Short answer
Starbucks employed approximately 381,000 people worldwide on September 28, 2025, according to its fiscal 2025 Form 10-K, filed November 14, 2025. About 223,000 worked in the US, 214,000 of them in company-operated stores, and 158,000 outside the US. That is the latest count Starbucks has reported. It still includes China retail, which became a licensed joint venture on March 30, 2026, so the fiscal 2026 10-K, due in November 2026, will be the first count without those stores.
- Latest figure: about 381,000 people at September 28, 2025, from the fiscal 2025 10-K, up 20,000 on the year.
- Headcount peaked at about 402,000 in fiscal 2022, then fell to 361,000 in fiscal 2024 before recovering.
- US store staffing fell from about 26.8 people per company-operated store in 2022 to 19.8 in 2024, then rose to 21.3 in 2025 (our calculation).
- Starbucks cut about 1,100 support roles in February 2025 and about 900 non-retail roles in September 2025, while adding store labor.
- Revenue per employee was about $97,600 in fiscal 2025 (our calculation from the 10-K).
On this page
This page is for sellers sizing Starbucks as an account, analysts comparing employers and anyone who needs a headcount they can cite. Every figure below comes from Starbucks' annual report on Form 10-K, which states how many people Starbucks employed at the end of each fiscal year. Starbucks calls its employees partners. Its fiscal year ends on the Sunday closest to September 30, so fiscal 2025 ended on September 28, 2025.
Starbucks employees by year
| Fiscal year end | Worldwide | US | Outside the US | Change on prior year | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 28, 2025 | 381,000 | 223,000 | 158,000 | +20,000 (+5.5%) | FY2025 10-K, filed November 14, 2025 |
| September 29, 2024 | 361,000 | 211,000 | 150,000 | -20,000 (-5.2%) | FY2024 10-K, filed November 20, 2024 |
| October 1, 2023 | 381,000 | 228,000 | 153,000 | -21,000 (-5.2%) | FY2023 10-K, filed November 17, 2023 |
| October 2, 2022 | 402,000 | 258,000 | 144,000 | +19,000 (+5.0%) | FY2022 10-K, filed November 18, 2022 |
| October 3, 2021 | 383,000 | 245,000 | 138,000 | +34,000 (+9.7%) | FY2021 10-K, filed November 19, 2021 |
| September 27, 2020 | 349,000 | 228,000 | 121,000 | +3,000 (+0.9%) | FY2020 10-K, filed November 12, 2020 |
| September 29, 2019 | 346,000 | 218,000 | 128,000 | +55,000 (+18.9%) | FY2019 10-K, filed November 15, 2019 |
| September 30, 2018 | 291,000 | 191,000 | 100,000 | FY2018 10-K, filed November 16, 2018 |
Each filing gives the figures as "approximately", rounded to the nearest thousand; the changes are our arithmetic. Starbucks doesn't update the count quarterly: its fiscal 2026 results, filed October 29, 2026, give revenue and store counts but no headcount. The fiscal 2025 figure stays the latest until the fiscal 2026 10-K, which on past form arrives in mid to late November.
Where Starbucks employees work
The fiscal 2025 10-K splits the workforce between stores and everything else, inside and outside the US.
| Group, September 28, 2025 | Employees | Share of total |
|---|---|---|
| US company-operated stores | 214,000 | 56% |
| US corporate support, store development, roasting, manufacturing, warehousing and distribution | about 9,000 | 2% |
| Company-operated stores outside the US | 153,000 | 40% |
| Regional support outside the US | about 5,000 | 1% |
| Total | 381,000 | 100% |
The two support rows are our subtraction (the filing calls them "the remainder"), and the shares are rounded. Dividing US store employees by US company-operated stores gives a rough staffing gauge:
| Fiscal year end | US store employees | US company-operated stores | Employees per store (our calculation) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 214,000 | 10,047 | 21.3 |
| 2024 | 201,000 | 10,158 | 19.8 |
| 2023 | 219,000 | 9,645 | 22.7 |
| 2022 | 248,000 | 9,265 | 26.8 |
The ratio counts people, not hours, and mixes full-time and part-time partners, so treat it as a trend, not a shift roster. The 2025 rise matches what the 10-K describes: "additional investments in staffing and hours at the right times to deliver enhanced customer service."
