The Fast Food Chain With The Quickest Drive-Thru Line

Fast food is internationally popular due to its convenience and cheap prices. Even celebrity chefs have favorite fast food meals. For those with no time to cook dinner because of a busy lifestyle or those who are on the road and need a quick bite to eat, the cheapest fast food can be a total lifesaver. Of course, it helps if your meal is quickly prepared and handed over.

The last thing that tired and hungry customers want is to see a backed-up drive-thru line or be told to move their car to the side and wait for their order. Out of all the major fast food chains, there is one restaurant that is literally a step ahead when it comes to completing drive-thru orders in a timely fashion: Taco Bell. According to a 2023 report from QSR magazine, Taco Bell takes the crown for fastest drive-thru lines with an average wait time of 278.84 seconds, or roughly four minutes, from arrival to receiving your order.

Granted, four minutes might not sound exactly like lightning speed, but when compared to other chains, Taco Bell is still almost a solid 30 seconds ahead of the rest. According to QSR, the next fastest times were 303.74 seconds at Carl's Jr. and 303.95 seconds at KFC. So, the next time you're in a hurry and need something to eat as soon as possible, consider making a stop at Taco Bell's drive-thru.

Not only does Taco Bell have the fastest average wait time, but the chain is speedy in other categories as well. Its speed of service also stands out, taking an average of 205.35 seconds, nearly two minutes faster than Chick-fil-A's, per QSR's annual report. Combined with a short average wait time, the chances of getting stuck waiting for food at Taco Bell are pretty slim.

Taco Bell excels in terms of high-quality service, too. The fast food chain placed second with a 95% customer satisfaction rate; it was only slightly behind that of Chick-fil-A, which had a 97% customer satisfaction rate. Taco Bell employees were also rated by customers as being some of the friendliest when compared to other chains. All in all, quick service with a high rate of satisfaction is a hard combination to beat.

Last but not least, the chances of Taco Bell having a long line of cars just waiting to place an order is pretty low. QSR's drive-thru report showed that Taco Bell had an average of 0.48 cars already waiting in line at the drive-thru to order food. For those craving a late-night taco or Taco Bell's beloved Nacho Fries, this means that orders are taken and served with little to no delay.