Protein Wins Premiums at C-Stores, Supermarkets

C-store and supermarket shoppers are more likely than diners at nearly every restaurant segment to say they would pay extra for high-protein items, according to Datassential’s 2026 C-Store and Supermarket Segment Guide reports.

The willingness to pay more is clearest on protein. C-store shoppers run 24% and supermarket shoppers 21%, against 18% at QSR, 17% at both fast casual and casual dining, and 14% at midscale. Only fine dining ranks higher, at 28%.

But consumers’ willingness to pay more for prepared food items at both c-stores and supermarkets extends into organic options and global flavors as well. Both segments again outrank every restaurant group but fine dining. Twenty-one percent of c-stores shoppers say they would pay more for organic options and 20% for global flavors, against 18% and 16% of supermarket shoppers. 

Originality is the one clear break: 23% of c-stores shoppers would pay more for unique or innovative options, second only to fine dining’s 32%, while supermarkets’ 18% sits level with fast casual and just behind midscale’s 19%.

The guides frame that willingness to pay as an opening to elevate the menu. “Appetite for a more elevated c-store menu is real,” the C-Store Segment Guide found. In supermarket prepared foods, high-protein items, local sourcing, and unique dishes “command the strongest willingness to pay,” the Supermarket Segment Guide notes.

Actual spending is backing up that willingness. Supermarkets and c-stores post the widest positive spreads of the seven segments, with 34% of supermarket shoppers and 30% of c-store users increasing their spending over the past year against 14% and 16% who cut back. Average checks reached $19.51 at supermarkets and $13.69 at c-stores, up 10% and 13%.

Price framing is what makes the premium work. Unique offerings “can offer a high value especially if they are a lower price point than an equivalent QSR product,” the C-Store Segment Guide notes, with consistent experiences and value for the dollar named as the key drivers of repeat visits.