 2017, 99.4, was recorded in August 2011. In November 2016, 49 percent of U.S. consumers reported that cheaper restaurants would make them dine out more often.

The global restaurant industry was seriously impacted by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Social distancing measures and general caution towards public places caused many consumers to dine out less. According to the source, the year-over-year change of seated diners in restaurants worldwide, compared to 2019, was 0.81 percent on August 1, 2022.

Has the global online food delivery sector grown due to COVID-19?

The market size of the global online food delivery sector was estimated to total 130.2 billion U.S. dollars in 2022, a figure that is forecast to grow to over 223 billion U.S. dollars by 2027. Due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, and a subsequent lack of in-house dining, worldwide digital restaurant food delivery grew across various countries from 2019 to 2020. Digital delivery services are defined as meals or snacks ordered via mobile app, internet, or text message. In total, digital restaurant delivery increased 67 percent globally, with the United States increasing the most at 123 percent.

What is the leading restaurant chain worldwide?

When looking at the global restaurant landscape, the majority of the biggest brands are quick service restaurants (QSRs). In a 2021 ranking of the most valuable quick service brands worldwide, McDonald's came out on top, reaching a brand value of 154.9 billion U.S. dollars. Meanwhile, Starbucks was a not so close second place, at approximately 60.3 billion U.S. dollars.

The summary statistics by North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) which include: operating revenue (dollars x 1,000,000), operating expenses (dollars x 1,000,000), salaries wages and benefits (dollars x 1,000,000), and operating profit margin (by percent), of food services and drinking places (NAICS 722), annual, for five years of data.

Graph and download economic data for All Employees: Leisure and Hospitality: Limited-Service Restaurants and Other Eating Places in Colorado (SMU08000007072259001SA) from Jan 2003 to Jan 2025 about restaurant, leisure, hospitality, CO, food, services, employment, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for Retail Sales: Restaurants and Other Eating Places (MRTSSM7225USN) from Jan 1992 to Jan 2025 about restaurant, retail trade, sales, retail, and USA.

In 2023, full service restaurant sales in the United States reached 334 billion U.S. dollars, showing growth over the previous year. This figure was forecast by the source to grow to 348 billion U.S. dollars in 2024.

Graph and download economic data for All Employees, Food Services and Drinking Places (CES7072200001) from Jan 1990 to Feb 2025 about leisure, hospitality, establishment survey, food, services, employment, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for All Employees: Leisure and Hospitality: Full-Service Restaurants in Michigan (SMU26000007072251101SA) from Jan 1990 to Jan 2025 about restaurant, MI, services, employment, and USA.

This table contains 206 series, with data for years 1990 - 2007 (not all combinations necessarily have data for all years), and was last released on 2008-09-19. This table contains data described by the following dimensions (Not all combinations are available): Geography (15 items: Canada; Prince Edward Island; Nova Scotia; Newfoundland and Labrador ...), Service type (8 items: Total; Limited service restaurants; Food service contractors; Full service restaurants ...), Service detail (2 items: Receipts; Locations ...).

Graph and download economic data for All Employees: Leisure and Hospitality: Restaurants and Other Eating Places in Chicago-Naperville-Arlington Heights, IL (MD) (SMU17169747072250001) from Jan 1990 to Dec 2024 about restaurant, leisure, hospitality, services, employment, and USA.

The number of people employed in the restaurant industry in the United States fluctuated throughout the past decade. As of May 2023, this figure reached 13.2 million, a slight increase from the previous year's total of 12.5 million from the previous year. The number of employees in the restaurant industry in the U.S. peaked in 2016 at 14.7 million and has since declined. 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 14.2 U.S. dollars. In total, approximately 10 percent of fast-food employees earned less than 10.67 U.S. dollars per hour, and 90 percent of those same workers earned less than 17.73 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 48.67 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 191 billion U.S. dollars. Starbucks, who came second in the ranking, had an estimated brand value of approximately 61.5 billion U.S. dollars.

Graph and download economic data for All Employees: Leisure and Hospitality: Full-Service Restaurants in District of Columbia (SMU11000007072251101SA) from Jan 1990 to Dec 2024 about restaurant, DC, services, employment, and USA.

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 90.6 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 six percent drop. The industry is forecasted to increase by around 10 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 6.93 billion U.S. dollars, the highest revenue the company had seen since a peak of 7.22 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 1,501 restaurants. DineEquity ranked first with 3,449 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 640 million U.S. dollars. As of 2015, revenues had increased to 680 million U.S. dollars, but this is still almost one billion U.S. dollars less than the amount seen in 2008.

Financial overview and grant giving statistics of National Restaurant Association

The size of the global food service market reached 2.52 trillion U.S. dollars in 2021. This figure was forecast to grow to 4.43 trillion U.S. dollars in 2028, showing a CAGR of 9.9 percent from 2021 to 2028.

This statistic shows the number of food service managers employed in the restaurant industry in the United States from 2010 to 2026. The number of food service managers in the U.S. was forecasted to rise to 360 thousand by 2026.

The chain restaurant sector in the United States was valued at approximately 228.4 billion U.S. dollars in 2023. This shows an increase of 5.2 percent compared to the previous year's total of 216.5 billion U.S. dollars.

A January 2022 survey analyzed the maximum waiting times people were willing to wait for a table at a restaurant in the United States. While 38 percent of respondents said they would wait 15 to 30 minutes, just three percent agreed they would stay more than two hours.

In 2024, there were more than 640 thousand restaurant establishments in Mexico, which represents a slight increase versus the previous year. The State of Mexico registered the highest number of such food premises.