Is Subway Considered Fast Food?

The easiest way to determine if Subway is a fast food restaurant or not is to consult QSR's 2024 list of the top 50 fast food chains, which lists the sandwich company at No. 8. But Subway has complicated the question with attempts in recent years to rebrand and attract customers.

These never-ending variations, which suggest that make it easy to wonder if it is a fast food restaurant or not. But there are some basic elements that clearly define Subway as a fast food chain. Fast food restaurants are a part of the limited service type of restaurants, which include fast casual, quick service, and other restaurants that don't offer table service from a wait staff.



All limited service restaurants deliver food quickly, but fast casuals have a focus on healthy, quality food, design and service that encourages dining in, and lack a mascot or value-centered food options. A fast food restaurant invariably has a drive-thru and encourages taking the food to go. It also focuses on speed over quality and have several value options, especially options that target kids, as well as at least one mascot.

Subway is sometimes viewed as a fast casual restaurant because of its fresh food focus and renovations to encourage customers to dine in. However, the eateries also have value menu items, kids' meals with toys and incentives, and even drive-thrus. Ultimately, Subway's emphasis on speed negates some of the marketing speak on freshness and quality, like .

These qualities would seem to indicate that it's a member of the fast food crowd. Blurring the lines to bring back customers The confusion about Subway's status comes from changes launched by the chain when it started losing sales to sandwich competitors Firehouse Subs, Jimmy Johns and Jersey Mike's. In 2016, it redesigned the logo and began to focus on fresh ingredients.

The next year, Subway redesigned many of its stores to rebrand with new, more inviting furniture. The effort seemed to be an attempt to leap out of the fast food category and into the realm of fast casual, where Chipotle and Panera Bread reside. However, Subway still had the focus on fast sandwiches, which inspired a 2021 menu redesign to include named and numbered menu items that cut down on the number of choices that customers had to make.

That same year, the "Eat Fresh" campaign began, and in 2023, Subway started adding freshly sliced meat to the menu. However, this was also that overshadowed these changes, including a March 2024 incident in which CEO John Chidsey told franchisees to remodel their locations or leave the Subway fold. Ultimately, the changes did not qualify Subway as fast casual.

Until it makes more changes, Subway is undoubtedly a fast food chain. Recommended.