Same-store sales and customer traffic

A majority of restaurant operators reported higher same-store sales in October, which was a solid improvement from dampened readings in recent months. 

Fifty-one percent of restaurant operators said their same-store sales rose between October 2023 and October 2024, according to the National Restaurant Association’s monthly tracking survey. That was up from 42% in September and the highest reading in 10 months. 

Forty-four percent of operators said their sales declined in October, down from 47% in September. October represented the first time since December 2023 that restaurant operators reported a net increase in sales.

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.

Restaurant operators also reported an improvement in customer traffic readings, though October still represented the 19th consecutive month of net declines. 

Forty-one percent of operators said their customer traffic rose between October 2023 and October 2024, while 44% said their traffic declined.

Track more economic indicators and read more analysis and commentary from the Association's economists.