17 Revealing Chick-Fil-A Statistics & Facts In 2024
As one of the largest quick-service restaurant chains in America, with over 2,400 locations, Chick-fil-A has seen tremendous interest from customers who want to know more behind the scenes facts and stats about this restaurant giant. As a retail industry expert, I‘ve done extensive research on Chick-fil-A and want to provide insightful statistics and analysis on key aspects of their business.
Quick Facts
| Statistic | 2022 Data |
|---|---|
| Total Sales | $16.7 billion |
| Average Sales per Restaurant | $5.8 million |
| Total Restaurants | 2,954 |
| New Restaurant Openings | Over 250 expected in 2024 |
| Rank in Restaurant Industry | 7th largest chain |
Data sources: Chick-fil-A, Statista, Restaurant Business
These impressive quick facts showcase how Chick-fil-A has managed to grow both total sales and sales per store, dramatically outpacing industry growth levels. Now let‘s explore some key stats behind their business.
Store Count and Locations
As one of the fastest growing restaurant chains in America, Chick-fil-A continues expanding its nationwide footprint at an incredible pace:
According to Chick-fil-A‘s website, they have opened over 150 new locations in the past 3 years alone.
Texas boasts the most Chick-fil-A restaurants with 755 total locations as of late 2022. In my analysis, Texas benefits from a booming population, favorable tax policies, and Chick-fil-A‘s origin as a Southern-founded company.
Florida (189 restaurants) and Georgia (194 restaurants) rounded out the top 3 states as of 2022. Given co-founder Truett Cathy opened his original Dwarf Grill restaurant in Georgia, it‘s no surprise they maintain a strong presence there.
I project their new restaurant openings to accelerate over 250 per year driven by demand from new markets like California and the Midwest. Their real estate selection process focuses on optimal visibility, ease of access for customers, and locations drawing heavy foot traffic.
Menu & Ingredients
As the world‘s second largest chicken chain behind KFC, Chick-fil-A requires vast quantities of ingredients to fuel their growing restaurant empire:
Chick-fil-A reported utilizing over 2 billion pounds of chicken in 2022 to craft their signature chicken sandwiches and nuggets. That translates into over 5.5 million pounds of chicken per day across all US restaurants!
For sides, they serve approximately 700 million waffle fries per year – about 2 million servings daily. Waffle fries represent their most popular menu item besides chicken.
To cook their chicken meals, Chick-fil-A purchases 400 million pounds of peanut oil every year as of late 2022. I see demand rising given new location openings and consumer preference shifting to their grilled chicken.
| Menu Item | Estimated 2022 Consumption |
|---|---|
| Chicken | 2+ billion pounds |
| Waffle Fries | 700 million servings |
| Peanut Oil | 400 million pounds |
Data sources: Chick-fil-A, poultry industry analytics
As the old adage goes – quality ingredients make quality food. By controlling key parts of their supply chain like chicken and cooking oil, Chick-fil-A maintains consistent quality and taste across all restaurants. These vital ingredients in massive quantities fuel their continued expansion and loyal customer base.
Sales Performance
Chick-fil-A‘s sales growth has mightily impressed over the past decade:
From 2012-2022, Chick-fil-A‘s total sales rose at a 12.2% compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) according to QSR magazine and Statista. This crushes the overall restaurant industry growth average of 3-5% per year.
How does this translate into raw sales numbers? In 2012, Chick-fil-A reported $4.6 billion in systemwide sales. By 2022, total sales catapulted to over $16.7 billion representing a 264% overall increase in one decade.
On a per restaurant basis, average unit volumes (AUV) hit $5.8 million per store as of 2022. For comparison, McDonald‘s AUV averaged $2.9 million while Starbucks came in at $1.6 million per location in 2022.
Chick-fil-A‘s ascension to become the 7th largest US restaurant chain by sales proves they offer a product, service style and experience that American consumers passionately respond to. Their track record gives me high confidence they continue taking market share in the years ahead.
Financial Impact
While private financials remain closely guarded, public data reveals Chick-fil-A‘s immense economic footprint:
As the 7th largest restaurant chain in America, Chick-fil-A and their franchise owners employ approximately 200,000 team members. When accounting for indirect supply chain jobs, they likely support over 375,000 US jobs.
Conservative market research estimates that by giving Sundays off, Chick-fil-A forgoes over $1 billion per year in potential sales. However, founder Truett Cathy prioritized closing on Sundays to give employees a consistent day of rest and spiritual practice. Though financially massive, this retention, morale and brand reputation support likely offsets revenue loss.
Since 2020, the WinShape Foundation – started by Chick-fil-A founders – has provided $120 million in college scholarships to Chick-fil-A employees. Investing in their team members pays dividends.
So while America runs on many fast food chains, make no doubt Chick-fil-A has carved an enviable niche with skyrocketing sales and a beloved brand. For any new or competing restaurants, these are the gold standard key performance benchmarks to chase.
I‘d welcome your feedback or follow-up questions on how Chick-fil-A built their empire. This article focused on core statistics but I‘m happy to research any other aspects of their admirable business!
