$1.27 trillion
spent on food away from home in the U.S. in 2024
That was a 4.2% increase from 2023, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
USDA Economic Research Service, Food Dollar, 2024 data released March 2026 ↗Restaurant Industry Reference
U.S. RESTAURANT STATISTICS.
Current, citable figures on restaurant spending, jobs, establishments, and the food-away-from-home economy.Last updated: September 28, 2026What this covers
THE NUMBERS BEHIND THE TABLE.
This fact sheet gathers recent, primary-source data about the U.S. restaurant and food-service economy. It is designed for writers, researchers, and local food businesses who need a straightforward number they can check and cite.
Each figure below links directly to the public agency source and names the data period. Tito’s Fried Chicken updates this page as major source data changes, while keeping these section links stable for readers who reference a specific statistic.
$836.8 billion
of value added by food services in the domestic food supply chain in 2024
The USDA puts food services at 38.6 cents of every domestic food dollar, including full-service, limited-service, and other eating places.
USDA Economic Research Service, Food Dollar, 2024 data released March 2026 ↗12.43 million
people employed in U.S. food services and drinking places in August 2026
This seasonally adjusted estimate covers the broader food-services-and-drinking-places subsector.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Industry at a Glance, August 2026 preliminary data ↗727,892
private food-service and drinking-place establishments in the U.S. in Q1 2026
This preliminary count is reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Industry at a Glance, Q1 2026 preliminary data ↗$21.89
average hourly earnings across food services and drinking places in July 2026
The figure is preliminary and covers all employees in the national industry subsector.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Industry at a Glance, July 2026 preliminary data ↗59.1 cents
of labor value added per food-away-from-home dollar in 2024
The USDA compares this with 47.1 cents of labor value added per food-at-home dollar, showing how labor-intensive the away-from-home channel is.
USDA Economic Research Service, Food Dollar, 2024 data released March 2026 ↗Sources and method
BUILT TO BE CHECKED.
We use public data from U.S. government agencies and link every statistic to its original source. Numbers use the latest period available from each source on the date shown above. The figures are national unless a statistic says otherwise, and preliminary figures are labeled as such by the source.
- U.S. Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service, Food Dollar, 2024 data released March 2026.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Food Services and Drinking Places: NAICS 722, data extracted September 2026.
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