The American Customer Satisfaction Index's 2026 Convenience Store Study crowned Meijer, the Grand Rapids, Michigan retailer, as America's favorite convenience store brand with 82 out of 100 points, per USA Today. The company operates more than 500 supercenters, grocery stores and neighborhood markets, including 244 Meijer Express locations across six states. Meijer told USA Today it was honored to be recognized, crediting the team behind its Meijer Express experience. The result displaces the previous leader and reshuffles a ranking fans follow closely each year.

WKOW reports that La Crosse-based Kwik Trip dropped from first place to a tie for fifth, falling from 84 points in 2025 to 79 in 2026 — the largest single-year decline of any brand in the survey. USA Today's version of the table shows the same six-point slide, while also noting it tied QuikTrip, Sheetz and Wawa at 80 points for second.

The reversal is striking because Kwik Trip holds near-mythic status among Upper Midwest food devotees, and because Meijer isn't even seen primarily as a convenience chain. USA Today quotes CFI Group's David Ham explaining that while consumers think of Meijer as a grocer or superstore, Meijer Express locations compete directly in the category. Meijer's five-point improvement was the study's largest gain, fueled by its mPerks loyalty program, which USA Today says saved customers nearly $200 million over the past year. Buc-ee's, meanwhile, slipped from 79 to 77.

The ACSI surveyed 9,475 customers by email between October 2025 and September 2026, judging reward programs, product variety, hours, cleanliness and food quality, WKOW reports. USA Today adds that food now exceeds 28% of convenience stores' inside sales and that 15% of prepared-food visits come at the expense of quick-service restaurants. Industry-wide satisfaction fell to 75, with apps and bathroom cleanliness scoring lowest. ACSI's Forrest Morgeson said every new capability is a new expectation that shapes how customers judge the whole visit — suggesting the brands that keep food quality rising while fixing basics will contend for next year's crown.