Burgers are big business, and everyone has an opinion on who makes the best one. But according to Harris Poll’s 30th annual EquiTrend study, one burger chain stands above the rest. For the second year in a row, Five Guys has won Harris’s “Burger Brand of the Year.”
Harris surveyed a total of 77,031 people to determine the “brand equity” of 17 different burger chains: Jack in the Box, Hardee’s, White Castle, Carl’s Jr., Checkers/Rally’s, DQ Grill & Chill, Burger King, McDonald’s, Wendy’s, SONIC America’s Drive-In, Five Guys, In-N-Out Burger, Culver’s, Steak ‘n Shake, Whataburger, Shake Shack, and Smashburger.
As defined by the poll, “brand equity” is based on three key factors: familiarity, quality, and future consideration – and according to EquiTrend Director Amir Kanpurwala, the familiarity of Five Guys is what netted them the win:
“[Former Burger Brand of the Year winner] In-N-Out has slipped from its high. The other players are claiming mind and market share. Five Guys has expanded at a much faster rate. In-N-Out has taken a slower approach to expansion, and its locations are geographically contiguous — mostly on the West Coast,” he said.
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“Familiarity holds In-N-Out Burger back in the standings as a majority of consumers “just know the name” of the brand (35%),” according to Kanpurwala.
Indeed, Five Guys operates nearly 1,500 locations across the U.S. as well as in the UK, Spain, Portugal, France, and Germany, with plans to open another 1,500 restaurants. By comparison, In-N-Out operates just 330 locations in six states – California, Texas, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and Oregon – with plans to open as many as 50 locations in Colorado alone.
Furthermore, even though Five Guys is quite a bit pricier than In-N-Out – burgers start at $7 at Five Guys versus just $2.10 at In-N-Out – the poll found that customers are more likely to return to Five Guys. “Five Guys is a lot more expensive than In-N-Out, but that doesn’t come through in many of our metrics. Five Guys actually comes ahead of In-N-Out when it comes to future consideration, or whether you would return for more. So that was a very surprising finding,” Kanpurwala said.
This is even more surprising given the fact that In-N-Out offers the convenience of a drive-thru, while Five Guys does not. But perhaps that speaks even more to the quality of Five Guys Burgers and Fries.
What’s YOUR favorite burger chain? Share it in the comments below!