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Restaurant construction costs do not have one dependable national price per square foot: recent published figures range from $150 to $725 per square foot for different tenant-improvement scopes and regions, while a 2025 survey reports averages of $500 for QSR and $785 for full-service restaurants. Those numbers answer different questions, so use them as planning references—not as a quote for your project. Your budget depends on location, whether you are building from the ground up or improving an existing space, the condition of the kitchen infrastructure, and what the estimate includes.
The practical first step is to define the project and compare itemized local estimates on the same scope. This guide explains what the published benchmarks include, how to use them without mixing unlike projects, and which costs are easy to leave out.
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It depends on the project basis. A second-generation restaurant with usable kitchen infrastructure is not comparable to a new shell, a ground-up drive-through, or a tenant improvement that needs a new kitchen. Recent sources illustrate the spread: a 2026 Southern California contractor guide gives base-build tenant-improvement ranges of $150–$300 per square foot for QSR and $250–$450 for full-service casual; a 2026 Western U.S. guide gives $325–$525 for QSR and $425–$725 for full-service casual across a broader mix of project types. These are regional contractor estimates, not a single national price list.
A separate 2025 C-Suite survey, with figures attributed to fsSTRATEGY Inc., reports average building costs of $500 per square foot for QSR and $785 for full-service restaurants. The survey says the QSR average rose 17% from 2024 and the full-service average rose 4.1%. An industry survey average and a regional contractor’s scope-based range are different kinds of evidence; neither establishes what a particular site will cost. There is no official national price statistic or single authoritative current U.S. price in the cited material.
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| Source and date | Geography and project basis | Published figure | Important limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 C-Suite Survey, figures attributed to fsSTRATEGY Inc. | Survey average; the cited material does not establish a local project scope | QSR: $500/sf; full-service restaurant: $785/sf | Survey figures, not a bid or government price statistic |
| Frans Construction, 2026 guide | Western U.S.; ground-up shells through vanilla-shell and tenant-improvement build-outs | QSR: $325–$525/sf; full-service casual: $425–$725/sf | Broad project basis; guide estimates site-driven scope can swing cost 10–25% |
| Mosaic Contracting, 2026 guide | Southern California; tenant improvements, base build | QSR: $150–$300/sf; full-service casual: $250–$450/sf | Excludes FF&E and smallwares; guide estimates FF&E may add 15–30% |
Published cost figures checked November 2026. Sources: 2025 C-Suite survey, Frans Construction restaurant build-out guide, and Mosaic Contracting’s Southern California guide.
Do not average these figures together. The survey, Western U.S. guide, and Southern California TI guide differ in geography, date, project type, and scope. Use the closest source only as an initial reference, then verify the assumptions against a local estimate.
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Why do restaurant construction cost estimates vary so much?
Because the label “restaurant build-out” can describe very different work. The shell, kitchen, site, and exclusions matter as much as whether the concept is called fast food or casual dining.
A useful comparison from the same Western U.S. contractor guide gives these distinct ranges: $175–$325 per square foot for a second-generation restaurant conversion; $300–$500 for a full-service tenant improvement with a new kitchen; $550–$900 for a QSR ground-up project with a drive-through; and $275–$475 for an in-line fast-casual location. The labels describe different scopes, so the ranges should not be read as a ranking that applies to every location. A drive-through project, for example, can add site and access work that an in-line tenant improvement does not have.
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Existing infrastructure is a major dividing line. A prior restaurant may have a usable hood, grease interceptor, utility capacity, and kitchen layout. A cold or vanilla shell may need new routes, equipment connections, and service capacity. Even a former restaurant can require remediation or replacement if the systems are unsuitable, damaged, or mismatched to the new menu.
Geography and site conditions add another layer. Local labor, permitting, utility connections, access, and site work differ. The Western U.S. guide estimates site-driven scope can move costs 10–25%; treat that as that guide’s estimate, not a universal adjustment factor for every market.
