Subway Closes 729 More U.S. Restaurants as Decade-Long Retreat Continues

Subway closed a net 729 U.S. restaurants in 2025, ending the year with 18,773 domestic locations, according to industry data published this week.

The sandwich chain, long cast as a McDonald’s rival by store count, has now posted ten straight years of U.S. declines, with all of its domestic units franchised. The chain’s U.S. footprint peaked at more than 27,000 stores in 2015.

The shrinkage is part of a much longer reset.

Since 2016, Subway has closed a net 8,345 U.S. restaurants, a drop large enough to match the footprint of some major restaurant chains on its own.

Even after the cutbacks, Subway still holds the top spot for U.S. store count, ahead of Starbucks and McDonald’s, while the company says it operates nearly 37,000 restaurants worldwide and is still building through master franchise deals abroad.

Subway’s leadership is presenting that contraction as a tradeoff, not a retreat.

When the company named Jonathan Fitzpatrick chief executive officer last July, he said:

“I'm honored to lead this iconic brand that has been serving guests around the world for 60 years,” adding that he was focused on driving “increased sales and franchisee profitability” and growing the brand around the world.

A March master franchise deal in Taiwan carried the same theme, with Subway saying the brand has a “recognized and trusted” position in the market and that its partner’s approach positions the company for “continued expansion and long-term success.”

However, McDonald's rival closed 729 more restaurants after 79 years in competition, and it shows a clear sign that McDonald's is winning at business.