Updated September 27, 2012
When looking at a multi-year comparison of the biggest U.S. hamburger restaurant chains, it’s easy to see that not much changes from year to year. The hamburger restaurants with the largest revenues may not necessarily be growing their revenues year-over-year, but they’re not giving up enough ground to be overtaken by their competitors either.
There are two notable exceptions to this, however. With the most current annual revenue reports, Wendy’s overtook Burger King to become the second=largest U.S. based hamburger restaurant chain. While Burger King has a larger number of restaurant units than Wendy’s, the home of the Whopper has been struggling to stay competitive, battling it franchisees, and losing customer appeal while Wendy’s has been reinventing its menus, its restaurant atmosphere, and its advertising. Consequently Wendy’s sales have increased while Burger King’s have stayed flat.
The other notable movement occurred when Five Guys Burgers and Fries overtook the Steak-n-Shake chain to become the 10th biggest hamburger restaurant chain based in the U.S., in terms of revenue. Even though the Steak-n-Shake has been serving its ham/steakburgers and shakes 52 years longer, the Five Guys chain is a restaurant industry mover and shaker and on fire with its franchise expansion.
What follows is a four-year rankings comparison of the Top Quick Serve and Fast Food Hamburger Restaurants from 2009 - 2012, according to QSR Magazine. In creating the rankings, QSR compares only the U.S. domestic revenue of each chain. The number to the right of each year is the ranking achieved by each chain, when compared to a total of 16 quick serve and hamburger restaurant chains.
Comparison of the Top Quick Serve and Fast Food Hamburger Restaurants from 2009 - 2012
Burger King
2012 - 3
2011 - 2
2010 - 2
2009 - 2
Carl's Jr.
2012 - 8
2011 - 8
2010 - 8
2009 - 8
Checkers/Rally's
2012 - 13
2011 - 13
2010 - 13
2009 - 11
Culver's
2012 - 12
2011 - 12
2010 - 12
2009 - 12
vDairy Queen
2012 - 6
2011 - 6
2010 - 6
2009 - 6
Five Guys Burgers & Fries
2012 - 10
2011 - 11
2010 - 11
2009 - N/A
Hardee's
2012 - 7
2011 - 7
2010 - 7
2009 - 7
In-N-Out Burger
2012 - 15
2011 - 15
2010 - 15
2009 - 15
Jack in the Box
2012 - 5
2011 - 5
2010 - 5
2009 - 5
Krystal
2012 - 16
2011 - 16
2010 - 16
2009 - 14
McDonald's
2012 - 1
2011 - 1
2010 - 1
2009 - 1
Sonic
2012 - 4
2011 - 4
2010 - 4
2009 - 4
Steak-N-Shake
2012 - 11
2011 - 10
2010 - 10
2009 - 10
Wendy's
2012 - 2
2011 - 3
2010 - 3
2009 - 3
Whataburger
2012 - 9
2011 - 9
2010 - 9
2009 - 9
White Castle
2012 - 14
2011 - 14
2010 - 14
2009 - 13
More About Fast Food And Quick Serve Restaurants:
- Customers Choose the Best Burgers, Coffee, and Drive-Thrus
- Fast Food and Full Service Restaurant Customers are Equally Satisfied McDonald’s Head Chef Claims Nothing Is Unhealthy on the McDonald’s Menu
