Popular Coffee Chain Closes 250 Locations In 2026 And Fans Are Devastated

Seeing fast food chains shut down some of their locations is nothing new for consumers in the United States, but seeing one of the top five largest chains in the world close up shop is a bit more novel. This somewhat rare event is happening as we speak, with coffee juggernaut Starbucks closing down roughly 250 of its locations in North America. Starbucks is currently experiencing the most successful autumn menu launch in company history (despite its lack of the coffee shop's popular apple crisp items), but that hasn't stopped the chain from announcing it would be closing down these stores on September 24, and it has carried out these closures over the past week.

Unfortunately, there hasn't been an official statement outlining exactly which Starbucks locations have closed down. However, internet sleuths have created a database of Starbucks closures that have been reported since September 24. If this information is to be believed, California has had 65 Starbucks locations close, New York has lost 22 locations, and Texas has lost 14 locations. As Starbucks outlined in its press release, the 250 locations that have been shut down make up just 1% of the 18,000 Starbucks coffeehouses in North America. Nevertheless, this is still over double the number of locations Starbucks closed down in 2025 and has shocked many fans of the chain.

Closing down locations is often seen as a sign a company isn't doing as well as its executives want it to be, but Starbucks claims there's a different reason for these sudden, no-notice closures. Mike Grams, the chief operating officer at Starbucks, explained in a statement released on the company's website that some of these now-closed locations were indeed less profitable than they needed to be, but he tied the decision to the Back to Starbucks strategy the chain has been touting since 2024. Grams said the shuttered stores are "locations where we do not believe we can consistently deliver the experience we want for customers and partners." So, as Starbucks sets its plans in motion to redesign over 1,500 of its current coffeehouses across the United States and Canada in the coming months, its decision to shutter 250 locations is being sold as a way to improve the customer experience.

Fans and workers have not taken the news of these closures positively. In fact, many Starbucks lovers are infuriated by the sudden decision. "I just learned that my favorite Starbucks is closing two days ago and today is the last day and I am absolutely heartbroken," one Redditor admitted. This is far from the first time the coffee chain has come under fire, as just this year Starbucks switched up its rewards program to the chagrin of consumers. However, with accessibility to the chain now being in question for people across the continent, this new-found frustration is arguably even more severe.