Food & Beverage

Study: QSR price trends do a bit of a flip-flop

Photo: iStock.

March 26, 2021

In the QSR sector, an interesting twist is happening with regard to delivery and dine-in frequency, according to the latest research from Revenue Management Solutions or RMS. The company said in an email to QSRweb that it recently took a deep dive into the menu data from more than 50,000 U.S. restaurants in the first two months of this year and noted an interest twist taking place in the breakdown between on- and off-premise dining.

Specifically, RMS said that between January and February 2021:

• Delivery prices fell 3%.
• Dine-in prices grew 1.5%.

The company said it also discovered that though delivery prices dropped overall, the pricing of meals bundles and breakfast meals actually grew. In fact, the average breakfast meal price for QSRs now ranges between $6.50 in a handful of states like Texas, Virginia and West Virginia, to $8 across states like California, and much of the Northeast and Northwest.

RMS found that QSR dine-in prices grew mostly on meals and entrée items like burgers or sandwiches. The average cost for a quick-service meal for dining in now ranges from $7.50 in most of the Southeast and parts of the Midwest, to $9.50 in the California and across most Northern states.

RMS is based in Tampa.