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SPENDSMART

H1 2022 Category Insights:

Meals

Emburse’s SpendSmart analyzes our users’ business expense data.
It provides valuable insights into key spending trends for financial professionals and suppliers to the T&E market.

Our H1 snapshot focuses on the significant shifts in the meals category since 2019. While some chains maintained visitor levels, others charted significant changes–compared to their pre-COVID numbers.

The battle for
fast food supremacy

From burgers to pizza, the war for the most-expensed meal chains resulted in obvious winners in the major categories.

Most-expensed meals by type

C OFFEE 76 % 24 %
BU R GERS 67 % 17 % 16 %
MEXICAN 64 % 36 %
CHICKEN 81 % 11 % 8 %
PIZZ A 55 % 45 %

How the pandemic
took a bite out of meals

As business travel slowed, fewer employees dined on the company dime. Which of the ten most-expensed chains took the biggest hit compared to pre-COVID levels?

Change in transaction volume

+ 14 %
+ 10 %
+ 6 %
+ 1 %
- 3 %
- 6 %
- 6 %
- 9 %
- 18 %
- 21 %
- 23 %
- % 27
- 29 %

The siren makes
another big splash

In 2021, Starbucks was the most-expensed food choice among the top vendors. It accounted for 16.6% of meal transactions, and an average expense of $28.23*.

*Average cost may or may not include additional fees, gratuities, and service charges.

$28.23AVERAGE STARBUCKSCOST PER MEAL STARBUCKS MCDONALD’S CHICK-FIL-A DUNKIN’ PANERA BREAD CHIPOTLE MEXICAN GRILL WENDY’S BURGER KING TACO BELL DOMINO’S PIZZA PIZZA HUT KENTUCKY FRIED CHICKEN POPEYE’S CHICKEN ALL OTHER VENDORS 0.8% 1.0% 1.2% 1.9% 2.1% 2.1% 1.8% 16.6% 8.7% 7.5% 5.4% 4.6% 3.2% 43.2% MOST-EXPENSED FOOD VENDORS BY %

Meal delivery
rockets upwards

All meal delivery vendors grew significantly, but DoorDash became the undisputed leader.

Growth

294
196
55
47

Are you gonna
finish that?

As meal delivery took off, the average expensed amount per order did, too. Seamless, most notably, almost tripled its average since 2019.

Average order expense

2022 2019
2019 2022

$46.21

$66.51

$59.59

$161.89

$28.23

$53.02

$65.92

$108.09

Earning market shares
one door at a time

In terms of market share, the growth was starker. Among the top four providers, DoorDash grew its market share the most.

Change in market share

46% 18% 29% 2019 7% 66% 17% 10% 2021 8%
DOOR DASH SEAMLESS UBER EATS GRUBHUB
Front door

About the data

Emburse’s SpendSmart data provides an analysis of the current spend trends of business travelers in the United States with all data compiled from actual expense data from submitted expense reports.

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