{"id":4218,"date":"2026-06-11T15:31:13","date_gmt":"2026-06-11T15:31:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/houstonmovingjournal.com\/?p=4218"},"modified":"2026-06-11T15:31:13","modified_gmt":"2026-06-11T15:31:13","slug":"a-state-by-state-look-at-who-spends-the-most-and-least-on-fast-food","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/houstonmovingjournal.com\/?p=4218","title":{"rendered":"A state-by-state look at who spends the most and least on fast food"},"content":{"rendered":"
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FILE: Combined Taco Bell and KFC restaurant, San Francisco, California, January 22, 2026. (Photo by Smith Collection\/Gado\/Getty Images)<\/span> <\/p>

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With fast food prices up 60% since 2014, those “affordable” drive-throughs don\u2019t seem so economical anymore.\u00a0<\/p>

According to data from WalletHub, fast food is only a tiny fraction of American household spending, but it varies from state to state. WalletHub data showed people in poorer states tend to spend more of their income on fast food, though McDonald\u2019s Chairman and CEO Chris Kempczinski said in May that fast food visits by customers with household incomes of $45,000 or less are still declining overall. The spike in gas prices won\u2019t help, he said.<\/p>

What they’re saying:<\/p>

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“It\u2019s fair for consumers to wonder whether the convenience of having food in minutes is really even worth it anymore,” WalletHub writer and analyst Chip Lupo said in a statement. “Where you live can have a big impact on how much you shell out for fast food, too; it costs around 1.8 times more in the most expensive states than the cheapest states, relative to the median income.”<\/p>

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Where do people spend the most on fast food?\u00a0<\/h2>

Local perspective:<\/p>

To identify where people spend the most on fast food, WalletHub looked at the prices of fast-food burgers, pizza and fried chicken sandwiches in every state. Researchers compared those combined costs with the median household income from each state. Here\u2019s what they found:\u00a0<\/p>