Publié le 2026-10-05
The same 5 oz. Sirloin Steak Rare costs $9.89 at one Illinois Golden Corral and $19.99 at another
As fast food pricing becomes more data-driven, Drive Thru Index compared the pickup prices of the same items at 589 restaurants of five chains in Illinois. Within each chain, prices for the same item differ by up to 102% from one restaurant to the next.
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Chiffres clés
- Golden Corral 5 oz. Sirloin Steak Rare: $9.89 to $19.99 (+102%)Cheapest restaurant in Bloomingdale, IL, most expensive in Cicero, IL; median $13.99, 4% above Golden Corral's US median.
- KFC Chicken Sandwich: $3.99 to $7.29 (+83%)Cheapest restaurant in Belleville, IL, most expensive in Freeport, IL; median $5.39, the same as KFC's US median.
- Dairy Queen OREO Blizzard: $4.59 to $7.99 (+74%)Cheapest restaurant in Roscoe, IL, most expensive in Peoria, IL; median $6.19, 3% above Dairy Queen's US median.
- Cinnabon MiniBon: $3.75 to $5.99 (+60%)Cheapest restaurant in Chicago Ridge, IL, most expensive in Schaumburg, IL; median $4.99, the same as Cinnabon's US median.
- Burger King Whopper: $5.79 to $9.19 (+59%)Cheapest restaurant in Flora, IL, most expensive in Chicago, IL; median $6.19, 2% below Burger King's US median.
Fast food chains are collecting more and more data about their customers through mobile apps and loyalty programs: accounts with their details, and what they order and when. They are also experimenting with AI and data-driven pricing. Meanwhile the same item can cost very different amounts from one restaurant to the next, and customers cannot see why. Drive Thru Index publishes every restaurant's real price, every day, so anyone can check.
Golden Corral: a 5 oz. Sirloin Steak Rare costs $9.89 at the Golden Corral in Bloomingdale, IL and $19.99 at the Golden Corral in Cicero, IL, $10.10 (102%) more. Across its 11 restaurants in Illinois, the median is $13.99, 4% above Golden Corral's US median of $13.49.
KFC: a Chicken Sandwich costs $3.99 at six KFC restaurants in Belleville, Caseyville, Collinsville, Granite City and O'Fallon, IL and $7.29 at four KFC restaurants in Freeport, Morris, New Lenox and Sycamore, IL, $3.30 (83%) more. Across its 93 restaurants in Illinois, the median is $5.39, the same as KFC's US median of $5.39.
Dairy Queen: a OREO Blizzard costs $4.59 at the Dairy Queen in Roscoe, IL and $7.99 at six Dairy Queen restaurants in Peoria, Bartonville, Creve Coeur, East Peoria and Morton, IL, $3.40 (74%) more. Across its 207 restaurants in Illinois, the median is $6.19, 3% above Dairy Queen's US median of $5.99.
Cinnabon: a MiniBon costs $3.75 at the Cinnabon in Chicago Ridge, IL and $5.99 at the Cinnabon in Schaumburg, IL, $2.24 (60%) more. Across its 15 restaurants in Illinois, the median is $4.99, the same as Cinnabon's US median of $4.99.
Burger King: a Whopper costs $5.79 at five Burger King restaurants in Flora, Galesburg, Mount Carmel, Olney and Paris, IL and $9.19 at the Burger King in Chicago, IL, $3.40 (59%) more. Across its 263 restaurants in Illinois, the median is $6.19, 2% below Burger King's US median of $6.29.
Anthony Gherghetta, an Australian software developer who built Drive Thru Index, started it after reading some of the buzz about AI being used to set fast food prices: he wanted to see whether it was true, and how big the price differences between restaurants really were. Prices bear out the contrast he noticed. In Australia, 97% of McDonald's restaurants charge within 10% of the typical Big Mac price; in the US, 53% do. The gap between the cheapest and the dearest tenth of restaurants is 10% of the typical price in Australia and 33% in the US.
“I kept reading that fast food chains were starting to use AI and customer data to set prices, so I wanted to see if it was true and how big the differences really were. In Australia, where I’m from, a Big Mac costs much the same wherever you buy it. In the US the price changes from one restaurant to the next. Fast food apps now know what you order, when and where, but customers can’t see how prices are set. So I built Drive Thru Index to check every restaurant, every day,” said Gherghetta.
Citations
The same Golden Corral 5 oz. Sirloin Steak Rare costs $9.89 at one restaurant in Bloomingdale, IL but $19.99 at another in Cicero, IL.
The same KFC Chicken Sandwich costs $3.99 at one restaurant in Belleville, IL but $7.29 at another in Freeport, IL.
The same Dairy Queen OREO Blizzard costs $4.59 at one restaurant in Roscoe, IL but $7.99 at another in Peoria, IL.
The same Cinnabon MiniBon costs $3.75 at one restaurant in Chicago Ridge, IL but $5.99 at another in Schaumburg, IL.
