<p><img src="https://static2.businessinsider.com/image/5b21875a42e1cc187d6f03da-1600/mcdonalds vs cfa-10.jpg" border="0" alt="Chick-fil-A chicken sandwich" data-mce-source="Hollis Johnson"></p><p></p><bi-shortcode id="summary-shortcode" data-type="summary-shortcode" class="mceNonEditable" contenteditable="false">Summary List Placement</bi-shortcode><p>In the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/popeyes-chicken-sandwich-started-civil-war-customers-2019-11">ongoing chicken sandwich wars,</a> Chick-fil-A is easily the delivery winner with 45% of the market share.</p><p>Fast food brands have been competing in the red-hot chicken sandwich segment since August 2019, when Popeyes introduced a fried chicken sandwich. Online spats and snarky tweets quickly created a rivalry between Popeyes and Chick-fil-A in the months since. </p><p>But despite the ongoing competition between the two top chicken sandwich chains, Chick-fil-A has been the nearly undisputed winner in online orders for nearly two years. The chain's streak was only broken briefly in January 2020, when Popeyes overtook it in market share, <a href="https://trends.edison.tech/research/chicken-sandwich-wars-feb-2021.html">according to data from Edison Trends.</a></p><p>In December 2020, the most recent month Edison has data for, Chick-fil-A was the clear winner with 45% of online order market share. Popeyes was a distant second with 17%, only barely beating McDonald's 16%.</p><p><img src="https://static3.businessinsider.com/image/60352585bed5c50011a2c0b4-1200/chicken-sandwich-wars-feb-2021-chart-1.jpg" border="0" alt="chicken sandwich wars feb 2021 chart 1" data-mce-source="Edison Trends." data-link="https://trends.edison.tech/research/chicken-sandwich-wars-feb-2021.html"></p><p>The top four restaurants, Chick-fil-A, Popeyes, McDonald's, and Wendy's, have all maintained their rankings since February 2020, but the introduction of several new chicken sandwich menu items has the potential to shake up the market in 2021.</p><p>The chicken sandwich fast food space is already crowded and growing, but there seems to be an appetite among consumers. <a href="https://trends.edison.tech/research/chicken-sandwich-wars-feb-2021.html">Online spending on chicken sandwiches</a> grew 420% between January 2019 and December 2020, according to Edison Trends.</p><p>Insider has reported that <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mcdonalds-chick-fil-a-in-2021-chicken-sandwich-war-2020-12#:~:text=McDonald's%20is%20taking%20a%20clear,on%20February%2024%2C%20McDonald's%20confirmed." data-analytics-module="body_link" data-analytics-post-depth="80" data-uri="83b084f338fab07a6214afaeb411e746">several chains</a> gearing up to introduce competitors to Chick-fil-A and Popeyes, both of which sell crispy chicken sandwiches with pickles. In January, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/kfc-new-chicken-sandwich-debuts-2021-1" data-analytics-module="body_link" data-analytics-post-depth="80" data-uri="9fe74c4764982f3b6463f4e31392ec92">KFC</a> introduced a crispy chicken sandwich at nine locations, available across the country by the end of February, and Jimmy John's dropped its own version of the chicken sandwich in a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jimmy-johns-chicken-sandwich-wars-entry-super-bowl-commercial-2021-2" data-analytics-module="body_link" data-analytics-post-depth="80" data-uri="8251f5146724a2a509a06b104aac2182">Super Bowl ad.</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/burger-king-new-chicken-sandwich-as-the-war-resumes-2021-2" data-analytics-module="body_link" data-analytics-post-depth="100" data-uri="4ecbf4e41c7363c383bd8a560d0d19d5">Burger King</a> announced a new chicken sandwich coming later this year, and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mcdonalds-chicken-sandwich-release-with-hoodie-and-vinyl-2021-2" data-analytics-module="body_link" data-analytics-post-depth="100" data-uri="e74f81a95e88817d8798a9c5d55ecc2a">McDonald's</a> is bringing its own entry this month. <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/shake-shack-chicken-sandwich-regional-collabs-houston-ny-chicago-sf-2021-2">Shake Shack</a> is launching a limited-edition chicken sandwich collab in Houston, and even <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/taco-bell-menu-spicy-chicken-sandwich-taco-release-2021-2">Taco Bell</a> announced a chicken sandwich taco coming later this year.</p><p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/chick-fil-a-chicken-sandwich-delivery-winner-over-popeyes-mcdonalds-2021-2#comments">Join the conversation about this story »</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/worlds-most-expensive-liquid-thoroughbred-horse-semen-2020-3">Why thoroughbred horse semen is the world's most expensive liquid</a></p>
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