Practical, popular, and — yes — still surprisingly strategic for brands. This holiday season, fast-food gift cards are doing double duty: they’re a low-friction present for shoppers and a high-ROI customer-acquisition tool for restaurants. Below I’ll drill into who likes them, who buys them, why they’re rarely regifted, the top fast-food gift-card brands to consider, current marketing/loyalty data that explains their value — and four quick Grocerant Guru® takeaways.
Why fast-food gift cards matter right now.
Gift
cards remain one of the fastest-growing segments in retail gifting: demand is
climbing, consumers are turning to practical gifts amid economic worry, and
restaurants treat cards as both immediate revenue and a long-term customer
funnel. Recent industry trackers show gift cards and food are among the
fastest-growing holiday gift categories.
Who likes to receive fast-food gift cards?
1. Busy
parents and caretakers — a guaranteed quick meal when time
is scarce.
2. College
students and young adults — low cost, high convenience and
instant gratification.
3. Office
coworkers and casual acquaintances — they’re neutral, useful, and simple
to wrap or email.
4. Value
shoppers — recipients who appreciate
stretching a small amount into a meal (and often add a little extra spend).
Data
shows food & beverage gift options and gift cards are growing in popularity
among a broad cross-section of consumers, which helps explain why restaurants
and QSRs lean into card promotions each holiday season.
Who buys fast-food gift cards — and why?
·
Practical gifters
who want a safe, no-fuss present that will be used.
·
Budget-conscious shoppers
who can control spend while giving something desirable.
·
Corporate buyers
who use cards for employee rewards or incentives (bulk orders).
·
Last-minute gifters
who appreciate instant e-cards and same-day delivery options.
Surveys
and industry reports show a significant chunk of holiday shoppers prefer
physical and digital gift cards for convenience and budget control; corporate
and bulk purchasing is also a steady demand driver.
Why fast-food gift cards are less likely to be
regifted
Three
behavioral reasons make fast-food cards stick with recipients rather than
circulate as regifts:
1. Immediate,
consumable value. A meal is a short-term, personally
useful item — you can’t “pass on” the meal someone already enjoyed.
2. Low
activation friction + loyalty perks. Many brands (Starbucks notably) let
you register the card in a rewards account so the value becomes tied to the
recipient’s profile and points — which makes resale or regifting unattractive.
3. High
redemption rate for small amounts. Fast-food cards unlock quick,
affordable purchases; recipients often top up or spend more during redemption,
increasing personal utility and reducing incentive to pass it on. Research and
payments-platform analyses show recipients often spend more than the card value
and become repeat visitors.
(Contrast
that with a niche luxury voucher that someone might not use — those are more
often regifted or left unused.)
Bankrate
and gift-card studies also show a healthy proportion of Americans hold at least
one gift card, but food cards tend to have higher immediate redemption because
the product (a meal) is low-barrier.
Top 4 fast-food brands that sell gift cards (recommended
picks)
These
brands are perennially available as gift-card options across retailers, big
e-commerce platforms and third-party aggregators — and they pair brand
recognition with broad appeal:
1. McDonald’s
— ubiquitous, cross-generational appeal; often included in “top gift card”
roundups.
2. Starbucks
— more than coffee: gift cards can be tied into the Starbucks Rewards ecosystem
(makes them stickier).
3. Subway
— appeals as a perceived “healthier” fast option and widely available. (
4. Taco
Bell — popular with younger demographics and late-night diners;
regularly listed among top fast-food gift cards.
(Alternates
that often make the top lists: Burger King, Domino’s, Dunkin’, Chipotle — but
the four above offer broad demographic coverage and easy redemption.)
Marketing & business data points: why gift cards are
more than “just” gifts
1. Immediate
cash flow / front-loaded revenue. Gift cards bring in money up front —
great for seasonal cash planning and margins. Industry market reports show gift
cards are a major and growing slice of retail revenue, with US gift-card market
expansions projected into the billions.
2. Customer
acquisition and trial. Data from restaurant platforms shows
64% of guests discovered restaurants via gift cards — cards introduce
non-customers to the brand and often convert them to repeat diners.
3. Incremental
spend on redemption. Studies and payments-industry
writeups report that many recipients spend above the card’s face value
when redeeming — producing immediate upside on average check size. One payments
analysis put the incremental spend at tens of dollars on average.
4. Loyalty
program integration multiplies lifetime value.
When gift cards are registered to loyalty accounts (Starbucks is the clearest
example), every dollar loaded can translate into points/tiers that increase
visit frequency and share of wallet. That registration also reduces the
likelihood of regifting and increases tracking and attribution.
5. Omnichannel
& digital wallet adoption. Digital gift cards and wallet
integration are rising — easier to deliver, harder to lose, and simpler for
brands to incentivize follow-up offers (e.g., reload bonuses). TSG and payments
surveys show e-gift buying has grown year-over-year.
Four Grocerant Guru® insights
1. Treat
the gift card as the start of a micro-campaign, not a one-off.
Pair holiday card purchases with an immediate post-redemption offer (e.g.,
“Redeem in January and get 15% off next meal”) to convert one gift into a
multi-visit habit. (Supports acquisition → retention economics.)
2. Design
cards for discovery. Mix mainstream brands (McDonald’s,
Starbucks) with a “local grocerant” or fast-casual option on multi-brand cards
to broaden reach and let gifters introduce recipients to new, higher-margin
menu items. Multi-brand choice cards (Toasty, retailer bundles) are a smart
corporate gifting play.
3. Use
loyalty mechanics to lock value. Encourage gifters to register a
Starbucks/McDonald’s card for the recipient (with consent) to capture loyalty
data and make the gift an on-ramp to targeted offers — this reduces regifting
and increases LTV.
4. Holiday
cards should come with a plan for Q1 recovery.
Restaurants should target redeemed cards for January promotions (slow month for
many operators). Small Q1 pushes tied to gift-card redemptions keep traffic
steady and convert seasonal spikes into year-round customers.
Think About This
Fast-food
gift cards check all the boxes for modern holiday gifting: low friction, broad
appeal, instant utility for recipients, and measurable business benefits for
brands (upfront cash, discovery, incremental spend, and loyalty). For shoppers:
they’re practical, easy, and seldom sit in a drawer. For operators: they’re a
cost-effective marketing channel that converts one-time givers into repeat
customers — if the brand treats the card as the start of a customer
relationship, not the end of a transaction.
Let’s Build a Partnership for Growth
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for the right partner to drive sales and amplify your marketing
impact? Success leaves clues—and we may have the exact insight you
need to propel your business forward.
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innovative food marketing and business development strategies with Foodservice
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