The same Burger King Whopper costs $5.79 at one restaurant in Flora, IL but $9.19 at another in Chicago, IL.
Images
Les chiffres derrière le communiqué
Chaque chiffre provient de nos relevés du 2026-10-05, avec la page de ce site qui le présente.
| Chiffre | Valeur | Où le voir |
|---|---|---|
| Golden Corral 5 oz. Sirloin Steak Rare: $9.89 to $19.99 (+102%) | Cheapest restaurant in Bloomingdale, IL, most expensive in Cicero, IL; median $13.99, 4% above Golden Corral's US median. | Voir la page |
| KFC Chicken Sandwich: $3.99 to $7.29 (+83%) | Cheapest restaurant in Belleville, IL, most expensive in Freeport, IL; median $5.39, the same as KFC's US median. | Voir la page |
| Dairy Queen OREO Blizzard: $4.59 to $7.99 (+74%) | Cheapest restaurant in Roscoe, IL, most expensive in Peoria, IL; median $6.19, 3% above Dairy Queen's US median. | Voir la page |
| Cinnabon MiniBon: $3.75 to $5.99 (+60%) | Cheapest restaurant in Chicago Ridge, IL, most expensive in Schaumburg, IL; median $4.99, the same as Cinnabon's US median. | Voir la page |
| Burger King Whopper: $5.79 to $9.19 (+59%) | Cheapest restaurant in Flora, IL, most expensive in Chicago, IL; median $6.19, 2% below Burger King's US median. | Voir la page |
| Golden Corral 5 oz. Sirloin Steak Rare le moins cher (restaurants) | $9.89 (1) | Bloomingdale, IL |
| Golden Corral 5 oz. Sirloin Steak Rare le plus cher (restaurants) | $19.99 (1) | Cicero, IL |
| KFC Chicken Sandwich le moins cher (restaurants) | $3.99 (6) | Belleville, IL, Belleville, IL, Caseyville, IL, Collinsville, IL, Granite City, IL, O'Fallon, IL |
| KFC Chicken Sandwich le plus cher (restaurants) | $7.29 (4) | Freeport, IL, Morris, IL, New Lenox, IL, Sycamore, IL |
| Dairy Queen OREO Blizzard le moins cher (restaurants) | $4.59 (1) | Roscoe, IL |
| Dairy Queen OREO Blizzard le plus cher (restaurants) | $7.99 (6) | Bartonville, IL, Creve Coeur, IL, East Peoria, IL, Morton, IL, Peoria, IL, Peoria, IL |
| Cinnabon MiniBon le moins cher (restaurants) | $3.75 (1) | Chicago Ridge, IL |
| Cinnabon MiniBon le plus cher (restaurants) | $5.99 (1) | Schaumburg, IL |
| Burger King Whopper le moins cher (restaurants) | $5.79 (5) | Flora, IL, Galesburg, IL, Mount Carmel, IL, Olney, IL, Paris, IL |
| Burger King Whopper le plus cher (restaurants) | $9.19 (1) | Chicago, IL |
Méthodologie, à propos et contact
Drive Thru Index reads every restaurant's menu from each chain's own ordering app every day; these are the latest pickup prices collected on or before October 5, 2026, in US dollars. The area covers every restaurant in Illinois. Each chain is compared only with itself, on its own signature item, and only where it has at least 5 restaurants in the area; prices are never compared between chains or converted between currencies. The cheapest and most expensive restaurants leave out airports and similar special sites, which are reported separately.
About Drive Thru Index: Drive Thru Index (drivethruindex.com) publishes the menu price of every item at every restaurant of the biggest fast food brands, collected each day from the chains' own ordering apps. As pricing becomes more data-driven, it exists so that customers can see what each restaurant really charges and how it compares with others nearby. It covers the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK, Ireland, Spain, Mexico and the Netherlands. Brands are only compared with themselves, and prices are never converted between currencies. Its figures are free to quote with attribution: "Source: Drive Thru Index".
The images with this release are free to use with the credit "Image: Drive Thru Index (drivethruindex.com)".
Media contact: anthony@drivethruindex.com
Sources de contexte
Ne fait pas partie du communiqué : les articles qui étayent sa seule phrase de contexte, pour répondre aux questions des journalistes.
- How restaurant loyalty programs can drive more traffic and improve experiences Restaurant Dive, 2024-08-15
Restaurant loyalty apps pull in customers' ordering history and preferences, to personalise offers and recommendations (the intro's apps and loyalty programmes). - Wendy's backtracks on dynamic pricing Restaurant Dive, 2024-02-28
Wendy's told investors it would test dynamic and AI-enabled pricing on digital menu boards from 2025, then said after a backlash that it would not raise prices at the busiest times (the intro's experiments with data-driven pricing). - Inside McDonald's push to have AI price your Big Mac CNBC, 2026-09-29
Reports a Reuters investigation into an AI tool that recommends menu prices to McDonald's restaurants; McDonald's says franchisees remain free to set their own prices. Not quoted in the release text; the page could not be fetched to check its wording, only its search listing.