Here are the top five QSR brands that opened the most restaurants in 2023

There were 226 restaurant openings in 2023.

KFC, Sushi Hub, Guzman y Gomez, Zambrero, and Pizza Hut are the top five QSR brands that opened the most restaurants in 2023, according to the Australia Annual Fast Food & QSR Report 2023 by GapMaps.

Tracking 31 brands over the 12 months ended 31 December 2023, the report counted the number of openings and closures for a year and took note of the net changes between to establish whether a brand had a positive or negative net store growth.

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KFC which has a total of 785 restaurants grew by a net of 35. They are followed by Sushi Hub which grew by 34, Guzman y Gomez (26), Zambrero (25), and Pizza Hut (19).

Two of the largest QSRs by restaurant count, Subway (1,227 restaurants) and McDonald’s (1,031 had a net change of five stores. Hungry Jack’s (459) saw 17 net restaurants added to its rosters.

The report said that new store growth was spread across the country. Whilst growth areas continued to provide opportunities for major brands, the continued development of Entertainment and Leisure Precincts within major shopping centres remains an opportunity for several emerging brands. In addition, the ability of each store network to effectively service the $7.6b food delivery sector remains a consideration in store expansion and optimisation.

“Entering 2024, the majority of Australians now have a significantly greater choice of Quick Service Restaurants. Whilst over 75% of all Australians have lived within three kilometres of a Subway and McDonald’s for a number of years, now close to 52% of all Australians can access 10 or more QSR brands within three kilometres of home,” Scott Johnson, senior analyst at GapMaps said.