Same-store sales and customer traffic

Same-store sales and customer traffic

Restaurant operators reported positive same-store sales in July

For the first time in 3 months, a majority of restaurant operators reported positive same-store sales, according to the National Restaurant Association’s monthly tracking survey. 

Fifty-nine percent of operators said their same-store sales rose between July 2022 and July 2023. That was up from roughly half of operators who reported higher sales in May and June. 

Thirty-five percent of operators said their sales were lower in July, down from 40% who reported a sales decline in June.               

Restaurant operators: Want to know how your business compares to similar restaurants on a monthly basis? Find out by taking a few minutes to participate in the National Restaurant Association’s Restaurant Industry Tracking Survey. All survey respondents receive exclusive access to the detailed survey results each month, broken out by industry segment and type of ownership.

In contrast to the positive sales results, customer traffic readings were mixed. Thirty-five percent of operators said their customer traffic rose between July 2022 and July 2023, while 41% reported a traffic decline. 

That represented the fourth consecutive month in which restaurant operators reported a net decline in customer traffic. 

Track more economic indicators and read more analysis and commentary from the Association's chief economist Bruce Grindy.