Struggling Sweetgreen is rethinking its menu pricing

Sweetgreen is working on its value perception. | Photo: Shutterstock.

Those who think Sweetgreen’s bowls are too expensive can rejoice. After a challenging 2025, Sweetgreen is rethinking its menu pricing.

That’s not to say prices are going down, necessarily. But Sweetgreen is looking at simplifying its pricing architecture and adding new lower-priced entry points to become more accessible to all.

The fast-casual chain on Thursday reported results that fell far short of its expectations for the fourth quarter and for 2025, said CEO Jonathan Neman. 

Fourth-quarter same-store sales fell 11.5%, including a 13.3% decline in traffic and mix, offset by a 1.8% menu price increase.

For the year, same-store sales declined 7.9%. The company’s net loss deepened to $134.1 million, compared with a loss of $90.4 million the prior year, despite 35 new openings for a total of 281 restaurants.

Sweetgreen also said it plans to close “a handful” of restaurants, as their leases end this year. And the company plans to take a hard look at all units that are not cash-flow positive, said Jamie McConnell, chief financial officer, indicating more could be shuttered.

Still, Neman said a Sweet Growth Transformation Plan, introduced last year, is beginning to show signs of traction as the brand works on improving its value perception.

This week, for example, the chain unveiled a test of a new wrap line of sandwiches, all of which are under $15, with some starting at $10.95 in New York City. 

“We’ve seen incidents pick up almost every day since the launch and the feedback has been phenomenal. It is really hitting a new occasion, and, in many ways, a new customer,” he said. “There’s a huge segment of the population with being a bowl-only concept that we were not capturing.”

If the wraps pass the more-rigorous stage gate process, they are likely to be rolled out in the second quarter, he said.

Lower-priced seasonal offerings, like a $10 Tis the Season bowl in December, have also resonated. Available only to loyalty members through the app, it was the highest reactivation promotion to date, Neman said.

The chain followed that this month with a $10 Chicken Avocado Ranch offer, and will introduce a Craving of the Month loyalty exclusive designed to boost frequency.

More broadly, Neman said the chain will simplify its build-your-bowl option, which accounts for about one quarter of sales (not including those who modify signature bowls).

Neman did not offer specifics on how pricing might change, but he said the goal is to radically simplify the process, so guests don’t feel “nickel and dimed” as they walk the makeline.

“Of course, we want to be very careful not to dilute our margins as we do this,” said Neman. “But what we’ve seen is having different options for different groups of consumers. Ultimately, that’s Sweetgreen’s mission of connecting people to real food. We want to democratize real food and make it accessible to all.”

The chain has also been working on its value perception by improving the quality of ingredients. 

The chain has changed the way it marinates and cooks its salmon and chicken, for example. Rice has been made “more delicious,” and the standard quinoa was switched to a golden variety.

Last year, Sweetgreen upped the amount of protein on bowls, a move that resulted in a hit to food costs. The chain said its restaurant-level margins dropped nearly 700 basis points to 10.4%, in part because of increased portions.

But Neman said efforts to improve store operations is also paying off after instituting a scorecard to track performance and realigning bonus incentives around financial and operational metrics.

Last year, the chain introduced an initiative called Project One Best Way to improve operations, and now two-thirds of restaurants are meeting standards to be dubbed “great.” Those restaurants are showing better comparable sales and customer return rates.

So far, 2026 started out “choppy” for Sweetgreen, especially because of the huge snowstorm that knocked out the Northeast this month. But regions where there wasn’t bad weather, like Arizona and California, showed momentum among all cohorts, Neman said.

Still, for this year, Sweetgreen is projecting that same-store sales will be down between 4% to 2%. The chain is slowing growth, expecting a net of 15 new restaurant openings this year, with about half being Infinite Kitchen formats, with an automated makeline.

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