Dive Brief:
- Dunkin’ opened its 10,000th U.S. store last week, in Darien, Illinois, according to a Tuesday press release.
- The 10,000th Dunkin’ unit is also the 100th unit for franchisee The Hari Group.
- Dunkin’ has opened upwards of 230 stores so far in 2025, per its franchise disclosure document, at a moment when rivals like Starbucks report store closures.
Dive Insight:
There are only a handful of restaurant brands with more than 10,000 U.S. stores: McDonald’s, Starbucks, Subway and now Dunkin’. The growth of Dunkin’ likely reflects both the expansion of the overall QSR segment and the particular rise of coffee, beverage and snack occasions in recent years.
There are challenges among this cohort, however. Subway, McDonald’s and Starbucks have all hit levels above 10,000 stores and then seen some degree of contraction. Starbucks closed around 400 units at the end of the last quarter.
There may be room for more Dunkin’s in the country depending on regional brand affinities — the chain had 1,041 stores open in Massachusetts at the end of 2024. Massachusetts has a population of roughly 7 million, meaning there is about one Dunkin’ for every 7,000 residents of the commonwealth. If Dunkin’ achieved a similar density nationwide, the chain would have more than 48,000 units open, though there’s little reason to think the chain could hit that particular number.
Scott Murphy, Inspire Brands’ chief brand officer and president at Dunkin’, said the chain is on the march: “We look forward to the next 10,000 restaurants, the momentum behind this brand has never been stronger.”
Over the last year, Dunkin’ has made many of the same moves as other QSRs. It added a value meal deal to capitalize on consumer demand for value options. The chain periodically deploys its $6 Meal Deal in conjunction with celebrity-backed LTOs and seasonal offerings as a traffic-driving measure. Earlier this week, however, Dunkin’ increased the cost to redeem most of its menu items through its loyalty program — though it added bakery items like muffins as a redemption category.
