Why McDonald’s Is The Most-Visited Restaurant Chain In The U.S.

When Americans decide to dine at quick service chains, they tend to play favorites. According to an article in Nation’s Restaurant News, foot traffic figures from the data service company Placed Insights—that were then analyzed by 24/7 Wall St.— show that McDonald’s is the most visited restaurant chain in America. The only store in the U.S. that draws more customers is Walmart.

The 24/7 Wall St. report, which ranks the 15 most popular stores in the U.S., says 49.8 percent of Americans visited a McDonald’s in April. It’s no surprise that the chain is so popular among American consumers. McDonald’s has more than 14,200 locations across the country, making it easily accessible. It also spends more on advertising than competing restaurant chains. In 2014, the brand’s advertising budget was $935.1 million.

Another restaurant chain that topped the most trafficked list is Subway. Last month, 34 percent of Americans visited one of its 26,960 locations. Starbucks took the title of the fourth most popular store, with 31.2 percent of consumers stopping by in April. Other restaurant chains that cracked the top 15 are Taco Bell at number eight, Burger King trailing at number nine and Wendy’s, which earned the 13^th spot.

The report says these stores are winning the popularity contest with American consumers for a variety of reasons. One of the main factors is size—when a brand like McDonald’s saturates every market, it’s only natural that it’s frequently visited. Price is also a major consideration for consumers. More than half of the 15 most trafficked stores are either fast food chains or discount retailers.

Click here to read the original Nation’s Restaurant News article.