90% of consumers have purchased a sandwich, sub or wrap away from home over the last 12 months, underscoring the appeal of their convenience, variety and versatility. Younger generations and men emerge as primary drivers of growth, with most either maintaining or increasing consumption compared to last year. Fast food establishments are ordered from most often, but fast casual and grocery-prepared options are gaining traction for their elevated quality and competitive value.
Economic uncertainty is shaping consumer choices, putting pressure on restaurants to ensure value is clearly conveyed. Despite challenges like perceived health risks with processed meats and inflationary prices, interest in premium proteins, unique breads and bold toppings presents exciting opportunities for innovation. Social media further influences consumer behavior, offering platforms for discovery and engagement.
This report looks at the following areas:
- Market factors
- Sandwich, sub, and wrap restaurant visitation
- Changes in ordering frequency; reasons for ordering more or less often
- Appealing proteins, carriers and toppings
- Interest in side options with sandwiches, subs and wraps
- Ordering motivators
- Attitudes and purchasing behaviors toward sandwiches, subs and wraps
AFH sandwiches thrive on convenience, variety and versatility, but with rising costs impacting dining out, operators are tasked with proving affordability.
Pooja Lal, Research Analyst
Market Definitions
This Report examines consumer attitudes and dining behavior, market, menu and culinary trends in sandwich, sub and wrap shops in the LSR (limited-service restaurant) segment. LSRs include both QSRs (quick-service restaurants), or fast food and fast casual restaurants, and only LSRs are covered in this Report. However, due to the cross-segment nature of sandwiches, many of the insights regarding LSR sandwiches are also applicable to FSRs (full-service restaurants).
This Report focuses on both sandwich-specific chains (eg Subway, Arby’s, Quiznos) as well as bakery café restaurants (eg Panera Bread) due to the fact that bakery café restaurants often feature a large sandwich menu.
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
- What you need to know
- What consumers want and why
- Opportunities
- Leverage grab-and-go to convey value
- Graph 1: purchasing behaviors toward sandwich, subs and wraps, by generation, 2025
- Use chicken as the hero protein for innovation
- Graph 2: appealing types of proteins, 2025
- Extend use cases beyond meals
- Graph 3: agreement with “I wish more restaurants offered snack-size sandwiches, subs or wraps”, by select demos, 2025
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MARKET DYNAMICS
- Market context
- Market drivers
- Subway shrinks its footprint
- Food safety is under threat
- Processed meats and the evolving wellness landscape
- Consumer sentiment at its lowest since 2022
- Graph 4: consumer sentiment index, 2022-25
- AFH dining continues to get pricier
- Graph 5: consumer expenditures for food, AH and AFH, 2024-25
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CONSUMER INSIGHTS
- Consumer fast facts
- Sandwich, subs and wraps restaurant visitation
- Fast food establishments are key sandwich, sub and wrap destinations
- Graph 6: sandwich, subs and wraps foodservice purchase locations, 2025
- Most consumers purchase from few locations
- Graph 7: repertoire of sandwich, subs and wraps purchase locations, 2025
- Gen Z leads top purchase locations, Baby Boomers need a nudge beyond fast food
- Graph 8: sandwich, subs and wraps purchase locations, by generation, 2025
- Men are willing to explore more non-traditional locations
- Graph 9: sandwich, subs and wraps restaurant visitation, 2025
- Frequency of ordering sandwiches, subs and wraps
- Sandwiches, subs and wraps are gaining momentum
- Graph 10: frequency of ordering sandwiches, subs, and wraps, 2023 vs 2025
- Men are core consumers
- Graph 11: frequency of ordering sandwiches, subs and wraps, by gender, 2025
- Ordering habits vary by generation
- Graph 12: frequency of ordering sandwiches, subs and wraps, by gender, 2025
- Reasons for ordering sandwiches, subs or wraps more often compared to last year
