The market at a glance

• Consistent funnel leader: McDonald’s held the top position across all primary metrics throughout the three waves, reaching 92% aided awareness, 76% consideration, and 25% preferred brand status by May 2026.
• Consideration momentum: Little Caesars recorded consideration increases of more than 9 percentage points from March to May 2026, the largest sustained movements across the category over the three waves.
• Conversion benchmark: Apart from McDonald’s, Chick-fil-A converted 82% awareness into 16% preferred brand status in May 2026, achieving the highest awareness-to-preference conversion ratio of any brand, significantly outperforming peers including KFC (86% awareness, 7% preferred) and Subway (83% awareness, 8% preferred).
• Diagnostics leader: Subway and Panera consistently scored at the top of the healthy options diagnostic across all three waves, with Subway reaching 85% in March and Panera climbing to 85% in May, well above the category average of 61–63% across waves. Burger King and Wendy’s were the strongest performers on price value across waves.

Initial findings from the first three waves of 2026

The US fast food landscape was led emphatically by McDonald’s, which maintained the highest market presence across all tracking metrics throughout the three waves. By May 2026, McDonald’s recorded 92% aided awareness, 76% consideration, 72% past six-month purchase, and 25% preferred brand status. The closest challengers by combined scale were Burger King (90% awareness, 69% consideration, 58% P6M purchase, 15% preferred) and Taco Bell (83% awareness, 62% consideration, 52% P6M purchase, 14% preferred), both of which showed consistent or improving metrics across the three waves.

Consideration growth was notable at the top of the funnel. McDonald’s consideration climbed from 74% in March to 76% in May, Burger King rose from 65% to 69%, while Subway rose from 57% to 61% over the same period. KFC also demonstrated steady growth, moving from 53% to 59% consideration across the three waves. In addition, Little Caesars’ consideration increased by more than 9 percentage points from March to May 2026 (42% to 51%), the largest sustained gain across the category over the three waves.

Beyond total scale, the data highlighted a pronounced gap in conversion efficiency between the market leaders and the broader field. Apart from McDonald’s, Chick-fil-A stood out as the strongest converter relative to its awareness level. With 82% aided awareness in May 2026, it achieved 16% preferred brand status, a ratio that significantly outperformed peers at comparable awareness levels, including KFC at 86% awareness but only 7% preferred, and Subway at 83% awareness but only 8% preferred. This made Chick-fil-A the second preferred brand over all three waves, pointing to a highly loyal and engaged customer base that translated awareness into active preference at an above-average rate.

Across the five brand diagnostics (taste, price value, service quality, speed, and healthy options), the category averages improved modestly from March to May 2026. Taste led as the highest-rated dimension, with a category average of 69% in March rising to 72% by May. Service quality improved from 68% to 71%, and speed from 64% to 67%, while healthy options remained the lowest-rated dimension, averaging 61% in March and 63% by May.

Healthy options was also the most differentiated diagnostic category, showing the widest spread between the lowest and highest performers. Subway and Panera led this dimension throughout the tracking period, with Subway recording 85% in March and Panera climbing to 85% by May. At the other end of the spectrum, Bojangles scored in the 42–51% range on healthy options across all three waves, representing a significant gap from category leaders. The healthy options spread pointed to meaningful strategic differentiation in how consumers perceived value alignment between brands.

On price value, the category average held at 63–65% across the three waves. Burger King and Wendy’s were the strongest performers on this dimension, with Burger King scoring 82% in March and Wendy’s reaching 84% in April, notably strong results that suggested these brands carried a meaningful perceived affordability advantage over the broader category.

“The US fast food data across the three waves of 2026 reveals a market that is stable at the top but genuinely competitive in the middle,” says Yutian Shen, Market Researcher at Conjointly. “McDonald’s funnel dominance is unambiguous, but the diagnostics show that brands like Chick-fil-A, Burger King, and Subway have built real competitive advantages in loyalty, price value, and health perception that the raw awareness numbers alone would not reveal. For brands outside the top, conversion efficiency and diagnostic strength are the battlegrounds that matter most.”

The findings were based on a syndicated study of 2,734 US adults conducted across three waves in March (902), April (912), and May 2026 (920). Qualifying respondents confirmed that they had eaten at or ordered from at least one fast food chain in the past 6 months. Participants were recruited via Conjointly’s panel network and compensated for their time, with the sample weighted to national demographics to ensure findings were market-representative.

Explore the US fast food chains data at https://brandtracker.conjointly.com/united-states/fast-food-chains/.

About Brand Tracker by Conjointly

Brand Tracker delivers automated brand performance reporting with rigorous, market-representative insights. Businesses across industries can now access statistically weighted brand funnel data, including awareness, consideration, purchase intent, and preference.

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About Conjointly

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