By . James Gordon . The world's biggest retailer is also America's most popular store. Walmart is the nation's favorite place to shop with more than 4,570 locations, in 2012 the supermarket chain brought in nearly $329 billion in retail sales. The Golden Arches of McDonald's came in at number two on the list compiled by Placed, a consumer habits data service provider that monitors American consumer activity. The place to go: Americans' favorite place to go of all is Walmart. They have increased their store count to 4,570 locations in 2012, and spent $1.8 billion on advertising that same year . Top of the food chain: McDonald's was by far the most visited fast-food restaurant in the nation in March. Although McDonald's remains hugely popular . According to the report, half off the retailers Americans are visiting these days are fast-food restaurants or stores that are chains throughout the country. The reason for these being the most popular stores, as explained by Placed founder and CEO David Shim, is logical. The information was analyzed and compiled by the financial news website Wall St. 24/7. A person doesn’t need household supplies every day, but people need eat three or more times per day. Naturally, he says, there is a higher propensity for the masses to visit the food businesses more often. In at 3: Among restaurants, Subway trails only McDonald's in popularity. While more Americans visit the Golden Arches, by the end of 2010 Subway actually passed McDonald's in the number of stores globally, at 33,749 . Still growing: Starbucks has dominated U.S. coffee sales for years. Its sales have generally continued to grow since its initial public offering in the early 1990s. The coffee chain has changed its product lineup in recent years, introducing a range of foods, including a larger breakfast and lunch menu . America's Top Ten stores: . Wal-Mart . McDonald’s . Subway . Starbucks . Walgreens . Target . CVS Caremark . Burger King . Taco Bell . 7-Eleven . Data provided by: Placed . Subway came in at number three on the list. It would appear the half-a-billion dollars they spend yearly on advertising may finally be paying off. Starbucks also made the list as it continues to attract coffee-drinking consumers of all ages. Given all the bad publicity that Target has had after their data breach, you may be surprised to find them also named among America's most popular stores - but they ranked a respectable six. Also on list was Taco Bell. The fast-food chain has had a surge in popularity in part due to their new breakfast menu, but also the consistency with low prices and staying open later. Consumers also regularly shop at the country's biggest drugstore chains and big-box retailers with  . Walgreens, CVS Caremark, Burger King, and 7-eleven also making the list of most popular stores in the U.S. In addition to selling widely purchased . goods, these retailers have the most locations in the country. Walgreens, 7-Eleven and CVS Caremark all had more than 7,000 U.S. locations in 2012, among the most stores nationwide. Food chains were . even more numerous. Subway, McDonald's and Starbucks were all among the . top five companies by store count, each with well over 14,000 U.S. locations in 2012. Down on the corner: As with many retailers, Walgreens was more popular among women than men. Women were 11% more likely to visit Walgreens than men .
Supermarkets and fast-food chains make up the bulk of the list .
Placed, a consumer habits data service provider monitored the behavior of more than 150,000 American consumers .
Advertising dollars do matter - those that marketed the most saw the highest number of customers .
By . James Gordon . The world's biggest retailer is also America's most popular store. Walmart is the nation's favorite place to shop with more than 4,570 locations, in 2012 the supermarket chain brought in nearly $329 billion in retail sales. The Golden Arches of McDonald's came in at number two on the list compiled by Placed, a consumer habits data service provider that monitors American consumer activity. The place to go: Americans' favorite place to go of all is Walmart. They have increased their store count to 4,570 locations in 2012, and spent $1.8 billion on advertising that same year . Top of the food chain: McDonald's was by far the most visited fast-food restaurant in the nation in March. Although McDonald's remains hugely popular . According to the report, half off the retailers Americans are visiting these days are fast-food restaurants or stores that are chains throughout the country. The reason for these being the most popular stores, as explained by Placed founder and CEO David Shim, is logical. The information was analyzed and compiled by the financial news website Wall St. 24/7. A person doesn’t need household supplies every day, but people need eat three or more times per day. Naturally, he says, there is a higher propensity for the masses to visit the food businesses more often. In at 3: Among restaurants, Subway trails only McDonald's in popularity. While more Americans visit the Golden Arches, by the end of 2010 Subway actually passed McDonald's in the number of stores globally, at 33,749 . Still growing: Starbucks has dominated U.S. coffee sales for years. Its sales have generally continued to grow since its initial public offering in the early 1990s. The coffee chain has changed its product lineup in recent years, introducing a range of foods, including a larger breakfast and lunch menu . America's Top Ten stores: . Wal-Mart . McDonald’s . Subway . Starbucks . Walgreens . Target . CVS Caremark . Burger King . Taco Bell . 7-Eleven . Data provided by: Placed . Subway came in at number three on the list. It would appear the half-a-billion dollars they spend yearly on advertising may finally be paying off. Starbucks also made the list as it continues to attract coffee-drinking consumers of all ages. Given all the bad publicity that Target has had after their data breach, you may be surprised to find them also named among America's most popular stores - but they ranked a respectable six. Also on list was Taco Bell. The fast-food chain has had a surge in popularity in part due to their new breakfast menu, but also the consistency with low prices and staying open later. Consumers also regularly shop at the country's biggest drugstore chains and big-box retailers with  . Walgreens, CVS Caremark, Burger King, and 7-eleven also making the list of most popular stores in the U.S. In addition to selling widely purchased . goods, these retailers have the most locations in the country. Walgreens, 7-Eleven and CVS Caremark all had more than 7,000 U.S. locations in 2012, among the most stores nationwide. Food chains were . even more numerous. Subway, McDonald's and Starbucks were all among the . top five companies by store count, each with well over 14,000 U.S. locations in 2012. Down on the corner: As with many retailers, Walgreens was more popular among women than men. Women were 11% more likely to visit Walgreens than men .
number two on the list compiled by Placed, a consumer habits data service provider that passed McDonald's in the number of stores all had more than 7,000 U.S. locations in 2012, among the most stores nationwide. Food chains