The McRecession hits fast food chains
Call it the McRecession.
Low- and middle-income consumers are increasingly shying away from fast-food restaurants like McDonald’s, a sign that people are pinching pennies amid recession fears.
The number of low-income consumers visiting U.S. fast-food restaurants was down “nearly double digits” in the year’s first three months compared to 2024, McDonald’s CEO Christopher Kempczinski said Thursday.
Visits from middle-income consumers across the industry “felt nearly as much,” he added.
Concerns about job losses and fears about price hikes from President Trump’s tariffs have fueled what Conference Board senior economist Stephanie Guichard recently called “pervasive pessimism about the future.”
And that’s translated into fewer people coming through the door at McDonald’s and other fast-food restaurants.
“Economic pressure on traffic has broadened,” Kempczinski said. “I think we are seeing that people are just being more judicious about cutting back on visits.”
One way the trend is manifesting: People are skipping breakfast “or they’re choosing to eat at home,” Kempczinski said.
Signs of a fast-food slowdown are spreading.
US Comparable sales fell 3.6% at McDonald’s, the company’s worst showing since the pandemic.
Starbucks’ comparable sales declined 1% in the quarter, the coffee giant announced Wednesday, its fifth consecutive quarterly decline.
Domino’s Pizza said consumers are gravitating from more expensive delivery options to cheaper carryout.
And Wingstop CEO Michael Skipworth flagged “a meaningful pullback in our business” in “specific pockets,” including Hispanic customers and “lower middle income” consumers.
Chipotle’s comparable restaurant sales decreased 0.4% in the first quarter of 2025 — its first decline since COVID lockdowns in 2020.
