David Hargreaves<\/a> conducted an experiment at a Leicestershire restaurant \u2014 an \u00e0 la carte establishment with a high average check and a mature clientele.<\/p>\n\n\n\nOver eighteen evenings, the dining room alternated between classical music (Vivaldi, Handel, Strauss), popular hits of the time, and silence. The researchers tracked everything \u2014 starters, mains, coffee, alcohol, the final bill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Classical music won across the board. Guests spent more \u2014 not on any single category, but consistently across all of them. Pop music and silence showed no meaningful difference from each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
North offered an explanation that has since made its way into consumer psychology textbooks: music sends a signal about the status of the place. When classical music plays, guests unconsciously register: this is somewhere you can allow yourself a little more.<\/em> It’s not manipulation \u2014 it’s the semiotics of space.<\/p>\n\n\n\nInterior, table settings, lighting, and sound together shape the expectations that guests then fulfill through their orders.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhat 1.8 million orders revealed<\/h2>\n\n\n\n Back to the 2017 Swedish study \u2014 the largest of its kind. Its authors introduced a concept that has since become standard across the industry: brand fit<\/em> \u2014 the alignment between the music and the venue’s concept. And it was this alignment \u2014 not track quality or chart popularity \u2014 that proved to be the primary predictor of revenue growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\nRestaurants playing top-chart hits actually performed worse than those playing lesser-known music that was matched to the venue’s identity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The researchers’ explanation: hit songs pull attention toward themselves. The guest starts listening<\/em> \u2014 and stops being present at dinner. Well-matched music, by contrast, becomes part of the atmosphere without intruding.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhat guests themselves say<\/h2>\n\n\n\n In 2022\u20132023, BMI and the National Research Group conducted a large-scale survey of a thousand restaurant and bar visitors \u2014 ordinary people who go out to eat and drink.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The numbers are worth stating in full, because they say something many venue owners would rather not hear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
79% of respondents said they would stay longer if they liked the music playing at the venue. 58% said they would deliberately order something extra \u2014 just to keep listening. 53% admitted: if they don’t like the music, they’ll leave. Not complain to the manager. Just leave.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And one final figure that’s hard to dismiss: for millennials, music is the second most important factor when choosing a venue. After food. Ahead of interior design, price, and service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nThis isn’t about background noise. It’s about a reason to come \u2014 and a reason to stay.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\nWhy this still isn’t working in most venues<\/h2>\n\n\n\n If the science of restaurant music has existed since the 1980s, if the data is compelling and reproducible \u2014 why do most caf\u00e9s, restaurants, and bars still treat music as an afterthought?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
First \u2014 music doesn’t hurt visibly.<\/strong> A bad meat supplier shows up immediately on the plate. Bad music works slowly: the guest leaves a little earlier, orders a little less, doesn’t come back \u2014 but never writes in a review “I didn’t like the tempo of the playlist.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\nSecond \u2014 the illusion of control.<\/strong> “We play what we like” or “what the staff likes” feels like a decision. But the owner’s musical taste and the venue’s musical DNA are different things. One of the bluntest conclusions from HUI Research: the music guests enjoy<\/em> and the music that increases their spending<\/em> often don’t overlap.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThird \u2014 the technical and legal barrier.<\/strong> Spotify isn’t built for business \u2014 legally (using a personal subscription for public playback infringes copyright and requires separate licensing) or functionally. It doesn’t allow you to manage multiple zones, set time-of-day schedules, or think about brand fit.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWhat to do with this knowledge<\/h2>\n\n\n\n The research offers specific levers. Not “choose good music,” but precise, actionable settings:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Tempo \u2014 by time of day<\/h4>\n\n\n\n Morning and lunch: 90\u2013120 BPM if you need table turnover. Evening and weekends: 60\u201380 BPM if you want to hold the guest. This isn’t a rule \u2014 it’s a starting point. Your venue type will shape the exact parameters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Genre \u2014 for the concept, not for taste<\/h4>\n\n\n\n Ask yourself three questions: What price signal do you want to send to the guest? What behavior do you want to encourage (linger, try something new, relax)? Who is your guest at 8 PM on a Friday \u2014 and does that match who comes in at noon on a Wednesday? The music for those two moments probably needs to be different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Volume \u2014 by zone<\/h4>\n\n\n\n The waiting area and the main dining room may require different levels. The bar is a separate conversation entirely. Background level for conversational comfort in a restaurant is around 65\u201370 dB. Go higher and you start changing behavior.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Brand fit \u2014 not a one-time exercise<\/h4>\n\n\n\n This isn’t a “set it and forget it” task. The playlist needs updating: seasonality, time of day, and audience all shift. HUI Research found that even well-matched music loses effectiveness if it isn’t refreshed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One last thing worth saying<\/h2>\n\n\n\n Music is the only atmospheric element in your venue that is present everywhere, always. Not just where the guest is looking \u2014 but wherever the guest simply is.<\/em> Lights get switched off. Scents dissipate. Sound fills the space continuously.<\/p>\n\n\n\nAnd yet it’s the element that gets managed least intentionally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The BMI study found that 82% of guests say the music in a venue tells them something important about the place. Not about the owner’s tastes. About the place itself \u2014 its character, its attention to detail, its understanding of why people come there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The question worth asking yourself after reading this: what is your music saying right now?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n\nFor those ready to move from accidental choices to intentional ones: Moodby<\/a> is a background music service for businesses with 300+ stations curated by venue type, genre, and time of day. All tracks are royalty-free \u2014 no licensing fees required.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\nFAQ<\/h2>\n\n\n\n How does background music affect restaurant revenue?<\/strong>Can the wrong music actually reduce restaurant sales?<\/strong>What do guests actually say about music in restaurants?<\/strong>Why don\u2019t most restaurants manage their music deliberately?<\/strong>Why isn\u2019t Spotify suitable for restaurant background music?<\/strong>What is brand fit in restaurant music?<\/strong>
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/moodby.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/hf_20260525_172816_ab51335d-7fff-49f4-aef8-3401eef98d6f-1-1024x765.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/moodby.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/hf_20260525_173045_dec2c52b-501a-4ec7-bc91-8702e8b96c58-1-1024x765.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/moodby.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/hf_20260525_173540_5c8237af-ed3e-451d-a88e-0e9525d1d0f3-2-1024x765.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/moodby.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/hf_20260525_173626_aad5427f-e88d-4647-a916-2388a5a21920-2-1024x765.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n