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Pizza Hut store closures update: List of doomed locations grows in 2026 as the brand charts a Yum-free future

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Pizza Hut store closures update: List of doomed locations grows in 2026 as the brand charts a Yum-free future

Pizza Hut restaurant closures have continued apace in the United States this year.

According to a newly amended franchise disclosure document (FDD)—the first since Pizza Hut separated from fast food giant Yum Brands in early September—the Texas-based pizza chain has closed 275 U.S. restaurants so far in 2026.

This number reflects U.S. store closures through August 18, 2026. It’s more than double the number that Pizza Hut disclosed six months ago.

Pizza Hut’s original franchise disclosure document for 2026, released in March, revealed that 127 Pizza Hut restaurants had closed as of March 6. In the five following months, an additional 148 locations were shuttered.

The document doesn’t list specific restaurants, but it does offer a state-by-state breakdown of store closures from 2023 through 2025.

As Fast Company previously reported, franchised locations across 40 states closed during that period, with California, Florida, Illinois, Georgia, and Texas seeing the most closures.

Pizza Hut recently separated from parent company Yum Brands after more than two decades under its ownership. Private equity firm LongRange Capital acquired the pizza chain on September 1, 2026.

The amended FDD was updated on October 8, 2026, following the change in ownership.

According to the amended FDD, Pizza Hut projected only 33 new U.S. franchise openings for 2026. This projection remains unchanged from the initial March FDD.

At the end of fiscal year 2025, there were 5,031 Pizza Hut locations in operation across the U.S., of which 4,956 were franchise locations, and 75 were company-owned.

All 275 restaurants that have closed so far in 2026 (through August 18) were franchised locations.


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