Order anxiety and menu overload are quietly reducing QSR sales

More choices isn't always better.

Order complexity, large menus and in-store pressure are contributing to “order anxiety”, with a growing number of consumers abandoning purchases or defaulting to familiar items rather than exploring menus, according to new survey findings shared by Global Payments.

Speaking at QSR Media UK Redcat Conference & Awards 2026, Darren Hill, Head of Restaurant POS UK at Global Payments, said the industry has unintentionally created friction in the ordering process through years of focusing on speed, upselling and menu expansion.

We've trained them into wanting speed but in doing so, we've started to complicate things, and what we've done is we've started to create what's called order anxiety,” Hill said.

This has led to a situation where consumers are now psychologically stressed during the ordering experience, particularly in high-pressure environments such as counters and drive-thrus.

Global Payments said its research, based on a survey of 2,000 consumers aged 25 to 64, shows that complexity in ordering is becoming a structural barrier to sales rather than a convenience driver.

The study found that 66% of respondents say large menus are moderately, very or overwhelmingly difficult to navigate, with decision paralysis leading many customers to fall back on habitual or “safe” orders rather than trying new items.

Hill said the problem is most acute in physical ordering environments.

“Order is highest in store counter ordering and the drive-thru, 67% feel it here,” he said.

Hill added that the presence of queues and other customers waiting creates additional psychological pressure, which impacts decision-making and reduces willingness to explore menus.

According to the research, 32% of consumers said they had abandoned an order entirely due to excessive complexity, whilst 45% said they would be more willing to try new menu items if the ordering process was simpler.

Hill said operators have spent years building upselling mechanisms into kiosks and staff-led ordering, but these multiple prompts are now contributing to friction rather than improving basket size.

“I've completed my order. I'm probably asked if I want to make that a larger order. I'm probably then going to get asked again if I want to add anything… and then I might then also try to be engaged in whether it be a charity donation, or it might be a loyalty solution. [Then] 'm already three steps away from making my order,” Hill said.

Whilst upselling strategies were designed with good intent, they are increasingly contributing to drop-off in conversion.

“We've worked for a lot of years to make that quite an exciting and to make upsell feel seamless, but actually we've created this new thing in the process,” Hill said.

The solution is not more prompts or additional complexity, but simplification of the ordering journey through better design and use of technology. “What we need to do is we need to consolidate the menu, we need to simplify the process, and we need to make self-service easier,” he said.

He added that 45% of respondents indicated they would be more willing to explore menus if ordering was easier, suggesting a significant untapped opportunity if friction can be reduced.

He suggested that improving flow across kiosks, drive-thru and counter service, alongside clearer visual guidance and reduced steps, could help operators convert existing demand more effectively.