More of Americans’ daily spending is now happening from home, according to new Visa research, and restaurants are among the businesses adapting fastest to that change. The shift is showing up in how diners order meals, how chains allocate technology spending and how operators balance delivery with on-premises traffic. Visa’s latest data gives that change a name: the “couch economy.”
Visa’s new report put a number on the shift
Visa announced the report on September 14, saying the share of domestic payment volume in the United States occurring online and in apps rose from 48% in 2019 to 58% in 2026, according to Visa Business and Economic Insights. The company said the findings reflect a broader move toward shopping, streaming, dining and managing everyday life from home. In practical terms for restaurants, that means digital ordering is no longer an add-on channel.
The company also said food delivery has become a mainstream spending habit rather than an occasional convenience. Nation’s Restaurant News, citing the Visa data, reported that the share of Visa cards active on food delivery apps climbed from about 1% in 2018 to more than 10% by 2021, then held near that level before dipping by about a point in 2026. Visa said that pattern suggests delivery is now embedded in routine consumer behavior.
Another notable finding is who is using those services most. Visa said growth in food delivery is increasingly being driven by mass-market consumers instead of only higher-income households. That matters for restaurant chains racing to keep up, because it expands the customer base for app-based ordering, loyalty tools and faster fulfillment.
Restaurants are adjusting, but the local effects are uneven
For restaurant operators, the broad national data has immediate local implications even when brand-by-brand impacts vary by market. Visa’s report does not break out restaurant delivery figures by state or city in the material released publicly, so it does not confirm which metro areas are seeing the sharpest shifts. What is confirmed is that convenience-focused dining behavior is now large enough to influence how restaurants staff, package and market meals.
Nation’s Restaurant News reported that the “couch economy” is centered not just on staying home, but on rising expectations for convenience. That helps explain why many restaurants have expanded first-party apps, added dedicated pickup shelves, refined delivery menus and leaned further into aggregator platforms. Those moves are visible in cities and suburbs alike, though the report does not provide a comprehensive local-by-local list of which operators changed strategy in response.
At the same time, the data does not show a one-way collapse of in-person dining. Nation’s Restaurant News reported that full-service restaurant chains have recently outperformed fast-food chains in same-store sales, with median growth of 1.6% for publicly traded full-service brands versus 0.8% for limited-service companies that had reported results. That means restaurants are responding to two realities at once: diners still go out, but they also expect ordering from the couch to be easy.
Convenience is the driver, and customers should expect more digital options
Visa attributed the shift to technology and routine behavior: smartphones, stored payment credentials and growing familiarity with online purchasing have reduced friction in everyday transactions. The company also pointed to adjacent habits that keep consumers home more often, including the spread of streaming subscriptions. In the United States, Visa said more than 17% of cards are used for streaming subscriptions, compared with roughly 6% associated with movie theater and concert spending.
That context matters because restaurants are competing inside a broader home-centered economy, not just within the food business. Visa Chief Economist Wayne Best said the trend extends beyond e-commerce and reflects consumers prioritizing convenience, speed and seamless experiences. Nation’s Restaurant News also noted that consumers are shifting some spending toward independent restaurants and that full-service operators have recently benefited from more people choosing to dine out.
For customers, the practical takeaway is straightforward. Restaurants are likely to keep investing in delivery access, app ordering, pickup systems and other digital tools because Visa said convenience expectations are reshaping how consumers spend. Even where dining rooms remain busy, the report suggests restaurants now have to serve both occasions at once: eating out and eating at home.