Here’s who’s winning the fast food wars

With a new combo box at Taco Bell, Mcdonald’s $5 meal, Subway’s $6.99 footlong deal, or any other fast food value offering, consumers who are watching their spending have an incentive to eat out once again. But who’s winning the meal deal battle?

Across the country, traditional fast-food chains have been quick to offer new deals to entice consumers back to their stores as fast-casual restaurants see an increase in foot traffic.

Restaurants like Wingstop, Chipotle, and Cava have all seen an increase in consumers throughout this year, while heavy hitters like McDonald’s, Starbucks, Burger King, and more have struggled,

In an effort to right the ship earlier this summer, several fast-food chains began offering cheaper value meals to try and bring back those who felt prices were too high at the restaurants.

But has the new strategy made an impact?

While efforts have been made to make things more affordable, a recent analysis from Axios has found the price gap between fast-food and fast-casual restaurants is still shrinking, and consumers are making their feelings on the rising fast-food prices heard.

The analysis examined several restaurants’ gains or losses based on same-store sales discussed in recent earning reports.

Among those found to be winning included Wingstop, which saw its sales grow 28.7%, as well as Cava (14.4%), Chipotle (11.1%), Sweetgreen (9%), and Taco Bell (5%), which was the sole traditional fast-food chain to be in the green, the Axios analysis found.

Those in the red included KFC (-5%), Papa John’s (-4%), Starbucks (-2%), Pizza Hut (-1%), and McDonald’s (-0.7%).

The report also looked at casual dining and found that Chili’s and Texas Roadhouse both saw sales grow as well, jumping 14.8% and 9.3%, respectively.

Part of the growing problem for fast-food companies is that from July 2019 to July 2024, restaurant food prices have risen by 30%, the Consumer Price Index shares .

However, fast-casual chains claim their prices during that same five-year period have only jumped 12%, Axios reported.

With the rising prices, consumer habits have changed, with LendingTree reporting in its survey that 78% of people view fast food as a luxury and 62% say “they’re eating it less due to rising prices.”

“With so many people getting a side of sticker shock with their burger, fries, and Coke combo, it shouldn’t be surprising that people’s views of fast food are changing,” LendingTree wrote in its survey. “It’s becoming clearer and clearer that the days of occasionally using fast food as a cheap way to help make ends meet are long gone.”