What is a quick-service restaurant (QSR)? Official definitions

A quick-service restaurant (QSR) is one where guests order and pay at a counter, kiosk, drive-thru window or app before they eat. Fast-food chains are the familiar example. Government statistics call these limited-service restaurants: the Census Bureau's industry code 722513 covers places where patrons "generally order or select items and pay before eating", whether they eat there, take the food out or have it delivered.

The trade often uses QSR more narrowly. The National Restaurant Association reports limited-service results in three segments: quickservice, fast casual, and coffee and snack. So when a landlord, lender or software vendor says QSR, ask which meaning they have in mind.

How do the official definitions draw the line?

The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) groups restaurants "based on the type and level of services provided", in the words of the Bureau of Labor Statistics' food services overview. The Census Bureau's industry profiles give each code's definition and its count of employer establishments from County Business Patterns for 2023.

NAICS code and title	What the Census Bureau's definition says	Employer establishments, 2023
722511 Full-service restaurants	Patrons order and are served while seated, and pay after eating	258,626
722513 Limited-service restaurants	Patrons generally order or select items and pay before eating; food may be eaten on site, taken out or delivered; snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars are excluded	270,088
722514 Cafeterias, grill buffets and buffets	Meals served from cafeteria-style or buffet equipment, such as steam tables and display grills	4,622
722515 Snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars	Specialty snacks such as ice cream, frozen yogurt, cookies or popcorn, or nonalcoholic drinks such as coffee, juices or sodas	85,140

The four codes add up to 618,476 employer establishments, the Census Bureau's total for restaurants and other eating places (7225). Limited-service restaurants make up 43.7% of that total, a little ahead of full-service restaurants at 41.8%. Food trucks and carts fall under another code, mobile food services (722330), with 12,487 employer establishments.

Is fast casual a quick-service restaurant?

In the government's codes, it usually is. A fast-casual restaurant where guests order and pay at the counter matches the 722513 definition of paying before eating, so it is counted with fast food. The National Restaurant Association's April 2020 operator survey reported quickservice, fast casual, and coffee and snack results as three separate groups within limited-service.

Coffee shops follow the same split. A café that mainly sells coffee fits 722515, snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars, and the trade groups it as coffee and snack. A café whose main business is sandwiches and salads ordered at the counter is closer to 722513.

How many people work in limited-service restaurants, and what do they earn?

The Bureau of Labor Statistics' Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) counts jobs and pay by industry from employers' unemployment insurance reports. For privately owned businesses in 2025, the annual averages were:

Industry	Establishments	Jobs	Average annual pay per job
Limited-service restaurants	269,945	4,598,072	$24,217
Full-service restaurants	264,800	5,338,653	$31,394
Snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars	87,158	991,316	$25,036

The QCEW program overview says its job counts include part-time workers, and that in most states reported wages include tips and gratuities. So average pay per job is a different figure from an hourly wage. The establishment counts differ from the Census table above, since the two programs cover different years and are compiled differently.

What does the IRS count as fast food?

Tax forms use their own tests. The instructions for Form 8027, the annual tip-income return for large food and beverage establishments, leave out fast-food operations. They define an operation as fast food only if customers order, pick up and pay at a counter or window and then carry the food to another spot, on or off the premises. Staff at fast-food operations are also left out of the form's 10-employee test.

A counter-order restaurant where staff carry food to the table does not match that wording, even though it is limited-service in the Census codes. If you run that model and have tipped staff, ask your accountant whether Form 8027 applies.

Business tax returns also ask for a code. The Form 1120 instructions list principal business activity codes based on NAICS, including 722511, 722513, 722514 and 722515, and tell a company to pick the activity that brings in the largest share of its total receipts. The list has no separate food truck code; it groups special food services, including food service contractors and caterers, under 722300.

Which code fits your restaurant?

Answer these in order and stop at the first yes. This is our reading of the definitions above. Your accountant makes the call on a tax return.

1. Do you sell from a truck or cart? Mobile food services, 722330.
2. Do guests serve themselves from a buffet or steam table? Cafeterias, grill buffets and buffets, 722514.
3. Is your main product ice cream, frozen yogurt, cookies, coffee, juice or another snack or nonalcoholic drink? Snack and nonalcoholic beverage bars, 722515.
4. Do servers take the order at the table, with the check paid after the meal? Full-service, 722511.
5. Do guests order and pay before they eat, at a counter, kiosk, window or app? Limited-service, 722513. This covers fast food, fast casual, pizza takeout and delivery, and counter-order places that run food to tables.

Some restaurants run both models, such as counter service at lunch and table service at dinner. On Form 1120, pick the one that brings in the largest share of receipts.

What technology does a quick-service restaurant need?

A limited-service store takes orders at a counter, a kiosk, a drive-thru or by phone, and each of those needs its own tools. Our QSR technology guide covers the POS, kitchen display, kiosk, drive-thru and ordering tools, with what to buy first by store type. Maple's own products sit in that list: phone ordering into supported POS systems, plus a drive-thru unit and a voice ordering kiosk, both in early access with a small number of restaurants.

Published by Maple. This AI-assisted guide combines Census Bureau industry definitions and 2023 County Business Patterns counts, 2025 BLS QCEW data, IRS instructions and a National Restaurant Association survey report with an original classification checklist. The checklist is our reading of the definitions. It is not tax advice.