McDonald’s experienced a decline in customer visits and spending during the December 2024 quarter. By contrast, brands such as Grill’d, Guzman Y Gomez (GyG), and Crust Pizza reported notable increases in customer frequency and average spend.

The new figures from Fonto found customers visited the golden arches 5% less frequently and spent 5.4% less compared to the same period in the previous year.

It was a different tale for Grill’d, which saw a 14.9% increase in the frequency of purchase, with the average spend per customer rising by 10.6% compared to December 2023. Crust Pizza also reported a 10.5% increase in purchase frequency and a 7.3% rise in spend per customer, despite holding a smaller market share of 3%.

Guzman Y Gomez was also on the up, reporting a 5% increase in customer purchase frequency and an almost 6% increase in spend per customer. The brand’s market share rose from 3.0% to 4.2%. GyG announced a 27% increase in revenue, attributing the growth to new store locations meeting increased demand.

Despite a slight drop in average basket size for Crust and Grill’d, the gains per customer outweighed the loss in individual transaction size. GyG and Crust have plans to expand further, with GyG planning to open 30 new stores and Crust planning 12 new locations in 2025. Grill’d opened 16 new locations in 2024 but has not announced specific store plans for 2025.

Fonto’s Moments in QSR data, which tracks market share and competitive advantages within the QSR category, highlights these trends. More than 85,000 Australians share their daily financial transaction data with Fonto, which is used to understand buyer behaviour over time. Fonto also surveys fast food customers shortly after purchases to gain insights into consumer behaviour.

Ben Dixon, CEO of Fonto, commented on the shifting dynamics in the fast-food sector: “We are seeing customers embracing alternatives, especially ones that promote fresher ingredients, even in the fast food space. Where Domino’s has recently faced challenges in product quality, Crust continues to bring customers back, spending more. Where consumers are looking for fresher, higher quality burger alternative, Grill’d is taking share and loyalty away from the larger chains. GyG’s overall brand promise as healthier fast food is also clearly working, with their sales and profit up across the board.”