Mobile technology is now part of the restaurant decision, ordering, payment, delivery, and loyalty journey. In 2024 U.S. consumer research, 63% of full-service customers said they would order through a smartphone app if offered, while 70% of limited-service customers said the same. The strongest demand came from younger diners: 85% of millennial full-service customers and 87% of millennial limited-service customers said they would use an app.
This guide brings together recent restaurant mobile marketing statistics from the National Restaurant Association, Toast, and related research. The service-segment bases differ: the National Restaurant Association figures refer to consumers who used the relevant restaurant occasion in the prior six months. Percentages are reported observations, not calculations.
Contents
- Smartphone ordering demand
- Mobile payments and digital wallets
- QR-code menus and ordering
- Delivery and third-party ordering
- Mobile loyalty and restaurant reach
- Operator investment in mobile technology
- How technology affects restaurant choice
Smartphone ordering demand
The Restaurant Technology Landscape Report 2024 found substantial interest in app-based ordering across both restaurant segments. Among full-service restaurant customers, 63% said they would place an order using a smartphone app if it were offered. The figure rose to 79% for Gen Z customers and 85% for millennials.
Limited-service customers showed even higher overall demand. Seventy percent said they would order through a smartphone app, compared with 82% of Gen Z customers and 87% of millennials. Among baby-boomer limited-service customers, the figure was 47%.
These figures describe stated willingness, not completed orders or a forecast of sales. They nevertheless show why a restaurant marketing plan can treat the mobile ordering experience as part of the offer itself. A restaurant may be promoting a menu, a convenient ordering path, or both at the same time.
| Restaurant customer group | Would order with a smartphone app |
|---|---|
| Full-service, all customers | 63% |
| Full-service, Gen Z | 79% |
| Full-service, millennials | 85% |
| Limited-service, all customers | 70% |
| Limited-service, Gen Z | 82% |
| Limited-service, millennials | 87% |
| Limited-service, baby boomers | 47% |
The segment and generation differences are useful for audience planning. App messaging aimed at younger customers addresses a higher stated level of interest, while a broad restaurant audience still includes customers who may prefer other ordering routes.
Mobile payments and digital wallets
Payment flexibility is another major mobile marketing touchpoint. In the same 2024 National Restaurant Association research, 62% of full-service customers said they would pay the check using contactless or mobile payment options. The result was 82% among millennial full-service customers and 37% among baby-boomer full-service customers.
Digital wallets formed a large part of that interest. Fifty-seven percent of full-service customers said they would pay with a digital wallet such as Apple Pay, Google Wallet, PayPal, or Venmo. The result reached 80% for millennials and was 25% for baby boomers.
Limited-service customers also reported strong interest. Sixty-eight percent said they would use contactless or mobile payment options, including 85% of millennials. Sixty-one percent said they would pay with a digital wallet, rising to 83% among millennials. In addition, 65% of limited-service customers said they would pay the check using a smartphone app, compared with 86% of millennials.
For restaurant marketers, payment is not only an operational feature. It can affect whether a mobile promotion leads smoothly to a completed purchase. The data measures what customers said they would do in 2024; it does not establish adoption rates for every wallet or payment provider.
QR-code menus and ordering
QR codes connected physical restaurant visits with smartphone activity. The Restaurant Technology Landscape Report 2024 reported that 59% of full-service customers would access a menu on a smartphone using a QR code. Among millennial full-service customers, the figure was 78%.
Stated willingness was lower for placing an order through a QR code in the full-service segment: 48% of full-service customers said they would order on a smartphone using one. This distinction matters because menu access and transaction completion are separate steps.
In limited-service restaurants, 57% of customers said they would access a menu on a smartphone using a QR code. Forty-eight percent said they would pay the check on a smartphone using a QR code, while 69% of millennial limited-service customers said they would do so. Seventy-two percent of millennial limited-service customers said they would place an order on a smartphone using a QR code.
The figures support measuring QR-code campaigns beyond scans. A restaurant can distinguish menu access, ordering, and payment behavior because the research itself reports those activities separately. The reported percentages are customer survey observations from 2024, not conversion rates from a single QR campaign.
