How Tuna Fish Sandwiches Stack Up In America's Sandwich Rankings

For die-hard tuna sandwich lovers, the beloved fish sandwich might rank No. 1 as their go-to lunch each day. However, as far as actually ranking the sandwich against other sandwich types goes — grilled cheese, for example — tuna only ranks as the fifth-most popular variety in the United States, according to a poll commissioned by Buddig and released by Talker Research. 

For National Sandwich Day (November 3), Buddig gathered the responses of 2,000 Americans to spill the tea on which sandwich they loved the best. The classic seafood sandwich was outranked by grilled cheese, chicken, turkey, and ham, respectively, though tuna did manage to beat out peanut butter and jelly and meatball subs in the survey. Nearly a quarter of the 2,000 respondents — 24% or 480 poll-takers — said that tuna was it for them above all other sammies. Surprisingly, old stand-bys, like packaged deli meat sandwiches featuring bologna (including the Southern fried version), didn't make the cut.

If the tuna eaters of America align with the survey's average, they're chowing down as many as six sandwiches every seven days. They probably also feel that living on tuna sandwiches alone is a perfectly good way to use up their weekly calorie allotment.

And while it is tempting to think that these seafood sandwich lovers spend their time daydreaming about the different possibilities — tuna melts, tuna and bacon combos, and tuna with avocado and hard-boiled egg slices, for example – they probably don't if they're in tune with a majority of the country's sandwich lovers. Some 58% of sandwich eaters claimed to be "sandwich pragmatists," which means that, to them, it's more important to just get 'er done and ready to eat than it is to have a fancy schmancy sammy.

However, 42% of the respondents did say that they take their sandwiches seriously. Better is better for these "sandwich chefs," and better means high quality meats, fresh veggies, and the condiments that make things oh-so perky. What does that mean for tuna lovers? Maybe swapping the canned stuff for sushi-grade tuna belly or adding a crispy cheese skirt to the bread like some of the best-reviewed tuna sandwiches in the country. The possibilities are endless in a world where there's so much tuna to eat and so little time.