Firehouse Subs and Burger King saw foot traffic growth for Restaurant Brands International (RBI) in Q4 2025, while Popeyes and Tim Hortons experienced declining visits, foot traffic research company Placer.ai said in a recent report.
The data revealed that Firehouse Subs saw visits increase 3.9% compared to Q4 2024. Placer.ai said one reason for the increased visits is the brand’s continued expansion of its store footprint.
Burger King saw traffic dips in October and November before rebounding in December, with the increase in foot traffic that month corresponding with the brand’s limited time Spongebob Movie menu and its 13 Days of Deals promotions. Overall the brand was up 0.7% for the quarter.
Meanwhile, Popeyes foot traffic for Q4 decreased 0.5% year over year. “RBI has emphasized long-term operational improvements and a renewed focus on core menu items as key levers for improving Popeyes’ performance, and while the impact of these initiatives has yet to materialize in the visit data, they could begin to support meaningful growth in 2026,” Placer.ai wrote.
Traffic to Tim Hortons locations in the United States lagged significantly in Q4 2025, with a 4.5% decline. However, Placer.ai noted that RBI has indicated ambitions to replicate the brand’s international success domestically, leveraging a robust promotional calendar and an accelerated expansion strategy that could help lift brand awareness and strengthen consumer loyalty over time.
Meanwhile, Yum! Brands (the parent company of Taco Bell, KFC, Pizza Hut and Habit Burger & Grill) continued to outperform on foot traffic in 2025, according to Placer.ai. The research firm noted that Yum! Brands’ recently expanded AI-enabled tools likely played a “supporting role in several operational areas” and contributed to growth.
Yum’s portfolio posted year-over-year foot traffic growth in every quarter in 2025, outperforming the broader QSR category, which recorded visit declines during much of the year according to the research. Taco Bell delivered the “largest and most consistent” YoY monthly overall visit and same-store visit growth throughout Q4 2025, with National Taco Day promotions and the return of Cheesy Dipping Burritos likely contributing to elevated traffic, per the report.
In November 2025, Yum! Brands was reportedly exploring a possible sale and other “strategic options” for its struggling Pizza Hut division.