Can Math Determine Whether Pizza Hut Or Domino’s Is Better?

While some people swear by certain pizza chains, others see little difference between a pie from Domino’s or one from Pizza Hut. At that point, it probably comes down to which offers a better value. So how to determine which one provides more bang for your buck? Perhaps some basic math will suffice.

That was the idea in the above video from Business Insider, which made some value comparisons between the 14″ pizzas being sold by these two megachains.

Both pizzas are the same size — confirmed with a measuring tape — so what’s the price per square inch?

BI surveyed prices in markets around the country and found that the Pizza Hut 14-incher averages $10.69 for a plain cheese, while Domino’s is slightly higher at an average of $11.44 for the same size. That’s only a difference of half a penny per square inch ($.069 for Pizza Hut; $.074 for Domino’s), but Pizza Hut has the slight edge.

But does one company pack more pizza into your 154 square-inch pie?

After accounting for the weight of the box, the Pizza Hut pie came in at 29.4 ounces, while the Domino’s tipped the scale at 33.8 ounces. That translates to $.36/ounce at the Hut and $.34/ounce from Domino’s. So while you’re paying less per square-inch at Pizza Hut, you’re getting more stuff for your dollar at Domino’s.

Of course, that may vary greatly from eatery to eatery, depending on how generous of skimpy the particular pizza maker might be in the kitchen with things like sauce and cheese. After all, as streamlined as the processes at these two restaurants are, there is still a human element involved.

Another metric considered by BI that might vary from store to store — but is fun to look at regardless — is the pepperoni value of these pizzas.

The average cost of throwing on some pepperoni was very different between the two chains. Pizza Hut only hits you for an additional $.77 while Domino’s charges $1.28.

The Hut pizza also had significantly more pepperoni slices, at 52, compared to 35 from Domino’s. It doesn’t look like BI actually measured the size of the pepperoni slices, but they appear to be similar in the video.

That means you’re paying only $.015 per pepperoni slice on the Pizza Hut pie, but more than double that ($.037/slice) at Domino’s.

In the end, it all comes down to what you prefer. And according to the eight people asked to sample and vote on these two pizzas, the decision was unanimous for Domino’s.

by Chris Morran via Consumerist