CompetitorsWide moat

McDonald's is far the largest restaurant company in America — roughly $50.2 billion of US system sales across about 13,400 locations, at an average of $3.6 million per restaurant¹. On every measure of scale it is not close.

On the measure that actually predicts competitive strength, it is losing badly to one rival. Chick-fil-A does about $21.6 billion of system sales from roughly 3,000 restaurants — an average unit volume of $8.1 million, more than double McDonald's, and the highest in the industry — while closing every Sunday. A restaurant generating twice the sales on six days a week has better economics per site, better franchisee returns, and more room to invest, which is why it is McDonald's most formidable competitor despite a fifth of the footprint.

The traditional rivals are going the other way. Wendy's averages about $1.8 million per restaurant and Burger King about $1.5 million — both less than half McDonald's — and both are losing share to it. That is worth stating plainly, because the competitive narrative around McDonald's is usually about pressure, and against the burger chains it is winning.

The two threats that do not appear in restaurant rankings are the beverage specialists, whose afternoon daypart McDonald's is spending heavily to attack, and the grocery aisle, which is the real value comparison for a customer deciding whether to eat out at all. Watch comparable sales, which decelerated to +1.3% globally and +0.8% in the US — the number every one of these pressures shows up in.