Panda Express on health inspections, place by place
See how Panda Express restaurants did on routine health inspections in each place we cover, next to every other restaurant in that same place. Every number comes from that government’s own records.
The short answer
Under the local rate in all five places.
- 5under the local rate
- 0too close to call
- 0over the local rate
Panda Express has enough routine inspections to chart in five of the 10 places we cover. Each place counts a different thing, so read each row against its own tall line and never against another row. Part of any gap is the menu: a chain that handles less raw food gives an inspector less to find.
Place by place
The tall line is the local rate for that place. The bar is the range the chain’s real rate probably falls in, and the short tick is the rate we measured. A bar to the left of the line means fewer inspections with a problem than is normal there.
Share of routine inspections that recorded at least one high-priority violation.
Share of routine inspections that ended in a Fail.
Share of routine inspections that received an Unsatisfactory result, meaning a red critical violation was noted.
Share of routine inspections that recorded at least one 5-demerit violation, the district's most serious class.
Share of routine inspections that ended in a yellow or red placard, meaning two or more major violations or a closure.
Compare Panda Express with another chain
The other five places we cover
Too few inspections to chart (under 100): New York City (38), New York State (15), Austin (50), Louisville (45), Raleigh and Wake County (24).
What stands out
Under the local rate in all 5 places where it can be charted. Florida is the only place with a large number of inspections: 41.8% of 519 inspections, next to a local rate of 58.2% range 37.6–46.1%.
Chicago and King County only just qualify. In Chicago, 7.2% of 111 inspections, next to a local rate of 24.4% range 3.7–13.6%. In Seattle and King County, 14.7% of 116 inspections, next to a local rate of 35.6% range 9.4–22.2%. Both have little more than the minimum number of inspections, and both ranges are wide, though both end under the local rate.
Everywhere else there are too few inspections. 5 other places have some Panda Express inspections on file, but fewer than the 100 it takes to draw a bar; the closest is Austin with 50. Those counts are listed above without a bar, because with only a few dozen inspections the range would stretch across most of the chart.
Part of the gap is the kind of kitchen. Not every kitchen gives an inspector the same amount to find. New York State’s health department sorts kitchens by how much preparation they do, and names “table-service restaurants, diners and school kitchens which prepare foods” as typical high risk. Every local rate on this page includes those table-service restaurants. So part of any gap between a chain and the local rate is the kind of kitchen it is, before anyone’s management comes into it.
Written September 2026. The figures in it are read from the current records, so they move when the records do.
What this can’t tell you
- Who runs the better kitchen. Chains handle different food. A coffee counter deals with far less raw food than a kitchen that fries chicken, so part of any gap between a chain and the local rate is the menu. The local rate also includes full-service kitchens that do far more cooking than any chain here.
- How the brand does everywhere. These are Panda Express locations in five places over a few years. The records say nothing about its locations anywhere else.
- Anything about one restaurant. A figure sums up many inspections at many locations. It is not a warning about, or a recommendation of, the one near you.
- Which place is stricter or cleaner. Each place counts a different thing under different rules, so the rows cannot be set against each other.
How we counted
- Sources. Florida: Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation; Chicago: Chicago Department of Public Health; Seattle and King County: Public Health - Seattle & King County; Las Vegas and Clark County: Southern Nevada Health District; Sacramento County: Sacramento County Environmental Management Department. Each place’s page says exactly which inspections are counted and why.
- The figure. In each place, the number of the chain’s counted routine inspections that recorded that place’s finding, divided by all of them. The local rate is the same sum over everything in that place’s file.
- The range. A 95% Wilson score interval. Fewer inspections means a wider range. A chain needs 100 counted inspections in a place to be charted there.
- Matching names. Restaurant names are matched to Panda Express with a published table of name patterns, which also lists every spelling it matched. A location recorded under two chain names is counted for neither. If a match is wrong, write to hello@fastfoodfact.com.
- No combined figure. Nothing on this page adds, averages or orders rates from two places. The only number that spans places is a count of where the chain sits against each local rate.
The full method is on the methodology page.
Chicago data: This site provides applications using data that has been modified for use from its original source, www.cityofchicago.org, the official website of the City of Chicago. The City of Chicago makes no claims as to the content, accuracy, timeliness, or completeness of any of the data provided at this site. The data provided at this site is subject to change at any time. It is understood that the data provided at this site is being used at one’s own risk.
New York State data: The analyses, interpretations and conclusions drawn from New York State data on this site were reached by FastFoodFact and not by the New York State Department of Health. The department states that this data was not collected for use as a restaurant grading system and does not support or endorse such a use; the figures here describe groups of inspections and are not a grade of any restaurant.
Raleigh and Wake County data: Contains data from Wake County Government's open data portal, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0). FastFoodFact grouped the county's inspection records by chain and counted them; the county did not make or review these figures. Wake County states that it shall not be held liable for any errors in these data, and that primary sources must be consulted for verification.
Informational only. These are public records, summarized; they are not a safety rating of any restaurant and not professional advice. Last reviewed: September 2026.
Quote or download these figures
You may quote any figure on this page. Please credit FastFoodFact with a link, keep the count and the range with the rate, and don’t set a figure from one place against a figure from another: each place counts a different thing.
FastFoodFact, "Panda Express on health inspections." Counted from routine inspection records published by: Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation; Chicago Department of Public Health; Public Health - Seattle & King County; Southern Nevada Health District; Sacramento County Environmental Management Department. Records through October 1, 2026. https://www.fastfoodfact.com/panda-express
The counts as a file: Florida CSV or JSON; Chicago CSV or JSON; Seattle and King County CSV or JSON; Las Vegas and Clark County CSV or JSON; Sacramento County CSV or JSON. Each file covers one place and names its source.
Frequently asked questions
How does Panda Express do on health inspections?
It depends on the place, and each place counts something different. Panda Express has enough routine inspections to chart in five of the 10 places this site covers (Florida, Chicago, Seattle and King County, Las Vegas and Clark County and Sacramento County). Its restaurants came in clearly under the local rate in all five. The figures describe those locations over those years, not the brand everywhere and not any one restaurant.
Can the Panda Express figures be compared between places?
No. Florida counts inspections that recorded at least one high-priority violation, Chicago counts inspections that ended in a Fail, Seattle and King County counts inspections that received an Unsatisfactory result, Las Vegas and Clark County counts inspections that recorded at least one 5-demerit violation, the district's most serious class and Sacramento County counts inspections that ended in a yellow or red placard. Those are different events under different rules, so a lower number in one place does not mean cleaner restaurants there. The only fair reading is each figure against its own place's local rate.
Where do these figures come from?
From inspection records published by the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, the Chicago Department of Public Health, the Public Health - Seattle & King County, the Southern Nevada Health District and the Sacramento County Environmental Management Department. We count routine inspections only, match restaurant names to chains with a published table of name patterns, and need 100 inspections in a place before charting a chain there.
Does this say anything about the Panda Express near me?
No. A figure here sums up many inspections at many locations. For one restaurant's record, look it up with the health department that inspects it; each place page on this site links to its source.
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