7 Chicken Chains Americans Are Flocking To Right Now
Chicken is clearly having a moment in the fast food world. In recent years, the number of fried chicken-centric chains has multiplied, while hamburger-forward brands have rapidly added chicken options. If you are curious about what chicken chains are killing it right now, some research offers a little insight into the niche market. National Restaurant News examined the highest (and lowest) average unit volumes, “an important metric that partially illustrates the health of the brand, including store-level economics and potential return on investment,” they write. Using data from Technomic, here are the quick-service and fast-casual chicken brands with the highest and lowest sales per store.
Chick-fil-A
The chicken chain with the highest AUVs, more than doubles all other chicken chains (minus f three brands) is unsurprisingly Chick-fil-A. According to the stats, the Atlanta-based chain finished 2024 with $7.49 million AUVs for its 3,109 domestic locations.
Raising Cane’s
Raising Cane’s was also incredibly popular in terms of sales per store. The Southern-inspired chicken chain generated $6.56 million per store with 828 locations at the end of 2024.
Jollibee
Next, Jollibee, the Asian-centric fried chicken chain, is quickly spreading across America. Though it has only 75 locations, each generated $4.44 million for its 75 locations
Hattie B’s Hot Chicken
You might not have heard about Hattie B’s Hot Chicken. However, the spicy joint founded in Nashville and recently opened its first West Coast location at The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas, averaged $4.4 million for 14 locations.
Pollo Campero
The gap widens after the top four, with just two chicken chains in Technomic’s Top 500 exceeding $3 million. The first is Pollo Campero, a Guatemalan fast-food restaurant chain with 120 locations and $3.17 million. It is located in Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Panama, Ecuador, Mexico, Spain, Bahrain, the United States, Belize, Haiti, Anguilla, Montserrat, the British Virgin Islands, Brazil, Czech Republic, Slovakia, the United Kingdom, Ireland and Italy.
Dave’s Hot Chicken
The other is Dave’s Hot Chicken. The spicy-centric chicken restaurant, quickly expanding across the country, averaged $3.1 million and 245 locations. It is headquartered in Pasadena and serves Nashville-style hot chicken.
Here Are the Rest of the Rankings
Wingstop, Zaxbys, Bojangles, El Pollo Loco, Slim Chickens, Pollo Tropical, and Huey Magoo’s, among others, pushed the $2 million mark. Popeyes, KFC, Church’s Texas Chicken, Chicken Salad Chick, Golden Chick, and Lee’s Famous Recipe Chicken averaged between $1 million and $1.99 million. Three chains, WNB Factory, at $960,000 (88 locations), American Deli, $580,000 (209 locations), and Chicken Express, $420,000 (236 locations), generated less than $1 million.
