Sodium by restaurant chain
The median meal item on a restaurant-chain menu in the United States had 1,070 mg of sodium in January 2018, and 13.5% of the 7,414 meal items with a published figure had 2,300 mg or more, the US Daily Value for a whole day.
1,070mg
Median meal item
660–1,740mg
Middle half of meal items
13.5%
Meal items with 2,300 mg or more
7,414
Meal items
Median meal sodium at 89 chains
| # | Chain | Meal items | Median (mg) | Middle half (mg) | 2,300 mg or more |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | P.F. Chang's | 109 | 2,530 | 1,500–3,430 | 64 (58.7%) |
| 2 | Zaxby's | 56 | 2,510 | 1,503–5,160 | 36 (64.3%) |
| 3 | Hooters | 41 | 2,180 | 1,490–2,940 | 19 (46.3%) |
| 4 | O'Charley's | 98 | 2,065 | 1,495–2,960 | 43 (43.9%) |
| 5 | Famous Dave's | 52 | 2,050 | 1,185–3,638 | 24 (46.2%) |
| 6 | Ruby Tuesday | 40 | 1,966 | 1,271–2,765 | 15 (37.5%) |
| 7 | Firehouse Subs | 73 | 1,900 | 1,160–2,670 | 22 (30.1%) |
| 8 | Sbarro | 116 | 1,890 | 1,388–7,258 | 45 (38.8%) |
| 9 | TGI Fridays | 84 | 1,855 | 1,160–2,485 | 27 (32.1%) |
| 10 | Jersey Mike's | 566 | 1,813 | 1,323–2,500 | 181 (32%) |
| 11 | Perkins | 72 | 1,670 | 968–2,370 | 19 (26.4%) |
| 12 | Applebee's | 69 | 1,640 | 1,150–2,310 | 19 (27.5%) |
| 13 | Dickey's Barbecue Pit | 39 | 1,614 | 1,125–2,572 | 11 (28.2%) |
| 14 | Bob Evans | 220 | 1,600 | 998–2,280 | 53 (24.1%) |
| 15 | Jimmy John's | 19 | 1,585 | 1,365–1,955 | 2 (10.5%) |
| 16 | Yard House | 134 | 1,495 | 943–2,140 | 27 (20.1%) |
| 17 | Arby's | 52 | 1,485 | 1,000–1,878 | 6 (11.5%) |
| 18 | Red Robin | 37 | 1,480 | 780–2,260 | 9 (24.3%) |
| 19 | BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse | 210 | 1,449 | 775–2,200 | 45 (21.4%) |
| 20 | Carrabba's Italian Grill | 131 | 1,420 | 800–2,095 | 26 (19.8%) |
| 21 | Whataburger | 107 | 1,420 | 1,075–1,775 | 7 (6.5%) |
| 22 | Chili's | 45 | 1,410 | 940–2,600 | 14 (31.1%) |
| 23 | Outback Steakhouse | 69 | 1,380 | 990–1,982 | 12 (17.4%) |
| 24 | Bojangles | 25 | 1,377 | 940–1,596 | 4 (16%) |
| 25 | Hardee's | 78 | 1,365 | 1,115–1,768 | 9 (11.5%) |
| 26 | Friendly's | 165 | 1,360 | 910–2,010 | 26 (15.8%) |
| 27 | Sonic | 45 | 1,360 | 1,080–1,740 | 2 (4.4%) |
| 28 | Quiznos | 140 | 1,345 | 1,010–2,053 | 28 (20%) |
| 29 | Carl's Jr. | 71 | 1,320 | 970–1,640 | 2 (2.8%) |
| 30 | Dairy Queen | 73 | 1,320 | 1,010–1,700 | 7 (9.6%) |
| 31 | Sheetz | 57 | 1,320 | 810–1,730 | 4 (7%) |
| 32 | Olive Garden | 65 | 1,290 | 790–1,990 | 8 (12.3%) |
| 33 | Subway | 61 | 1,290 | 940–1,630 | 0 (0%) |
| 34 | Joe's Crab Shack | 30 | 1,280 | 608–2,803 | 11 (36.7%) |
| 35 | On The Border | 47 | 1,280 | 610–2,145 | 7 (14.9%) |
| 36 | Steak 'n Shake | 43 | 1,270 | 890–1,890 | 8 (18.6%) |
| 37 | Bonefish Grill | 48 | 1,235 | 648–1,910 | 8 (16.7%) |
| 38 | Denny's | 41 | 1,230 | 510–2,030 | 7 (17.1%) |
| 39 | Einstein Bros. Bagels | 79 | 1,220 | 965–1,470 | 1 (1.3%) |
| 40 | Jason's Deli | 81 | 1,220 | 920–1,650 | 5 (6.2%) |
| 41 | Red Lobster | 120 | 1,210 | 500–1,733 | 15 (12.5%) |
| 42 | El Pollo Loco | 61 | 1,190 | 710–2,110 | 10 (16.4%) |
| 43 | Romano's Macaroni Grill | 75 | 1,190 | 775–1,753 | 7 (9.3%) |
| 44 | Wingstop | 15 | 1,179 | 1,001–1,348 | 0 (0%) |
| 45 | Checkers & Rally's | 18 | 1,160 | 973–1,490 | 0 (0%) |
| 46 | McDonald's | 65 | 1,160 | 940–1,480 | 1 (1.5%) |
| 47 | Popeyes | 24 | 1,148 | 737–1,670 | 1 (4.2%) |
| 48 | Jack in the Box | 64 | 1,145 | 830–1,550 | 5 (7.8%) |
| 49 | LongHorn Steakhouse | 43 | 1,120 | 805–1,655 | 4 (9.3%) |
| 50 | Noodles & Company | 57 | 1,110 | 630–1,570 | 4 (7%) |
| 51 | Culver's | 62 | 1,098 | 861–1,280 | 0 (0%) |
| 52 | Casey's | 148 | 1,080 | 707–1,544 | 17 (11.5%) |
