Dive Brief:
- Chicken chains, including Raising Cane’s, Wingstop, Chick-fil-A, Zaxby’s, Bojangles and Popeyes, saw consumer spending increase in 2024 while KFC saw consumer spending fall, according to Circana’s Definitive U.S. Restaurant Ranking 2025 report.
- KFC’s U.S. consumer spending fell 4% to $4.34 billion, with the chain now ranked #23 in the U.S. by Circana’s estimate.
- The brand was passed by Raising Cane’s (#16) and Wingstop (#21) in the rankings, as both chains saw dramatic sales growth amid a general expansion of the chicken segment.
Dive Insight:
Wingstop’s 41% growth in consumer spend marked the largest gains among the top 50 chains, while Raising Cane’s 31% expansion was second greatest. Circana attributed both brands’ success to digital engagement and media strategy, in addition to the growth of the chicken category overall.
“Raising Cane's partnered with Post Malone to design custom restaurants, while Wingstop is the official chicken partner of the NBA. As a result, both brands heavily over index with Gen Z, and digital media drives a large percentage of their visits,” the report stated.
It is no surprise that the biggest jumps in consumer restaurant spending are coming from chicken chains.
“Chicken servings lead the growth in animal protein servings in the restaurant space,” said David Portalatin, Circana’s senior vice president and industry advisor for food and foodservice, in an interview.
But this, he said, was less about consumers waking up to a specific protein, and more about brand strategy.
“It's really a reflection of when operators execute well and create a good value for their customer, then that's well received in the marketplace,” Portalatin said.
Portalatin said that consumers are particularly responsive to menu innovation on staple menu items or perceived elevation of existing offerings, like chicken sandwiches.
“Every time over the last several years that somebody expands their geographical footprint or innovates a new version of the chicken sandwich, we see servings growth of chicken sandwiches,” Portalatin said.
Given the success of the segment, it is surprising how KFC continues to struggle with sales growth.
Estimated 2024 consumer spending among top QSR chicken chains (in $ billions)
Among QSR and fast chicken chains, KFC has now fallen to fifth place in terms of estimated consumer spend, behind Chick-fil-A, Popeyes, Raising Cane’s and Wingstop, but ahead of Zaxby’s and Bojangles. Popeyes’ 2024 consumer spend increased 6%, according to the report, despite value-related stumbles in the mid-year.
Both Wingstop and Raising Cane’s lag behind KFC in one metric: buyer penetration, with Wingstop at 19% and Raising Cane’s at 24%, while KFC sits at 29%. But this is indicative of the strength of the challenger brands — higher sales at lower penetration indicate considerable customer loyalty or higher ticket, either of which means both chains have whitespace to grow. KFC, despite the breadth of its reach, isn't generating the same buzz.
KFC’s efforts to promote itself as a value-oriented brand seem not to have struck gold, and the brand is looking to turn things around. In January, Yum Brands shifted Scott Mezvinsky, formerly of Taco Bell, to lead KFC as CEO.
Late last year, the chain debuted a sauce-focused concept with a strong tech element. In February, Yum announced it was transferring the brand’s headquarters from Kentucky to Texas, where Pizza Hut is headquartered.
Outside the United States, however, KFC has performed quite well, with 8% systemwide sales growth and 1% same-store sales growth in its international divisions, according to Yum’s most recent earnings report.
