America’s fastest-growing restaurant isn’t Starbucks, Chick-fil-A, or Chipotle. It’s a chicken wing chain that’s been opening hundreds of new locations.
In a preview of QSR Magazine’s annual QSR 50, which ranks the leading fast food chains, Wingstop led the 2026 cohort of restaurants. The full report is expected to be released in August.
While in past years Starbucks has topped the ranking, this year Wingstop has earned the top spot by opening 382 new locations, around 100 more than any other brand. Wingstop has risen through the ranks, becoming the fourth-fastest growing brand in 2024 and reaching the top spot in just under two years. At the time, Starbucks was ahead by 589 locations, but Wingstop has since caught up.
Headquartered in Dallas, the 32-year-old company has had its share of challenges. In 2025, the company saw a 3.3% decrease in same store sales, the first decline in more than two decades. The chicken restaurant kicked off 2026 facing external pressures like a dip in customer visits due to harsh weather, and rising gas prices.
The company ended 2025 with some 3,056 locations, including 407 international franchises. In all, around 98% of locations are franchised.
Wingstop is not the only restaurant chain outpacing Starbucks this year. A report by Yelp found that the brand with the highest consumer interest for 2025 was 7 Brew, a Starbucks competitor. Wingstop made the list at number 10.
Wingstop’s quick rise follows a broader trend of popularity around chicken restaurants. In a 2025 restaurant ranking from the market research company Circana, chicken restaurants like Raising Cane’s and Wingstop saw some of the fastest growth. Raising Cane’s placed 16th on the list while Wingstop reached the 21st spot, moving up nine and eight spots respectively from the year before.
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