Regional burger chains in the United States are growing far faster than the country's largest fast-food brands, according to new figures from the Chicago-based food service research firm Technomic. The data, which measured US sales growth between 2019 and 2025, found that Culver's, In-N-Out Burger and Whataburger all substantially outpaced McDonald's, Wendy's and Burger King. This matters because it suggests that smaller, region-focused operators are winning loyal customers and expanding their reach, even as the national giants continue to dominate overall sales.

Over the period, McDonald's, Wendy's and Burger King recorded US sales growth of 36.2%, 16.5% and 8.5% respectively. By contrast, Culver's sales surged 143% to $4.36 billion, In-N-Out's rose 91.7% to $2.58 billion and Whataburger's grew 68.6% to $4.31 billion. The three regional brands are concentrated in different parts of the country — Culver's in the Midwest, In-N-Out in the West and Whataburger across the South and Southwest. David Henkes, a senior principal at Technomic, said the growth gap had widened considerably over the past six years across sales, unit expansion and average unit volume, and that the firm's 2026 forecasts point to continued regional outperformance.