Fast Food Chains with the Slowest Drive-Thrus
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“Please pull up to the next window while we all stand around doing nothing.”
It feels like that sometimes, doesn’t it?
Some fast food joints don’t live up to their status as “fast,” and Americans are taking notice.
We know because some of our users have told us they will play online sudoku while waiting to drive-thrus. As such, we’ve turned our attention to slow drive-thrus, surveying fast food aficionados across the country about their experiences.
Meanwhile, heavyweights Chick-fil-A and McDonald’s rank #1 and #2 fastest, with more than half of their customers describing their drive-thrus as “very fast.”
In our survey, we did some digging to find out why some of these drive-thru operations are so slow. Here’s what customers suspect.
Why Some Drive-Thrus Are So Slow
- Understaffed
- Inefficient operation
- Slow workers
- Products take long to prepare
Where in America are drive-thrus the worst? We know one thing for sure: Fast food and Cali vibes do not seem to mix well.
States with the Slowest Fast Food Drive-Thrus
Everyone who visits fast food drive-thrus has been held up in line at least once in their lifetime. Whether it was an understaffed location or an inefficient process, waiting more than a couple of minutes in line can make us feel like the concept of “fast” food is simply a lie.
So where are Americans experiencing these long lines? Leading the way is California with the most encounters with slow drives-thrus. This is followed by Connecticut and New Mexico, claiming second and third place for lengthy waits.
On the other end of the spectrum, Nevada ranks last for slow drive-thrus in the U.S. as most visitors to local locations don’t consider their restaurants to be slow. Colorado and Oklahoma follow closely behind as the second and third least slow states.
When asked about the longest time spent in a drive-thru, we discovered that the average American has sat around waiting for about 16 minutes. This number is higher in certain parts of the country, however, as we can only assume some Americans are more patient than others . . . or perhaps more loyal to the fast food they wait for. Overall, Alaska and North Dakota residents have waited the longest in drive-thrus on average at 26 and 19 minutes, respectively.
The Fast and Slowest Drive-Thrus Across the U.S.
After learning where Americans most frequently encounter slow drive-thrus, we turned our attention to the restaurants holding people up. To do this, we first asked respondents which restaurants they visit with some regularity. We then asked which drive-thrus they consider to be very slow and which they consider to be very fast. Using this, we divided the number of people who say the restaurant is fast or slow by the number of people who visit it regularly.
Leading the way for the slowest drive-thrus is Wingstop. With more than 2,200 locations across the country, 57% of visitors say their experiences in these drive-thrus typically take a lengthy amount of time. Up next in second place is Culver’s, which is known for its frozen custard and “ButterBurgers.” Overall, 53% of the restaurant’s visitors consider these drive-thrus to be very slow.
Following closely behind in third place is Church’s Chicken, where 52% of Americans feel the pick-up process takes a while. Rounding out the top five are Panera and Tropical Smoothie Cafe in fourth and fifth place, respectively.
Not all drive-thrus leave customers frustrated, however, as many are considered very fast by Americans across the country. Up first is Chick-fil-A where 61% of visitors say their experiences in these drive-thrus are very fast, filling them with “pleasure” if you will.
In second place is McDonald’s where 51% of customers report speedy service. This is followed by Krispy Kreme in third place with 47% of visitors remaining satisfied with how quickly they received their donuts and coffee. In fourth place is a restaurant that has opened more than 300 locations across the southern part of the country—Cook Out. The chain has locations in 10 states including Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.
While some locations offer visitors the option to sit down inside to eat, many Cook Outs only offer drive-thru service. Perhaps, this is part of the reason why the restaurant landed in both the slowest (13th) and fastest (4th) rankings, as customers’ experiences vary. Cook Out is not alone in this, however, as KFC and Bojangles both earned spots on both rankings as well.
While KFC ranked 12th among the slowest drive-thrus, it also ranked 8th among the fastest. Similarly, Bojangles ranked 6th among the slowest restaurants and 7th among the fastest. This goes to show that with so many locations across the country, one bad service at a restaurant does not reflect the chain as a whole.
Where We Regularly Experience Bad Service in the Drive-Thru
As any loyal fast food customer knows, service at a restaurant can vary from one location to the next, but sometimes we encounter it far more frequently at certain chains. To learn more about this, we asked respondents at which restaurants they regularly receive bad service while in the drive-thru. Up first with more than a third of customers noting it is Wingstop. In second place is Tropical Smoothie Cafe, followed by Cook Out in third place.
We wanted to dive deeper into the cause of this bad service and the reasons for slow drive-thrus, so we asked survey takers to consider four aspects that often impact drive-thrus in the U.S.: understaffed locations, inefficient operations, slow workers, and products that take a long time to prepare.
When separated into these categories, we found that McDonald’s and Burger King ranked first and second, respectively for slow workers, inefficient operations, and understaffed locations. For the fourth category, products taking a long time to prepare, it was KFC and Starbucks that claimed the top two spots.
Pass the Time Waiting with Sudoku
Sometimes we are asked to pull into a parking spot when waiting for our food at a drive-thru. Many Americans have also made a habit of going inside some restaurants as opposed to waiting in a drive-thru line. Either way, we still find ourselves with time to kill waiting for our food to be ready.
At Sudoku Bliss, we know that this waiting around can seem to take forever at times, so we recommend exercising your mind with a game of Sudoku to pass the time. Whether you are a master looking for a tough puzzle or a beginner seeking an easy puzzle, we offer a range of difficulties to provide you with a fun challenge.
Methodology
In May 2025, we surveyed residents in 40 U.S. states and asked which of 34 fast food drive-thrus they regularly visit have particularly fast or slow operations. We also asked about other characteristics of service at their local fast food chains.