The Chain Restaurant That Sells More Chicken Than Everyone Else (And It's Not KFC Or Popeyes)

2024 was a pivotal year for casual and fast food chicken restaurants. According to sourcing data from industry analysis firm Circana (via The Atlantic), fried chicken sandwich orders increased 19% between 2019 and 2024 while burger sales fell by 3%. During that same period, 2,800 fast food and casual chicken spots opened all over the U.S., with just 1,200 shutting down. But the main beneficiary of this trend wasn't Kentucky Fried Chicken or Popeyes, two U.S. brands long associated with fast food chicken.

Instead, it was Chick-fil-A, a chain with 3,109 restaurants in the U.S., that took in a whopping $22.75 billion in sales in 2024, according to Technomic data reported by Restaurant Business Online. That makes Chick-fil-A the third largest food service chain in the nation, behind only McDonalds and Starbucks. In comparison, KFC's 3,669 restaurants took in just $4.91 billion in sales in 2024, and Popeyes' 3,148 restaurants earned $5.73 billion. That put Popeyes in 13th place among Restaurant Business Online's Top 500, with KFC settling at 20th.

But where Chick-fil-A really excelled is in average unit volume (AUV), a metric that measures how the average restaurant location of each chain performed. According to Technomic's data, Chick-fil-A had an AUV of $7.49 million in 2024, the largest figure of any fast food chicken restaurant in the U.S. That's far more than the AUVs of less than $2 million for Popeyes and KFC.

Per Chick-fil-A's franchise disclosure document, a standalone Chick-fil-A that's been open for more than a year can achieve an AUV of $9.22 million. Forrest Morgeson, an associate professor of marketing at Michigan State University, told Inc that those high sales are due to Chick-fil-A's popularity, which is based on its good customer service, reputation for tasty food, slow growth rate, and private ownership.

The large amount of sales enables Chick-fil-A franchise owners to earn about $470,000 a year after various costs and fees, which is more than what many other franchise owners of well-known restaurant chains make per year. However, Chick-fil-A's Cathy Family is so particular on who should run a franchise that fewer than 1% of applicants are reportedly accepted. When they are accepted, franchisers must follow a strict set of rules, including a requirement to act as on-site managers, a prohibition on outside ventures, and a limit of one location per franchiser. Plus, a Chick-fil-A franchiser is expected to invest between $427,000 and $2.34 million for a location and then pay a 15% royalty fee, a 50% service fee (covering operations, marketing and advertising costs) and possibility a 3.25% gross sales fee for national marketing efforts.

Also making it big is Raising Cane's, a 28-year-old restaurant chain that has grown faster than every chicken chain except Popeyes and Chick-fil-A. With 828 restaurants in the U.S., Raising Cane's raked in $4.96 billion in sales in 2024, placing it at No. 18 among Restaurant Business Online's Top 500, just below Popeyes but above KFC. On top of that, the average amount of sales each Raising Cane's location made in 2024 was $6.5 million, the second largest volume of any fast food chicken restaurant.

Meanwhile, KFC has been struggling lately, with sales down 4% between 2023 and 2024 and around 25 reported restaurant closures in the Midwest in August 2024. To turn things around, KFC owner Yum! Brands has launched a nostalgia campaign that includes bringing back the Original Honey BBQ menu item. Meanwhile, following near stagnant sales, 85% of Popeyes franchisers have agreed to higher fees for marketing and restaurant remodeling. Despite poor sales, the average Popeyes franchise location in the U.S. made an average of $255,000 in 2024.