Delivery and third-party ordering
Restaurant delivery customers showed broad acceptance of digital ordering routes. According to the Restaurant Technology Landscape Report 2024, 84% said they would order delivery using the restaurant’s website, and 80% said they would use a smartphone app. Among millennial delivery customers, smartphone-app interest reached 88%; among baby-boomer delivery customers, it was 59%.
Third-party platforms remained important in the same research. Seventy-one percent of restaurant delivery customers said they would order through a third-party service such as DoorDash, Grubhub, Uber Eats, or Postmates. This is a stated preference measure and does not compare the profitability of direct and third-party orders.
Payment expectations were also high: 79% of delivery customers said they would use contactless or mobile payment options, and 73% said they would pay using a digital wallet. Forty-five percent said they would order delivery using a voice-enabled platform such as Alexa, Google Home, or Siri.
When asked how technology could most improve delivery, 33% said it would make ordering easier and faster. Another 24% said the biggest improvement would be a more accurate delivery time. These responses point to two separate marketing promises: reducing friction during ordering and improving confidence after the order is placed.
Mobile loyalty and restaurant reach
Restaurant loyalty programs can turn mobile engagement into a repeat-visit channel. The National Restaurant Association’s “Get with the program: Building loyalty grows business” reported that 52% of consumers participated in loyalty programs at restaurants, coffee shops, snack places, or delis that offered them in 2024.
Among current restaurant loyalty-program users, the average participant belonged to 3.6 programs. Ninety-six percent of loyalty and reward program customers said these programs were a good way to get more value for their money. Among consumers not currently enrolled, 81% said they would participate if a favorite restaurant offered a program.
Mobile access was a meaningful design preference. Sixty percent of current restaurant loyalty-program users preferred accessing the program through a smartphone app rather than a physical card. Among prospective restaurant loyalty-program members, 33% preferred using a smartphone app.
Operator plans also indicated continued interest. In the 2024 plan figures reported by the National Restaurant Association, 61% of limited-service operators planned to invest more in loyalty programs and rewards systems, compared with 52% of full-service operators. These are plans, not completed investment results.
The numbers suggest that a loyalty app has to communicate value clearly. A restaurant can use mobile loyalty to make an existing offer easier to access, while remembering that customers may already belong to multiple programs.
Operator investment in mobile technology
Restaurant operators reported planned technology adoption across several mobile categories. Toast’s Restaurant Operator Insights Report described a 2023 survey snapshot in which 46% of surveyed operators planned to adopt handheld devices in the next year. Forty-five percent planned to adopt mobile payments, and 45% planned to adopt mobile ordering.
The National Restaurant Association’s 2024 report recorded additional plans. Forty percent of limited-service operators planned to invest in smartphone-app development in 2024, compared with 27% of full-service operators. Forty-two percent of limited-service operators planned to invest in contactless or mobile-pay technology.
Operators also connected technology with competition. Seventy-six percent said technology gave their operation a competitive edge, while 64% considered their use of technology mainstream compared with peers. Those figures reflect operator views in 2024, not an independent performance test.
Taken together, the operator data shows investment across devices, payment, ordering, app development, and loyalty. The exact priority can vary by service segment, so a restaurant’s mobile marketing plan should match its customer behavior and operating model.
How technology affects restaurant choice
Mobile technology can influence the restaurant selected, not merely the order placed. The State of the Restaurant Industry 2025 reported 2024 consumer research in its 2025 publication. Forty-two percent of full-service restaurant customers said technology options for ordering and paying were important when choosing a sit-down restaurant. The figure was 71% among Gen Z full-service customers.
For limited-service restaurants, 53% of customers said technology options for ordering and paying factored into their restaurant choice. The result reached 68% among Gen Z customers and 61% among millennials.
Delivery customers placed even more weight on these options. Seventy-five percent said technology options for ordering and paying were important when choosing delivery. The figure was 82% among Gen Z delivery customers and 65% among baby-boomer delivery customers.
These results come from 2024 consumer research reported in the 2025 publication. They should not be read as a forecast of future restaurant traffic. They do show that a mobile ordering, payment, loyalty, or delivery experience can be part of how customers evaluate a restaurant before they buy.