Jollibee Named World's Fifth Strongest Restaurant Brand

Filipino fast food titan Jollibee Foods Corp. is among the world's strongest restaurant brands in terms of loyalty, trust, and pricing power this year, according to a study by Brand Finance.

It also stands on the shoulders of global giants such as Chinese hot pot chain Haidilao, which took the crown for the world's strongest restaurant brand with a Brand Strength Index score of 89.5 over 100.

Rounding out the top three for this metric are British bakery chain Greggs and the Golden Arches of McDonald's, respectively. Jollibee got a score of 87.9 over 100 firmly at fifth, outperforming American brands like Subway and Taco Bell.

Though, across the board, leading brands are seeing their brand strength decline amid consumer skepticism and cost pressures.

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A resutarant player's strength is measured by how much consumers trust, stay loyal, and value the pricing power of the establishment. This means if a brand gets a high score in this metric, it translates to loyal consumers believing in the brand regardless of size or how much it is worth.

Brand Finance's report, which you can read here, also highlighted the most valuable restaurant brands when looking at financials.

Think of the cold, hard cash and the firepower a food brand carries. A high score here is calculated based on revenue, profitability, market position, and future earnings potential.

Jollibee made it to the top 25 at 18th place on a list of contenders that saw

McDonald's reclaiming the top spot this year thanks to its massive global footprint and steady franchise income. This comes even after concerns have been raised regarding the affordability of maintaining the brand's presence in some markets.

Brand Finance's 2026 Restaurant Brand Value and Strength Rankings

The home of the world-famous Jollibee Chickenjoy is punching well above its weight globally thanks to its leaning on cultural connections and is showing room to break through even further in the coming years.

"The composition of the top 10 remains largely unchanged from 2025, with movement within the ranking driven more by differences in brand value growth rates than by any fundamental shift in competitive position," Brand Finance said in the report.

"Small changes in rank reflect how effectively individual brands have navigated pricing pressure, market-specific demand, and international expansion, while scale, franchising strength, and geographic diversification continue to act as the key stabilizing forces for leading restaurant brands."

These two distinct metrics and understanding the difference is a true testament to not everything coming down to just money.

You can buy market share and expand locations to your heart's content, but buying loyalty and trust is an intangible that you foster through culture and reputation.

McDonald's saw its brand value inch up by about 5 percent from a year earlier to a value of about $42.6 billion, driven by that aforementioned footprint.

Second-placer Starbucks had its brand value fall by about 4 percent to $37 billion, with stiff competition in strategic markets including China limiting the impact of improving store performance. Though people are still expected to be willing to pay up for their coffee, despite a wavering willingness to buy.

KFC recently has had its share of challenges in Europe, but still came in third at a value of about $16.5 billion from deep penetration in growth markets like China, where fried chicken is a fixture. This was an 8 percent rise for KFC thanks to its strong expansion and the enlarged global footprint in key markets.

Subway made it to fourth with a rise in its brand value by 18 percent at $9.5 billion, driven by rising digital sales and overseas expansion despite a shrinking US store base.

Rounding off the top five is Chick-fil-A that saw a jump in its brand value by 44 percent to $8.1 billion, driven by record revenues, expansion, and strong customer loyalty. The chicken joint saw one of the strongest brand value gains among those measured.

So, how does Jollibee stack up as it eked out a placement in the top 25 at 18th but saw major love in the brand strength metric at 5th?

Well, a brand can be as valuable and as enormous as it wants but can't appear particularly strong if it isn't resonating with the global consumer base.

Jollibee's triple-A rating and its fifth-strongest-globally achievement shows that the Philippine-bred business isn't just a restaurant, but a cultural institution at large.

Every Filipino and maybe some other Southeast Asian neighbor recognizes Jollibee as one of the most beloved icons of the name-brand food businesses in the region. You don't have to look too far with countless foreign YouTubers filming themselves supposedly trying Jollibee for the first time (nevermind the questionable Filipino-baiting tactics to rack up millions of views).

Filipinos actively recommend Jollibee whenever someone visits the Philippines, whether it may be straight from the motherland or from the growing number of branches globally.

There may be this price fatigue for the same McDonald's Big Mac or Starbucks Caramel Macchiato, which is why we may be seeing these drops in brand value and financials that don't necessarily translate to brand strength.

Upstarts like Luckin Coffee and Mixue are providing cheaper alternatives that are either on par or subjectively good enough to steer customers away from the conventional global food titans.

Jollibee isn't trying to outdo a player like McDonald's at sheer size and scale, because that would be a herculean task to the highest degree. The Filipino brand is playing off its strengths of being unapologetically nostalgic charm and its unique way of doing things, like its sweet spaghetti or that extra crunchy Chickenjoy.

In a separate Brand Finance study on sustainability, Jollibee led Philippine brands with a $174 million sustainability perceptions value. This is based on brand value linked to stakeholder perceptions of environmental, social, and governance performance.

Jollibee Foods Corp. at the start of the year said it plans on spinning off its international business and listing it on a US stock exchange by late 2027 to build on its global expansion.

READ MORE:

Before Domination: The History of Jollibee in the Philippines