Giant pizza restaurant chain closing 250 restaurants nationwide | Official Website of Louis Velazquez, entrepreneur, finance guy and tech innovator

The downturn in the pizza restaurant sector is continuing into 2026 with major dining chains closing hundreds of locations, making it more difficult for consumers to get their favorite meal.

Pizza restaurants have faced severe economic headwinds over the last two years, as several chains have dealt with fierce competition, rising labor and food costs, and high lease rates requiring several companies to launch out-of-court restructurings, close locations, and in some cases, file for bankruptcy.

Seattle-based Mod Pizza operated about 500 locations in 2024, but economic challenges forced it to close 27 units and sell its assets to Chatsworth, Calif.-based Elite Restaurant Group.

The restaurant chain did not solve its economic problems and has continued closing locations, as its website lists 448 units as of Feb. 4.

Pizza chains filed for bankruptcy

Other smaller pizza chains filed for bankruptcy in 2025, including Bertucci’s Restaurants, which filed for Chapter 11 protection on April 24, 2025, and Backdraughts, filing on July 23, 2025.

Major pizza restaurant franchisees also had financial difficulty last year and filed for bankruptcy protection, including Domino’s operator People First Pizza Inc., which filed Chapter 11 on March 26, 2025, and Little Caesars franchisee Red Door Pizza LLC, which filed its petition on July 15, 2025.

Domino’s holds the title of largest pizza chain in the U.S. with about 7,090 units through the third quarter of 2025, according to the “Domino’s 101: Fun facts” on the company’s website.

Little Caesars claims to be the third-largest pizza chain in the U.S., but doesn’t list its total locations. The chain appears to have over 4,200 in the U.S., according to LocationsCloud.

Pizza Hut claims to operate over 6,700 locations in the U.S., according to its website, but the chain will soon be shrinking.

Pizza Hut’s parent company Yum! Brands plans to close 250 of its locations in the first half of 2026.

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Pizza Hut closing 250 restaurants

Giant pizza dining chain Pizza Hut said it will close 250 underperforming restaurant locations as part of its Hut Forward plan in the first half of 2026, after reporting a 1% same-store sales decline globally in the fourth quarter and for the year in 2025, parent Yum! Brands’ Chief Financial Officer Ranjith Roy said in the company’s Q4 2025 earnings call Feb. 4.

The company, however, reported a 1% increase in same-store sales for Pizza Hut International, with strength in the Middle East, Latin America, and Asia.

Hut Forward program introduced

The Hut Forward program consists of a vibrant marketing program, which includes a one-time Yum! marketing support contribution, modernization of certain technology and franchise agreements, and targeted closures of underperforming units, Roy said in the earnings call.

Pizza Hut, however, globally opened over 440 gross units in the fourth quarter and nearly 1,200 in 2025 across 65 countries.

Pizza Hut strategic review underway

Earlier in the earnings call, Yum! Brands CEO Christopher Turner said Pizza Hut’s strategic review, which it launched in November 2025, was proceeding as planned, and the review of options will be completed in 2026.

“Given the nature of the process, at this time, we cannot share further details on the strategic review,” Turner said, according to Seeking Alpha.

More closings:

Aside from the disappointing earnings news from Pizza Hut, Yum! showed strong fourth quarter results across the company with a 5% system sales increase, 3% unit growth, and 3% same-store sales growth, Roy said.

For the year, Yum! reported 5% system sales growth, led by Taco Bell rising 8% and KFC up 6%.

Largest pizza chains in U.S.:

Domino’s Pizza, 7,090 locations
Pizza Hut, 6,700 locations
Little Caesars, 4,200 locations