Same-store sales and customer traffic

Restaurant operators reported a modest improvement in same-store sales in October. 

Forty-eight percent of restaurant operators said their same-store sales rose between October 2024 and October 2025, according to the National Restaurant Association’s monthly tracking survey. That was up from 45% in September.

Thirty-five percent of operators said their sales declined in October, down from 44% in September.

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 readings, restaurant operators continued to report customer traffic declines. 

Thirty-three percent of operators said their customer traffic rose between October 2024 and October 2025, compared to 34% in September. Forty-eight percent of restaurant operators reported lower traffic in October, down from 52% in September. 

October represented the ninth consecutive month in which operators reported a net decline in customer traffic.

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