---
title: "Subway Tops QSR’s List of Biggest Fast-Food Chains in America"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/ea9e12ec-be4f-43f6-b4ed-b0744a4549d3
source: "1851 Franchise"
original_url: https://1851franchise.com/subway-tops-qsrs-list-of-biggest-fast-food-chains-in-america-2707633
category: "Sandwich & sub"
industry: "Restaurants"
segment: "Sandwich & sub"
published: 2018-08-23T15:10:21.000Z
modified: 2026-11-01T02:34:05.635Z
image: https://newimage.1851franchise.com/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,format=webp,width=1280,height=720/story/featureImage/9fed2127af115db22ce68d88863cfe4f7196.jpg
---

# Subway Tops QSR’s List of Biggest Fast-Food Chains in America

**TL;DR:** Subway tops QSR's list of biggest fast-food chains in America with 25,908 stores, despite a nearly 900-unit drop since last year. Starbucks was the only brand in the top three to open more stores than it closed last year, with a 758-unit positive change.

*originally published in 1851 Franchise on 2018-08-23. [Read the original](https://1851franchise.com/subway-tops-qsrs-list-of-biggest-fast-food-chains-in-america-2707633).*

## Story

QSR Magazine has released its annual QSR 50 list, which breaks down the quick-service segment by unit count, AUV, sales and other factors. Leading the pack by unit count — by far — is Subway, with 25,908 stores.

The list shows a nearly 900-unit drop for the brand since last year, but it still has nearly 12,000 more stores than its closest competitor, MacDonald’s, which has 14,036 stores.

Starbucks, which came in third on the list in terms of unit count, was the only brand in the top three to open more stores than it closed last year, with a 758-unit positive change from the previous year.

## Entities

- 1851 Franchise (publication)
- Restaurants (sector)
- unit expansion (topic)
- QSR Magazine (publication)
- Starbucks (company)
- Subway (company)
- fast food chains (topic)
- qsr ranking (topic)

---
Originally reported by 1851 Franchise (https://1851franchise.com/subway-tops-qsrs-list-of-biggest-fast-food-chains-in-america-2707633). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/ea9e12ec-be4f-43f6-b4ed-b0744a4549d3).