QSR Active Users Rise Despite Elevated Prices and Competition

Key Takeaways:

• Per ST data, burger chains have dominated US Mobile App MAU market share, representing 48% of all mobile app MAUs in the QSR space through 2Q24 QTD, up from 38% in 2019, while pizza chains ceded share

  • McDonald’s has led all of its peers in the US burger chain cohort both in the sheer size of its user base and its levels of user growth (excluding Hardee’s), with its mobile app MAUs increasing an average of 19% YoY from 1Q23-2Q24 QTD

  • McDonalds’ strong growth may have been driven by its outsized advertising investment as it represents 40% of total US ad spend in the burger chain cohort, double that of Burger King and Wendy’s and over 4x for each of the remaining burger chains

• Domino’s is the leading US pizza app, with ~8mn US MAUs, vs <2mn for its rivals, likely driven by frequent promotions and unique features such as its patented pizza tracker

  • Domino’s boasts best-in-class retention and stickiness, along with the lowest levels of churn relative to its pizza peers; through 2Q24 QTD, roughly 58% of Domino’s US MAUs were retained users, compared to 52% for Papa Johns and 51% for Pizza Hut, suggesting that a larger portion of Domino’s users return to the app on a regular basis

• Per ST data, 21% of Chick-fil-a users typically open the app during breakfast (5AM to 10AM), compared to 12% for McDonald’s, 11% each for Taco Bell and Subway, and 3% for Domino’s during the same window, which suggests that Chick-fil-a is the most popular breakfast option in the QSR space

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