What the number includes
- People, not full-time equivalents. The 10-K says "Starbucks employed approximately 381,000 people worldwide" and doesn't split full-time from part-time. Its main US benefits, including healthcare, tuition through the Starbucks College Achievement Plan and paid parental leave, are for partners "working an average of 20 hours or more each week."
- Company-operated stores only. At the end of fiscal 2025 Starbucks had 21,514 company-operated stores and 19,476 licensed stores. Licensed stores are run by licensees, which the 10-K says "are responsible for operating costs and capital investments." Their staff aren't in Starbucks' count.
- Canada sits outside the US. The headcount splits US and non-US, but the segments are North America (the US and Canada), International and Channel Development. Canada's 967 company-operated stores are staffed from the 158,000 "outside of the U.S."
- A point-in-time count at the fiscal year-end, not an average for the year.
What changed and why
2019 to 2024: a peak, then fewer people per store
Headcount rose from 291,000 to a peak of 402,000 in fiscal 2022, then fell by 21,000 in fiscal 2023 and 20,000 in fiscal 2024, even as US company-operated stores grew from 9,265 to 10,158. The 10-Ks report these totals without giving a reason for each move; the per-store table shows where the decline happened.
2025: Back to Starbucks
The count rose by 20,000 as Starbucks added store labor under its "Back to Starbucks" strategy, while it cut support roles and closed stores:
- February 2025: "the reduction of 1,100 support partner roles and several hundred additional open and unfilled positions within its global support organization," according to Starbucks' second-quarter fiscal 2025 results.
- September 2025: a letter from CEO Brian Niccol, filed with an 8-K, announced "the difficult decision to eliminate approximately 900 current non-retail partner roles and close many open positions," alongside coffeehouse closures. Starbucks closed 627 stores in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025, 584 of them in North America.
- The cost: $892.0 million of restructuring and impairments in fiscal 2025, of which $299.9 million was employee severance, separation costs and other.
2026: the China joint venture and more restructuring
- China. On March 30, 2026 Starbucks completed the divestiture of its China retail operations. Boyu Capital acquired a 60% interest, Starbucks kept 40%, and 7,991 company-operated stores became licensed stores. China had 8,009 of Starbucks' 10,496 company-operated stores outside North America at the end of fiscal 2025, so the international count in the next 10-K should be much smaller. Starbucks hasn't published how many employees moved to the joint venture.
- May 2026. The board approved further actions with about $400 million of charges, including $120 million of cash charges "primarily related to employee separation benefits due to further optimization of our global support organization." No role count was given.
- September 2026. Starbucks said it would close about 1% of its more than 18,000 North America coffeehouses, about 250 closures.
Revenue per employee
Fiscal 2025 total net revenues were $37,184.4 million. Divided by about 381,000 employees, that's about $97,600 per employee (our calculation).
| Fiscal year | Total net revenues | Employees | Revenue per employee (our calculation) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $37.18 billion | 381,000 | about $97,600 |
| 2024 | $36.18 billion | 361,000 | about $100,200 |
| 2023 | $35.98 billion | 381,000 | about $94,400 |
That is low next to Amazon or most tech companies because almost every Starbucks employee works in a store. Revenue splits North America $27.37 billion (74%), International $7.82 billion (21%) and Channel Development $1.87 billion (5%), but headcount isn't reported by segment, so per-segment figures can't be worked out. Fiscal 2026 revenue was $37.91 billion; the matching headcount comes with the 10-K.
Selling to a company of Starbucks' size
General guidance, not a description of Starbucks' internal processes.
- Choose stores or support. Store operations, scheduling, equipment and training are judged per coffeehouse across about 10,000 US company-operated stores. Corporate functions such as technology, finance and partner resources buy like any large enterprise, with security, legal and procurement reviews.
- Licensed stores are separate buyers. The 19,476 licensed stores at fiscal 2025 year-end, plus the China stores now run by the joint venture, are operated by licensees with their own staff and budgets.
- Price for the store unit. At about 21 people per US store, a per-store or per-partner price multiplies fast. Expect a regional pilot before any national rollout.
