While the burgers are searing, McDonald’s digital revenue is soaring. The Wall Street Journal reports that the QSR earns around 40% of its revenue in its largest markets from digital sales.

“Digital prowess is the new recipe for success,” the Journal writes.

Ranking at the top of app downloads and usage among food and beverage companies, the McDonald’s app was downloaded as many times as the second-, third- and fourth-place companies combined last year. Usage rose by 18.2% and downloads by 2.5% year over year in the second quarter. Meanwhile, Burger King saw an 8.6%  decrease in users and total downloads dropped by almost a quarter, reported the Journal. Wendy’s lost 25% of its monthly average users and was 30% lower in total downloads.

In 2022 alone, 40 million people downloaded the McDonald’s app, according to QSR Magazine and Apptopia.

Taco Bell and Chick-fil-A also saw progress on the app front, although not to the extent of McDonalds.

Restaurant Brands International, which owns Burger King and Popeye’s, and Wendy’s are set to release their quarterly results at the beginning of August, and analysts expect the numbers to align with the dip in digital presence, indicating how strength in the digital realm aligns with overall sales numbers.

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