Pizza Hut Plans to Shut About 250 U.S. Restaurants

(KNGT-FM) - A popular pizza joint you love could be about to disappear from your town! Pizza Hut announced it will close about 250 U.S. locations in the next few months. We've got everything you need to know about the closures coming to the big chain...

A Look Back at Pizza Hut’s History

Pizza Hut was founded in 1958 in Wichita, Kansas, by two brothers who borrowed $600 from their mother to start the first restaurant. The chain got its famous red roof in 1969 and quickly grew, becoming the top pizza chain in the world by 1971. PepsiCo bought Pizza Hut in 1977, and it later became part of Yum! Brands in 1997.

Pizza Hut has had challenges in the U.S. for a while. Many older restaurants are large dine-in locations, but customers today often prefer delivery or pickup. In 2020, one of Pizza Hut’s biggest franchise owners closed 300 stores after filing for bankruptcy.

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Why Pizza Hut Is Closing U.S. Locations

Pizza Hut will close about 250 restaurants in the United States by June, its parent company, Yum! Brands, said. The closures are part of a plan to shut down underperforming locations and rethink the brand’s future.

The closures will mostly happen in the first half of 2026. Yum! said this will temporarily reduce Pizza Hut’s total number of stores in the U.S., but that growth will continue later in the year.

Even though some U.S. restaurants will close, Pizza Hut is still growing internationally. The chain opened more than 440 new locations worldwide in the last quarter of 2025 and nearly 1,200 new restaurants last year in 65 countries.

Despite the U.S. closures, Yum! Brands says Pizza Hut is still an important part of its global strategy. The company is looking at ways to modernize the brand and improve its performance.

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Which Pizza Hut Locations Will Shut Down?

The company did not reveal which U.S. locations will close. About 3% of all Pizza Hut stores in the U.S. will shut down. When we find out which locations will close, we will keep you updated.