- Read the 8-Ks for timing. Starbucks announced restructuring in February 2025, September 2025, May 2026 and September 2026. Support teams being reshaped are asked to do more with fewer people, which is where a productivity case tends to land.
Mapping who owns a problem inside a 381,000-person company is the slow part. Bebop researches each account and suggests who to talk to and the angle to open with; check its findings against the filings. For the full routine, see how to research an account and how to find decision makers.
How to check the number yourself
- Open Starbucks' 10-K filings on SEC EDGAR and pick the latest one.
- In Item 1, Business, find Human Capital Management, or search the document for "employed approximately". The worldwide, US and non-US figures are in one paragraph with the as-of date.
Next step: compare Starbucks with other chains in our list of the largest fast food companies.
Sources
- Starbucks Corporation Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 28, 2025, Starbucks Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 14 November 2025
- Starbucks Corporation Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 29, 2024, Starbucks Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 20 November 2024
- Starbucks Corporation Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended October 1, 2023, Starbucks Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 17 November 2023
- Starbucks Corporation Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended October 2, 2022, Starbucks Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 18 November 2022
- Starbucks Corporation Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended October 3, 2021, Starbucks Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 19 November 2021
- Starbucks Corporation Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 27, 2020, Starbucks Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 12 November 2020
- Starbucks Corporation Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 29, 2019, Starbucks Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 15 November 2019
- Starbucks Corporation Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2018, Starbucks Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 16 November 2018
- Starbucks Corporation Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 28, 2026, Starbucks Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 29 July 2026
- Starbucks Reports Q4 and Full Year Fiscal 2026 Results (Exhibit 99.1 to Form 8-K), Starbucks Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 29 October 2026
- Starbucks Reports Q2 Fiscal Year 2025 Results (Exhibit 99.1 to Form 8-K), Starbucks Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 29 April 2025
- Letter from Brian Niccol to North America partners (Exhibit 99.1 to Form 8-K), Starbucks Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 25 September 2025
- Starbucks Corporation Form 8-K, Item 2.05 (May 13, 2026 restructuring), Starbucks Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 15 May 2026
- Starbucks Corporation Form 8-K, Item 2.05 (September 22, 2026 coffeehouse closures), Starbucks Corporation, via SEC EDGAR, 24 September 2026
Written by the Bebop team at Blackpearl Group. Published .
Questions people ask
How many employees does Starbucks have in the US?
About 223,000 at September 28, 2025, according to Starbucks' fiscal 2025 10-K. About 214,000 of them worked in company-operated stores, and the rest in corporate support, store development, roasting, manufacturing, warehousing and distribution. The US count was 211,000 a year earlier and peaked at 258,000 in fiscal 2022. Staff at licensed stores, such as those inside grocery stores, work for the licensee and aren't included.
How many people work at a Starbucks store?
On average about 21, by our calculation: 214,000 US store employees divided by 10,047 US company-operated stores at September 28, 2025, both from the fiscal 2025 10-K. The figure counts people, including part-time partners, not hours. It was about 26.8 in fiscal 2022 and 19.8 in fiscal 2024, before Starbucks added staffing and hours under its Back to Starbucks plan.
Has Starbucks had layoffs?
Yes, in its support organization. In February 2025 Starbucks announced the reduction of 1,100 support partner roles and several hundred open positions. In September 2025 it said it would eliminate about 900 non-retail roles and close coffeehouses, 627 of which closed in the last quarter of fiscal 2025. In May 2026 it approved further support restructuring with about $120 million of cash charges, mostly employee separation benefits, without giving a role count.
Does Starbucks still employ its workers in China?
Not since March 30, 2026, when Starbucks completed the divestiture of its China retail operations to a joint venture in which Boyu Capital holds 60% and Starbucks 40%. The 7,991 company-operated stores involved became licensed stores. The latest 10-K count of 381,000, at September 28, 2025, still includes China retail. Starbucks hasn't published how many employees moved, so the fiscal 2026 10-K will be the first figure without them.
Are Starbucks employees unionized?
Some are. The fiscal 2025 10-K says partners in approximately 6% of Starbucks' US company-operated stores are represented by unions, and that Starbucks is negotiating initial collective bargaining agreements for those stores. The fiscal 2024 10-K put it as about 5% of partners in US company-operated stores, and the fiscal 2023 10-K as 3.6%, so the measure changed from partners to stores in 2025.