Key stat: Half (50%) of US adults said they didn't notice any offers during their most recent restaurant purchase, compared with 46% in retail and 32% in groceries, according to a March 2026 PYMNTS Intelligence study conducted by FIS.

Beyond the chart:

• The awareness gap isn't that diners don't care about deals, it's a channel problem. Some 33% of US restaurant diners discover promotions via email or newsletters and 32% via social media, according to a YouGov survey.
• Meanwhile, when loyalty does cut through, it moves real volume. QSR loyalty transactions rose nearly 30% YoY in 2025 while anonymous transactions fell 6.7%, according to PAR Technology's 2026 QSR Operational Index report.

Use this chart: Drop this in your loyalty review when teams pitch bigger promos to drive visits. The real problem is visibility. Use this to push for clearer in-app placement, receipt callouts, and channel testing before approving another round of margin-eating discounts.

Related EMARKETER reports:

• Retail Mobile App Shopping 2026 (EMARKETER subscription required)
• Infopack: Customer Experience 2026 (EMARKETER subscription required)

Methodology: Data is from the April 2026 PYMNTS Intelligence report titled "Embedded Offers: The Billion-Dollar Opportunity Inside Recent Consumer Spending." A U.S. Census-balanced survey of 2,754 U.S. adult consumers was conducted from February 12–March 4, 2026. The sample was balanced to match the U.S. adult population by age, gender, education and income.

We prepared this article with the assistance of generative AI tools and stand behind its accuracy, quality, and originality.