Takeaways vs restaurants: which scores better on hygiene?

Restaurants and cafes score better than takeaways on food hygiene, and the gap is not small. Across the star-rated venues in each group, 69.0 per cent of restaurants and cafes hold a 5 against 53.9 per cent of takeaways. The difference holds up right across the scale, and the shape of it is worth a proper look.

Top marks: a fifteen-point gap

Start at the top. Just under seven in ten restaurants and cafes carry a 5, the highest rating the Food Standards Agency awards. Among takeaways it is a little over half. Widen the lens to include 4-star ratings and the picture stays the same: 82.5 per cent of restaurants sit on a 4 or 5, compared with 72.4 per cent of takeaways. So while the majority of takeaways are still rated highly, restaurants clear the top two bands more often, by roughly ten points either way you cut it.

Where takeaways pile up

The middle of the scale is where the two part company. More than a fifth of takeaways, 21.2 per cent, sit on a 3, which the FSA classes as generally satisfactory rather than good. Among restaurants and cafes the equivalent figure is 13.4 per cent. That extra weight on 3 is the mirror image of the gap at 5: the ratings that restaurants earn as 5s tend to land as 3s and 4s among takeaways.

The bottom of the scale

Poor ratings are the exception in both groups, but takeaways carry slightly more of them. Adding up the 0, 1 and 2 ratings, 6.4 per cent of takeaways fall in that band against 4.1 per cent of restaurants and cafes. In plain terms, a takeaway is a little more likely to hold a low rating, though the great majority of both types are rated 3 or above.

Why the gap exists, and what it isn’t

None of this is a verdict on the food. A hygiene rating measures the handling of food, the state of the premises and the systems a business uses to manage safety, all judged during an inspection. Takeaways as a category tend to be small, high-throughput kitchens working in tight spaces, which is a harder setting to score top marks in than a larger restaurant built for the job. That is a plausible reason for the gap, not a criticism of any single business. A well-run takeaway can and often does hold a 5, and plenty do.

Read the venue, not the category

Averages describe a group, not the place you are about to order from. A specific takeaway with a current 5 is a better bet than a restaurant with an old 3, whatever the category-wide numbers say. Use the gap here as background, then check the individual rating and its inspection date before you decide.

Where these figures come from

The comparison covers star-rated venues under the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme, which runs in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Scotland’s separate Pass or Improvement Required scheme has no 0 to 5 stars, so its venues are not included. Everything is computed from the Food Standards Agency’s published open data, snapshot taken 26 August 2026, released under the Open Government Licence. Verified, not reviewed.

FAQ

Which is safer, a takeaway or a restaurant?

On average restaurants and cafes score higher, but the rating reflects hygiene standards at inspection, not a guarantee for either. A current high rating on the specific venue matters far more than the category average.

Do takeaways get inspected less often?

Not in this data. Takeaways were actually the most recently inspected group of the two, so the score gap is not explained by staler inspections.

Why do takeaways score lower?

They tend to be small, high-volume kitchens in compact premises, which is a tougher environment to earn top marks in. It reflects the setting more than the intent of any one business.

Does a 3-star rating mean a place is dirty?

No. A 3 is classed as generally satisfactory. It is below the top marks but well clear of the ratings that signal a real problem.

Hero image: Leonardo Vargas via Unsplash.