Eating is truly one of the most enjoyable things to do, especially when traveling. However, the need to eat in a hurry cannot be avoided in some cases.

America is not short of fast food restaurants. Datafiniti, a database company, has released an index that reveals which states have the highest number of fast food restaurants in the country.

CBS reported that a quarter of American adults eat fast food every day. In fact, no matter which state you are visiting, drive-through windows will always welcome people who are too busy to stop by for food. The index reveals which states and cities have the most and least fast food restaurants per capita.

Concentrations Of Fast Food Restaurants

When it comes to the most number of concentration of fast food joints per capita, southern and central states top the list. Eight of the top 10 states with the most fast food establishments are in the South, with Alabama topping the list.

Other states topping the most fast food restaurants per capita are Nebraska, West Virginia, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Indiana, District of Colombia, Georgia, Missouri, and South Carolina in the last spot.

On the other hand, states in the Northeast including New Jersey, Vermont, and New York take the top three spots for the fewest fast food restaurants per capita. Other states that belong to the top 10 are Mississippi, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Alaska, Massachusetts, Maine, and Washington.

Additionally, cities which have the most number of fast food per capita are spread evenly throughout the country. In this list, Orlando, Cincinnati, and Las Vegas dominate. Meanwhile, cities with the fewest fast food restaurants per capita are mainly in California and the Northeast with four cities in California bagging four spots in the top 10, and New York at the number one spot.

Largest Fast Food Chains

The list also found out that McDonald's, known as the second largest fast food chain in America has locations in every major city in the country. Cities with the most number of McDonald's per capita are Orlando, Florida, and Las Vegas Nevada, respectively.

According to the list, Subway ranks as the largest fast food chain in the country with 18.5 percent listings. Burger King is in the third spot, followed by Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, Wendy's Domino's Pizza, KFC, Dairy Queen, and Arby's.

Also belonging to the top 20 spots are Sonic Drive-In, Hardees, Jimmy Johns, Jack in the Box, Chick-Fil-A, Chipotle Mexican, Panda Express, Carl's Jr., Five Guys. Ending the list is Whataburger with 0.6 percent of listings, a surprising feat considering it only has locations in 10 states.

The index does look at the numbers for the country as a whole and does not give insight into what fast food restaurants are more popular in some areas, and less popular in others.