Here's The Fast Food Restaurant With The Fastest Drive-Thru

You're in a hurry, and your stomach's growling. You need fast food — emphasis on fast. Which fast food chain is serving up your meal the quickest? According to QSR's 2024 Drive-Thru Report, Taco Bell takes the crown for the fourth year in a row, with an average drive-thru time of 255.78 seconds — just over four minutes. That includes the time you wait to place your order and the time it takes to get your food. If you can spare four minutes, you've definitely got time for a Crunchwrap Supreme.

QSR, a magazine covering the quick-service restaurant industry, made sure their study was as precise as possible. Researchers visited ten major fast food chains, stopping at 165 locations per brand (166 for Arby's) across the U.S. at different times of day — breakfast, lunch, afternoon, and dinner. They tracked everything from speed and order accuracy to customer service. While Taco Bell crushed the drive-thru speed competition in 2023 with a 25-second lead, this year KFC was hot on their heels, trailing by only four seconds. 

Despite the tighter race, it's clear Taco Bell still prioritizes speed. With innovations like Taco Bell Defy — a high-tech, multi-lane drive-thru designed for faster service — they're showing that their hold on the top speed title is far from over. Of course, speed isn't everything. After all, what's the point of speed if your order isn't right? Accuracy, customer service, and customer satisfaction matter too — and one fast food joint absolutely nailed them all. 

Patience is a virtue, and Chick-fil-A is making it taste delicious. According to QSR's 2024 Report, Chick-fil-A is officially the slowest fast food chain, with an average drive-thru time of 479.42 seconds — that's about 8 minutes! McDonald's, the next slowest chain, still beats them by over a full minute.

But here's where it gets interesting: Chick-fil-A consistently has more cars in line than any other restaurant. On average, they had 3.44 cars in line, compared to Raising Cane's with 2.44, McDonald's with 1.48, and Wendy's with just 1.01. No other chain even reached one car on average, which says a lot about Chick-fil-A's popularity. Factor in how many cars they have to serve, and Chick-fil-A actually comes out on top for drive-thru speed, averaging 139.4 seconds per vehicle. That's 12 seconds faster than Raising Cane's, which is the next fastest, and minutes ahead of the slowest chain.

Even though Chick-fil-A moves cars quicker than anyone else, the wait is still long. So, why do people keep coming back? Simple: the experience is unbeatable. Chick-fil-A took first place in three key categories: friendliest service, with a 95% rating; overall satisfaction, with a near-perfect 99%; and order accuracy, tying with McDonald's at 93%. A little extra wait doesn't matter when you're greeted with a smile, your order's done right, and you're about to dig into that mouthwatering Honey Pepper Pimento Chicken Sandwich.