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Build the budget as a scope checklist rather than one undifferentiated cost-per-square-foot number. For every item, mark whether it is included in the contractor’s price, excluded, an allowance, or owner-provided.
- Site and shell: Site preparation, shell work, utility connections, access, and any drive-through or other site improvements.
- Demolition and existing conditions: Demolition, slab or under-slab work, and remediation of issues discovered in the building or site.
- Design and approvals: Architectural and engineering design, permitting, inspections, and contractor preconstruction. Confirm who is responsible for each item and whether its cost is in the estimate.
- Kitchen and building systems: Kitchen layout and equipment; hood and fire suppression; make-up air and grease duct; interceptor; refrigeration; gas; plumbing; electrical service; and connections for the selected equipment.
- Customer and staff areas: Restrooms and accessibility work, dining-room finishes, lighting, signage, and furniture.
- Technology and operating setup: FF&E, point-of-sale and IT, low-voltage systems, smallwares, and pre-opening expenses.
- Owner costs and contingency: Identify these separately from the contractor’s base scope. State what the contingency is intended to cover rather than treating it as an invisible addition to the build price.
This is a planning checklist; the cited sources do not use identical cost divisions. In particular, the Michigan State Tax Commission’s 2025 assessor manual explicitly excludes kitchen equipment, restaurant fixtures, furniture, and signs from its fast-food table. The Southern California contractor guide describes base-build TI ranges that exclude FF&E and smallwares, and separately estimates FF&E at 15–30% on top. Those exclusions show why a low base-build figure may not represent the full amount an owner needs to open.
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When asking for proposals, request line-item pricing and a written list of exclusions. Clarify treatment of FF&E, signage, IT, low voltage, art, permits, allowances, owner-provided items, and change orders. These are useful scope questions—not a claim that every contractor uses the same contract format.
Which parts of the build are most likely to move the budget?
Kitchen infrastructure and site conditions can have an outsized effect because they involve interdependent equipment, building systems, and routing. A menu and equipment plan should inform the estimate rather than be treated as a detail to settle after construction pricing.
- Hood, make-up air, and fire protection: Confirm whether existing systems can serve the planned cooking equipment and whether changes to the hood or its associated systems are in scope.
- Grease handling: Check the grease duct route and interceptor requirements, including whether existing infrastructure is usable for the new layout.
- Electrical, gas, and plumbing: Verify service capacity and connections for kitchen equipment. Under-slab plumbing or a need to route new services can change scope substantially.
- Refrigeration and equipment: Tie the equipment package to the menu and kitchen plan. Establish whether the equipment itself, delivery, installation, and connections are included or supplied separately.
- Existing conditions: A second-generation restaurant may offer reusable infrastructure, but that advantage depends on actual condition and compatibility. Do not budget on the assumption that every visible system is ready to reuse.
- Format and site: A drive-through, a fast-casual in-line unit, and a full-service dining room have different site, kitchen, seating, and finish needs.
- Finishes and seating: Finish choices and seating density influence the scope of customer-facing areas, but should be compared only after the kitchen and site assumptions are aligned.
The sources do not establish a standard percentage adjustment for changing a menu, market, or existing building. Ask the estimator to explain the actual work assumed in each allowance or line item.
How can you use a cost-per-square-foot figure without misleading yourself?
Use it to make an early scenario, not as a project quote. First choose a range that matches the region and project type; then multiply by the planned area and list the costs the source excludes.
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For example, a 1,000-square-foot Southern California QSR tenant improvement at the guide’s $150–$300 per-square-foot base-build range produces arithmetic of $150,000–$300,000 for that base-build scope. The guide excludes FF&E and smallwares and estimates FF&E may add 15–30% on top. That makes the possible FF&E addition $22,500–$90,000 if calculated against the stated base-build range; it does not establish the total project cost, because other exclusions and site-specific costs still need to be defined. The calculation is an illustration of the published range, not a forecast for a specific restaurant.