- It’s all about the balance
- Graph 13: reasons for ordering sandwiches, subs or wraps more often compared to last year, 2025
- Convenience and discounts are the way to women’s hearts
- Graph 14: reasons for ordering sandwiches, subs or wraps more often than last year, by gender, 2025
- Older consumers need some hand-holding to reap loyalty benefits
- Graph 15: reasons for ordering sandwiches, subs or wraps more often than last year, by generation, 2025
- Reasons for ordering less
- Convenience gets in the way of visitation
- Graph 16: reasons for ordering sandwiches, subs or wraps less often than last year, 2025
- Budgetary concerns knock sandwiches, subs and wraps out of women’s consideration sets
- Graph 17: reasons for ordering sandwiches, subs or wraps less often than last year, by gender, 2025
- Appealing types of proteins on sandwiches, subs and wraps
- Chicken tops the chart
- Graph 18: appealing types of proteins, 2025
- Poultry is the most appealing protein to women
- Graph 19: appealing types of proteins, by gender, 2025
- Older consumers are also pleased with poultry
- Graph 20: appealing types of proteins, by generation, 2025
- Appealing types of breads/carriers for sandwiches, subs and wraps
- The classics top the list
- Graph 21: appealing types of breads/carriers, 2025
- Jimmy John’s LTO carrier packs a punch
- Older consumers seek a little more function in bread
- Graph 22: appealing types of breads/carriers, by generation, 2025
- Appealing types of premium toppings on sandwiches, subs and wraps
- No hero ingredient in premium add-ons
- Graph 23: appealing types of premium toppings, 2025
- Women want to scale up their sandwiches
- Graph 24: appealing types of premium toppings, by gender, 2025
- Millennials want flavors that are bright with a bit of spice
- Graph 25: appealing types of premium toppings, by generation, 2025
- Interest in side options
- Potato-based sides are king
- Graph 26: interest in side options, 2025
- Fries are on par with salads for women
- Graph 27: interest in side options, by gender, 2025
- Sweetness is in store for Gen Z
- Graph 28: interest in side options, by generation, 2025
- Ordering motivators
- Customization and pre-set options are at opposite ends of the spectrum
- Graph 29: ordering motivators, 2025
- Value is the main motivator for women
- Graph 30: ordering motivators, by gender, 2025
- Gen Z is the least value-motivated
- Graph 31: ordering motivators, by generation, 2025
- Purchasing behaviors toward sandwiches, subs and wraps
- Freshness > grab-and-go options
- Freshness > grab-and-go options
- Graph 32: purchasing behaviors toward sandwich, subs and wraps, 2025
- Time saving doesn’t mean cutting out quality
- Graph 33: purchasing behaviors toward sandwich, subs and wraps, by food & drink segmentation, 2025
- Generations divide in made-to-order preferences
- Graph 34: purchasing behaviors toward sandwich, subs and wraps, by generation, 2025
- Attitudes toward sandwiches, subs and wraps
- Operators should capitalize on the lunch hour, but other opportunities exist
- Graph 35: select attitudes toward sandwiches, subs or wraps, 2025
- Variety can move the needle on health perceptions
- Graph 36: select attitudes toward sandwiches, subs or wraps, 2025
- Snacking demand driven by Gen Z and Millennials
- Graph 37: select attitudes toward sandwiches, subs or wraps, by generation, 2025
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INNOVATION AND MARKETING STRATEGIES
- Launch activity and innovation
- McDonald’s continues to tease the return of its infamous Snack Wrap…
- …but the competition is heating up
- Subway unveils new lineup of wraps
- Bread innovation spans spicy to swirly
- Hot honey goes from pizza to subs and sandwiches
- Marketing and advertising
- Rising price of food AFH makes FSRs more competitive
- Capriotti’s drives loyalty signups for 49th anniversary
- Jersey Mike’s celebrates Earth Day
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APPENDIX
- Market definition
- Consumer research questions
- Consumer research methodology
- Repertoire Analysis methodology
- Food and drink segmentation clusters and methodology
- Generations
- Abbreviations and terms
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