By Ben Coley
Domino’s CEO Russell Weiner is aware of the current narrative that the QSR pizza category is “challenged and declining.”
The message has been pushed by some of the largest media outlets in the country. In late December, the New York Times posted “People Are Ordering Smaller Pizzas and Fewer Toppings. What Does That Tell Us?” A few weeks later, the Wall Street Journal published “America is Falling Out of Love With Pizza.”
The stories aren’t coming out of thin air. Public chains Papa Johns and Pizza Hut have experienced a string of negative financial results, and both have contemplated finding a buyer. Mid-sized fast casuals like Pieology (declared bankruptcy), Blaze Pizza (switched CEOs), and MOD Pizza (avoided bankruptcy by selling to new ownership) have each struggled over recent years.
But Weiner still isn’t a fan of the angle.
“That is just not true,” he said to investors, in reference to pizza sales seeing a dip.
He countered by noting that the category has generally grown by 1 to 2 percent per year since 2019, including last year.
“I am confident QSR pizza will continue to grow at this historical rate in 2026 and beyond,” the CEO said. “The pizza category is certainly mature, but do not let the challenges that some of our higher profile competitors drive a false narrative. Our competitors’ results are not a reflection of the category’s health or its future potential.”
Domino’s isn’t feeling the same heat. Same-store sales lifted 3.7 percent in Q4 and 3 percent in fiscal 2025, helping the chain gain its 11th consecutive year of market share growth.
Transactions in Q4 were positive as well, thanks to the Best Deal Ever promotion, the launch of a new specialty pizza, and third-party aggregators DoorDash and Uber Eats. Average ticket increased, driven by the higher-priced stuffed crust pizza, though gains were partially offset by a shift in menu mix as carryout—typically lower ticket than delivery—made up an increasing share of sales. Pricing was flat in the quarter.
Company-operated profits grew more than 8 percent, and franchise profitability per store increased to $166,000, up $4,000 year-over-year.
Carryout same-store sales increased 6.5 percent while delivery lifted 1.6 percent in the fourth quarter.
“I’ve been asked whether or not QSR brands have pricing power anymore, given the value consumers are seeking. As you can see from our 2025 results and our franchisees’ increased profits, Domino’s has something even more important than pricing power,” Weiner said. “We have profit power. We can offer value to consumers and still create profit gains for our franchisees.”
The brand is also dominating in terms of store expansion. Domino’s opened 179 U.S. restaurants last year and closed only seven, ending with 7,186 domestic locations. Additionally, compared to all public QSR brands of more than 3,000 restaurants from 2019 to Q3 2025, the chain is No. 1 in net growth—and that goes for pizza and non-pizza concepts. Domino’s opened more than 1,200 net new U.S. outlets during this period, while half of the other top 10 public QSR brands posted negative net unit growth.
Going forward, Wiener said Domino’s will be “as aggressive as we can” with unit growth.
“Domino’s has dominated the QSR pizza category for over a decade, and we expect our momentum will continue,” Weiner said. “So to be clear, our growth prospects have never been greater, because our brand has never been stronger.”
Domino’s still seeks more. The chain currently accounts for one in every four pizza orders, but Weiner noted that QSR leaders in other cuisine segments own 40 to 50 percent.
The chain earned $10 billion in U.S. retail sales in 2025, and Domino’s believes it can double that total over time. It also foresees a path to over 8,500 domestic restaurants, although that number could climb in the future.
“When I started, it was 6,000, it was 7,000 and it’s 8,500. And it’s not because we’re bad at forecasting,” Weiner said. “One of the things that happens, I talked about store growth before, and you’re seeing this, when we grow and we grow closer to where a competitor is, a lot of times, we closed that store. And so if you think about competitive closures, that actually is more opportunities for more stores. And so that’s something we’re going to continue to lean in on.”
In 2026, Domino’s expects U.S. same-store sales to increase by 3 percent—inclusive of the weather impact in January—and to open a net of 175-plus domestic restaurants. This guidance is based on the continued strength of its Hungry for MORE strategy that targets menu innovation, operational efficiency, value, and enhanced franchisee profitability.
Weiner added that Domino’s isn’t a “one-and-done company” and that it’s “launched things that got legs far beyond the year in which they’re in launch.”
For instance, the Best Deal Ever and Parmesan Stuffed Crust aren’t going anywhere, and these sales drivers will be layered with two new pieces of menu innovation each year. There’s also third-party delivery, an area in which Domino’s isn’t “in our fair share yet,” Weiner said. Another factor is the brand refresh launched in late 2025—the first in over a dozen years—and a new website that runs more effectively than the previous version. The mobile app will get an update later this year as well.
The improvements are welcome news for Domino’s 37.3 million active rewards members, a number that’s jumped almost 20 percent since the brand relaunched the loyalty program in 2023.
Using these tools, Domino’s foresees its gap with pizza peers to become even wider in the years ahead.
“Part of the reason I think you’re seeing the impact on the competitors that you are is because now people have a choice in their neighborhood and Domino’s is there. And when Domino’s is there, they pick Domino’s,” Weiner said.
Internationally, Domino’s same-store sales increased 0.7 percent in Q4 and 1.9 percent in 2025—marking the segment’s 32nd straight year of growth. The brand finished last year with 14,956 international outlets, up 296 stores year-over-year. In 2026, net growth is expected to reach 800 restaurants.
Ben Coley is QSR’s editor. This article originally appeared on PMQ’s sister site, QSR.com.
