Amid persistent inflation and economic uncertainty, diners in the United States are planning to pull back on spending at quick-service restaurants in the coming months, according to a McKinsey consumer survey. But there are some variations in this trend depending on age and income, note McKinsey’s Ben Mathews and Katharine Mattox and their coauthors. Older generations, particularly baby boomers and Gen Xers, show the strongest intent to reduce their spending. Low-income consumers across all generations are planning the most significant cuts, while high-income millennials, in contrast, report almost no change in their spending plans.
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A grouped bar chart displays the net intent to spend on meals away from home in the next three months among US consumers, segmented by generation (Gen Zers, millennials, Gen Xers, and baby boomers+) and income level (low, medium, high), across 3 categories: meals at quick-service restaurants (QSRs), meals at sit-down restaurants, and food delivery ordered from an app. For QSRs, intent is negative across all groups, with the pullback most pronounced among baby boomers+ in the low-income bracket (–38%), followed by Gen Zers in the low-income group (–32%). Millennials in the high-income group show the least negative intent (–2%). For sit-down restaurants, the negative intent is again strongest among low-income baby boomers+ (–38%), with Gen Xers (–29% low, –28% medium) and millennials (–28% low) also showing substantial declines; high-income millennials are least negative (–5%). In the food delivery category, baby boomers+ show the largest decline, particularly in low (–45%) and medium (–44%) income groups, while intent among Gen Zers and millennials is comparatively less negative (ranging from –7% to –26%). The overall averages for each category are –21% for QSRs, –16% for sit-down restaurants, and –21% for food delivery.
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Source: McKinsey ConsumerWise Sentiment Survey of 4,013 participants, Q3 2025.
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To read the article, see “What US consumers want from restaurants in 2026,” January 8, 2026.