| 53 | McAlister's Deli | 103 | 1,050 | 740–1,385 | 1 (1%) |
| 54 | Burger King | 71 | 1,040 | 740–1,455 | 1 (1.4%) |
| 55 | IHOP | 71 | 1,030 | 700–1,390 | 8 (11.3%) |
| 56 | California Pizza Kitchen | 105 | 1,010 | 500–1,600 | 3 (2.9%) |
| 57 | Tim Hortons | 48 | 985 | 783–1,130 | 1 (2.1%) |
| 58 | Wawa | 140 | 975 | 700–1,535 | 13 (9.3%) |
| 59 | Chick-fil-A | 23 | 970 | 320–1,435 | 0 (0%) |
| 60 | Frisch's Big Boy | 133 | 970 | 530–1,480 | 15 (11.3%) |
| 61 | Auntie Anne's | 19 | 950 | 720–1,215 | 0 (0%) |
| 62 | Wendy's | 42 | 935 | 740–1,218 | 0 (0%) |
| 63 | Church's Chicken | 28 | 915 | 670–1,245 | 1 (3.6%) |
| 64 | Del Taco | 76 | 910 | 613–1,493 | 5 (6.6%) |
| 65 | KFC | 33 | 910 | 710–1,260 | 2 (6.1%) |
| 66 | Boston Market | 38 | 900 | 513–1,208 | 1 (2.6%) |
| 67 | Taco Bell | 99 | 900 | 525–1,230 | 0 (0%) |
| 68 | Panera Bread | 74 | 895 | 583–1,318 | 3 (4.1%) |
| 69 | Dunkin' | 52 | 865 | 638–1,123 | 0 (0%) |
| 70 | Starbucks | 47 | 850 | 570–945 | 0 (0%) |
| 71 | The Capital Grille | 48 | 815 | 508–1,263 | 3 (6.3%) |
| 72 | Domino's | 64 | 810 | 610–1,038 | 0 (0%) |
| 73 | Krystal | 35 | 780 | 570–1,270 | 6 (17.1%) |
| 74 | Qdoba | 13 | 780 | 600–1,640 | 2 (15.4%) |
| 75 | Papa Murphy's | 102 | 720 | 533–938 | 0 (0%) |
| 76 | Potbelly | 45 | 720 | 510–980 | 0 (0%) |
| 77 | Marco's Pizza | 63 | 710 | 545–1,490 | 0 (0%) |
| 78 | Papa Johns | 480 | 670 | 550–810 | 4 (0.8%) |
| 79 | Round Table Pizza | 314 | 670 | 550–820 | 2 (0.6%) |
| 80 | Long John Silver's | 14 | 665 | 508–818 | 0 (0%) |
| 81 | Little Caesars | 25 | 630 | 540–710 | 0 (0%) |
| 82 | White Castle | 57 | 570 | 460–690 | 0 (0%) |
| 83 | Panda Express | 42 | 560 | 410–775 | 0 (0%) |
| 84 | Jamba | 15 | 550 | 128–620 | 0 (0%) |
| 85 | Captain D's | 19 | 480 | 295–570 | 0 (0%) |
| 86 | Pizza Hut | 188 | 470 | 320–630 | 0 (0%) |
| 87 | Golden Corral | 293 | 460 | 280–700 | 0 (0%) |
| 88 | Chuck E. Cheese | 24 | 440 | 330–490 | 0 (0%) |
| 89 | Cicis | 27 | 350 | 250–460 | 0 (0%) |
How the figures are worked out
- Meal items are the burgers, sandwiches, main dishes, pizzas, salads and soups on a menu. Sides, desserts, drinks and toppings are left out.
- 2,300 mg is the Daily Value the US Food and Drug Administration sets for sodium. Items without a published sodium figure are left out.
- Every figure is per serving as the chain lists it. Pizza is usually listed by the slice and some dishes are listed to share, so chains are compared on what they print, not on a common portion.
- The median is the middle item: half the items have more and half have less. The middle half runs from the 25th to the 75th percentile.
- Each size or variant a chain lists is one item. Build-your-own parts and limited-time offers are left out, and so are rows without energy, protein, carbohydrate and fat.
- A chain with fewer than 8 meal items counts in the totals but has no row of its own.
Cite this page
Calori (2026). Sodium by restaurant chain: United States, 2018. https://www.calori.com/restaurants/us/statistics/sodium-by-chain. Data: MenuStat annual data, 2008 to 2018 (NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene).
The figures are MenuStat’s, which are in the public domain (CC0 1.0); they are free to reuse with a link to this page. The item-level figures are a CSV or JSON download.
Figures are the ones each chain published for the United States menu in January 2018, from MenuStat 2018 annual data (NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene). Carbs exclude fibre, which is listed separately. Menus, recipes and portion sizes change, so check the restaurant’s current menu. Calori is not affiliated with these restaurants; names belong to their owners.
