The Cities With the Worst Fast Food

When hunger strikes, we often crave the simplicity and guilty pleasure of a quick fast food stop. From hamburgers to chicken, pizza, and sandwiches, there are often many restaurants nearby to choose from.

Not every fast-food dining experience is alike, however. While it might seem simple and easy to grab a burger and fries, that doesn’t mean you won’t occasionally experience poor customer service, an unclean restroom, or longer-than-expected wait times. In fact, many fast-food restaurants throughout the country have received their share of poor reviews.

Thanks to Google and Yelp, consumers can also easily see just how great or poor a restaurant ranks based on customer reviews and experiences. Many on our list below received subpar rankings due to everything from rude employees to burned hamburgers and incorrect orders. Keep in mind, however, that these reviews are based on personal experiences and may not reflect the views of every customer. While there are more negative reviews than positive for most of the restaurants on our list, there are still customers who reported pleasant experiences.

Additionally, most of the lowest-ranking restaurants on our list are also some of the largest in the country. For example, McDonald’s showed up frequently on our list. According to an article from USA Today, 13,438 McDonald’s existed in the United States at the end of 2021. This makes it the largest fast-food restaurant chain in the country. Other popular fast-food restaurants you’ll find on our list include Taco Bell, Subway, and Burger King. Many menu items from these restaurants also make our list of fast foods to avoid due to excessive plastic content.

Methodology: 

To determine the cities with the worst fast food, 24/7 Tempo reviewed data on restaurant user ratings from Google Places for over 300,000 establishments. Cities were ranked based on the average weighted user rating across 15 fast food chains: Subway, McDonald’s, Taco Bell, Domino’s Pizza, Wendy’s, Burger King, Dunkin’, Pizza Hut, Little Caesars Pizza, Chick-fil-A, Jack in the Box, KFC, Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, Sonic Drive-In, and Papa Johns Pizza. Restaurant locations were aggregated from coordinates to cities using boundary definitions from the U.S. Census Bureau. Only cities with at least 50 geolocated fast food locations were considered. Google Places ratings are current as of April 2024.

Here is the list of the cities with the worst fast food. 

40. Fort Worth, TX

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.34/5 (511,941 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.12/5 (1,660,638 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Burger King

39. Anaheim, CA

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.34/5 (123,675 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.20/5 (300,180 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: McDonald’s

38. Honolulu, HI

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.34/5 (318,321 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.30/5 (445,138 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: KFC

37. Warren, MI

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.34/5 (61,898 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 3.95/5 (182,131 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen

36. Sparks, NV

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.34/5 (102,029 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.12/5 (259,921 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: McDonald’s

35. Paradise, NV

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.34/5 (670,444 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.27/5 (1,479,570 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Papa John’s Pizza

34. Chula Vista, CA

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.34/5 (75,421 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.21/5 (248,252 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Papa John’s Pizza

33. Greeley, CO

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.34/5 (68,136 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.08/5 (201,037 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Taco Bell

32. New York, NY

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.33/5 (5,011,298 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.24/5 (7,949,620 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Domino’s Pizza

31. Carson, CA

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.33/5 (91,874 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.15/5 (237,592 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: KFC

30. Norfolk, VA

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.33/5 (204,168 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.13/5 (460,867 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Pizza Hut

29. Perry Hall, MD

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.33/5 (67,812 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.09/5 (175,100 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen

28. Modesto, CA

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.33/5 (75,620 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.15/5 (235,534 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Burger King

27. Philadelphia, PA

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.33/5 (1,039,606 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.17/5 (1,653,366 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Domino’s Pizza

26. Ontario, CA

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.33/5 (141,561 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.20/5 (408,613 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: KFC

25. Lubbock, TX

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.32/5 (119,740 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.15/5 (403,616 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Burger King

24. Independence, MO

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.32/5 (72,458 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 3.97/5 (275,614 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Domino’s Pizza

23. Montgomery, AL

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.32/5 (90,066 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.03/5 (278,870 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Domino’s Pizza

22. Augusta, GA

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.32/5 (86,154 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.06/5 (338,935 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: McDonald’s

21. San Bernardino, CA

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.32/5 (58,046 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.07/5 (185,067 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: KFC

20. Aurora, CO

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.32/5 (190,896 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.04/5 (569,543 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Papa Johns Pizza

19. Carrollton, TX

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.32/5 (139,906 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.21/5 (422,359 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Burger King

18. Corpus Christi, TX

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.31/5 (203,810 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.18/5 (490,561 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Burger King

17. Memphis, TN

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.31/5 (430,380 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.03/5 (1,065,606 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: McDonald’s

16. Flint, MI

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.31/5 (78,428 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.02/5 (221,809 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Wendy’s

15. Brownsville, TX

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.31/5 (64,871 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.28/5 (184,119 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Burger King

14. San Antonio, TX

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.31/5 (840,505 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.14/5 (2,210,912 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Jack in the Box

13. El Paso, TX

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.30/5 (311,340 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.20/5 (1,011,253 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: KFC

12. Stockton, CA

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.30/5 (95,992 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.09/5 (253,705 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Burger King

11. San Jose, CA

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.30/5 (295,731 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.20/5 (643,869 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Domino’s Pizza

10. Pooler, GA

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.30/5 (82,713 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.00/5 (315,506 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen

9. Pueblo, CO

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.29/5 (76,741 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.03/5 (221,936 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen

8. Fayetteville, NC

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.29/5 (81,685 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.10/5 (293,103 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Papa Johns Pizza

7. Garland, TX

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.28/5 (175,144 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.08/5 (557,238 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Papa Johns Pizza

6. Concord, NC

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.28/5 (139,680 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.09/5 (466,731 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen

5. Grand Prairie, TX

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.26/5 (147,603 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.10/5 (421,427 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Burger King

4. Jersey City, NJ

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.26/5 (165,120 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.15/5 (287,901 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Pizza Hut

3. Detroit, MI

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.26/5 (428,928 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.01/5 (767,500 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Domino’s Pizza

2. Odessa, TX

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.25/5 (55,281 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.03/5 (223,781 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: KFC

1. Irving, TX

• Average rating of fast food chains: 4.17/5 (204,390 reviews)
• Average rating for all restaurants: 4.13/5 (555,226 reviews)
• Lowest-rated chain: Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen