46% Of Restaurants In This State Are Fast Food Chains — Can You Guess Which?

Everyone loves an unhealthy snack now and then. There's absolutely no shame in that. In fact, according to 2026 data shared by the World Population Review, people in the U.S. enjoy fast food up to three times a week. That comes as no surprise, considering fast food is often loaded with high levels of sugar, salt, and fat. These components trigger the brain's reward system and activate our pleasure centers, which is what makes fast food so hard to resist.

But, if there's one particular place that stands out for its fast food obsession, it's undoubtedly Maryland — the state with the highest percentage of fast food chains. Despite being one of the tiniest U.S. states (ninth smallest by land area), Maryland takes the crown as the country's fast food capital.

Maryland may not be home to many international fast food chains worth trying, but what makes it truly unique isn't the total number of restaurants. As a matter of fact, the state has fewer restaurants per 100,000 residents (about 187) than the nation's average of roughly 211. It's rather how many of them are fast food chains. According to a study carried out by Colorado's Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts, nearly 47% of all its restaurants are fast food spots. The national average is almost 36%.

Based on the figures, if you find yourself in Maryland and suddenly crave a burger (perhaps an Abbey Burger, the hands down best burger in the state), chances are you'd likely find one at roughly every second food place you see. With that in mind, even though Maryland tops the fast food list, it's not as if other states are too far behind. Nevada, Illinois, New York, and Hawaii claim the remaining spots in the top five.

Nevada, for instance, ranked first at spending habits, with its residents allocating approximately 22% of their total food budget to fast food. Hawaii followed closely behind; however, it led in fast food restaurants per capita (a total of 95 per 100,000 people). This means the Aloha State dethroned West Virginia, which was considered the U.S. state with the most fast food restaurants per capita in 2024, with 49 per 100,000 citizens. Meanwhile, Illinois placed third in the study's overall rankings, but it emerged as the Midwest's leading junk food state. As per the analysis, it also came in fourth for fast food spendings. Simply put, one of every $5 spent on food in the state goes to fast food meals. At the same time, Idaho landed at the bottom of the list. It finished last in two (out of three) categories and second to last in the final category, though which categories weren't specified.