The quick-service restaurant industry entered 2026 under pressure from higher menu prices, cautious consumer spending, and intensifying competition on service and value. That broader backdrop came into focus on June 16, when the American Customer Satisfaction Index reported that Chick-fil-A was no longer the top-rated chain in its national fast-food rankings after 11 consecutive years. The brand that moved ahead was Jersey Mike’s, a result that gives one of the country’s fastest-growing sandwich chains a new distinction in a closely watched industry survey.
Jersey Mike’s ended an 11-year streak in the 2026 rankings
Jersey Mike’s took the No. 1 position in the 2026 American Customer Satisfaction Index Restaurant and Food Delivery Study, according to the organization’s June 16 press release. ACSI said Jersey Mike’s debuted as the top-rated quick-service restaurant with a score of 84 on its 100-point scale, while Chick-fil-A posted an 83 and finished second. The study said overall quick-service restaurant satisfaction held at 79 for the third straight year.
That result ended Chick-fil-A’s 11-year run at the top of the ACSI quick-service category. ACSI’s prior restaurant study showed Chick-fil-A leading the segment in 2025 with an 83, which means its score did not fall year over year even though it lost the top spot. The shift came from Jersey Mike’s entering the ranking at a level above the former leader rather than from a measurable Chick-fil-A decline in the index.
The same 2026 benchmark placed Panda Express third at 81, followed by Starbucks, Arby’s and Panera Bread at 80, according to ACSI’s published results. The rankings are based on customer evaluations of factors including order accuracy, staff courtesy, speed, digital ordering and the cleanliness and layout of restaurants. In practical terms, the new ranking reflects relative gains by competitors in a year when the broader category was essentially flat.
The national result matters locally, even without city-by-city rankings
Because ACSI reports national brand-level scores, the result applies broadly across the United States rather than to one specific state or metro area. The index does not break out separate public rankings for individual cities, counties or states in the June 16 release, so there is no verified list showing where Jersey Mike’s outperformed Chick-fil-A on a local basis. That means readers should treat this as a national customer-satisfaction result, not as a confirmed change in standings for any one community.
What is confirmed is that both chains have substantial footprints across many U.S. markets, making the ranking relevant to a large share of restaurant customers. The ACSI study measures consumer sentiment across the quick-service category, so the change has significance for operators, franchisees and landlords even without neighborhood-level detail. It is also one of the more visible scorecards used to compare restaurant brands on service and consistency rather than just unit growth or revenue.
What is not yet known from the published ACSI materials is whether the same pattern appears evenly across suburban, urban and small-market trade areas. ACSI has not released a comprehensive city-by-city or state-by-state breakdown in the public-facing study materials tied to the June 16 announcement. As a result, no specific local market can be confirmed as the place where Chick-fil-A lost ground or where Jersey Mike’s gained the most.
Stable scores, higher prices and competition shaped the backdrop
ACSI attributed the broader restaurant picture to a consumer environment in which satisfaction has stabilized even as chains continue to compete on convenience, speed and perceived value. The organization said quick-service satisfaction remained unchanged at 79, suggesting the category as a whole is not seeing major across-the-board improvement. In that environment, a brand can move up by executing slightly better on the measures customers notice most.
Separate coverage of the ACSI findings noted that restaurant sales rose in 2025, but at a pace below menu-price inflation, indicating that topline gains were being helped more by higher prices than by stronger traffic. That matters for fast-food and fast-casual chains because customer satisfaction can become a differentiator when diners are making more selective visits. A brand that delivers reliable service and order accuracy may gain an edge even if consumer demand is not expanding quickly.
For customers, the immediate takeaway is straightforward: Chick-fil-A did not collapse in the rankings, and Jersey Mike’s did not win because the former leader posted a sharp drop. The June 16 ACSI results show Chick-fil-A holding at 83 while Jersey Mike’s entered at 84, a narrow but significant margin in a tightly bunched field. For now, the data points to a competitive market in which service quality remains a deciding factor and national brand leaders can change even when overall satisfaction barely moves.