Before applying any range, confirm four things:
- Area: What square footage is being priced, and is that area defined the same way in every estimate?
- Project type: Is it ground-up, tenant improvement, second-generation conversion, in-line, or drive-through?
- Included scope: Are kitchen equipment and infrastructure, site work, design, permits, FF&E, and opening costs included, excluded, or allowances?
- Pricing context: What geography and date does the estimate represent, and has it been validated against local conditions?
The Michigan assessor manual’s fast-food entry says: “The median area for a fast food restaurant is 3,150 square feet with a range of 1,375 to 4,250 square feet.” That is an assessor-manual description of area, not a recommended size for a new restaurant or a construction-cost benchmark. Area estimates should come from the actual concept, site, and operating plan.
How should you compare contractor bids or project scenarios?
Put the bids side by side only after making their assumptions visible. Two per-square-foot figures are not comparable if one includes a new kitchen and site work while the other assumes a reusable hood and excludes FF&E.
| Comparison axis | Question to resolve before comparing |
|---|---|
| Delivery type | Is each option ground-up construction or a tenant improvement? |
| Prior use and shell condition | Is the starting point a second-generation restaurant, a vanilla shell, or another condition? |
| Kitchen package | What equipment and hood, make-up air, fire suppression, grease, plumbing, gas, electrical, and refrigeration work is included? |
| Site and utilities | Are utility connections, access, site improvements, and drive-through work priced? |
| Customer areas | Are finish level, furniture, signage, restrooms, and seating assumptions alike? |
| Commercial terms | Which items are exclusions, allowances, owner-provided, or subject to change orders? |
| Market and date | Does each price reflect the same location and a comparable pricing date? |
For an early decision, price more than one scope scenario when the site permits it—for example, reuse of verified kitchen infrastructure versus replacement, or a tenant improvement versus a ground-up alternative. The sources identify these scope distinctions but do not show that one option will always be cheaper; the result depends on the specific site and work required.
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A dated public-agency example can help explain why old project totals should be handled cautiously. A 2020 Jacksonville document lists a stipulated construction contract of $1,415,254 for the Bread & Board project, which covered 6,760 square feet, or $209.36 per square foot. The document says the space included restaurant and market areas. This is one project-specific contract from 2020, not a current regional benchmark or a complete owner-opening budget. It should not be directly compared with current contractor ranges without matching scope, date, location, and inclusions.
What is the next step toward a credible budget?
Prepare a consistent scope brief and ask for local, itemized pricing based on the actual site and kitchen plan. Include the concept and service model, area, existing building information, menu or equipment assumptions, known utility capacity, desired finish level, and whether the project is a TI or ground-up build.
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Ask each estimator to identify inclusions, exclusions, allowances, permit responsibilities, owner-provided items, and change-order terms. Where site or system conditions are not yet verified, ask what assumption the price uses and what work could change if that assumption proves wrong. This turns a broad per-square-foot reference into a set of explicit decisions and risks that can be priced and compared.
Keep the published benchmarks in their proper role: they are useful for screening feasibility and asking better questions, but they cannot substitute for local pricing of the actual scope. A budget is more defensible when each major cost is tied to a defined work item, source of responsibility, and known or stated assumption.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the Michigan fast-food square-foot figure tell me how large my restaurant should be?
No. The assessor manual’s area statistic describes a range observed in its valuation context, not a design recommendation or a minimum operating size. Choose area from the concept, kitchen workflow, site, and local approval requirements.
Can I adjust the 2020 Jacksonville contract figure to estimate a project today?
Not reliably from the cited information alone. The document provides a dated contract total and area, but not a validated inflation adjustment or enough scope detail to make it a current comparable estimate.
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Is the $500-per-square-foot QSR figure a contractor quote?
No. It is an average reported in the 2025 C-Suite survey, with the figure attributed to fsSTRATEGY Inc. A contractor quote must be based on the project location, scope, existing conditions, and agreed inclusions.
