Pubblicato il 2026-10-05
The same Original Buttermilk Pancakes (Full Stack) costs $8.99 at one New York City IHOP and $16.79 at another
As fast food pricing becomes more data-driven, Drive Thru Index compared the pickup prices of the same items at 366 restaurants of five chains in the New York City area. Within each chain, prices for the same item differ by up to 87% from one restaurant to the next.
Dati al .
Dati chiave
- IHOP Original Buttermilk Pancakes (Full Stack): $8.99 to $16.79 (+87%)Cheapest restaurant in Clifton, NJ, most expensive in Bronx, NY; median $11.79, 7% above IHOP's US median.
- Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme: $5.19 to $8.99 (+73%)Cheapest restaurant in Jackson Heights, NY, most expensive in New York, NY; median $6.69, the same as Taco Bell's US median.
- Cinnabon MiniBon: $3.49 to $5.99 (+72%)Cheapest restaurant in Brooklyn, NY, most expensive in Garden City, NY; median $4.79, 4% below Cinnabon's US median.
- Jersey Mike's Original Italian: $8.25 to $13.85 (+68%)Cheapest restaurant in Union, NJ, most expensive in Newark, NJ; median $11.50, 5% above Jersey Mike's US median.
- Tropical Smoothie Cafe Sunrise Sunset smoothie: $7.89 to $12.00 (+52%)Cheapest restaurant in Linden, NJ, most expensive in Staten Island, NY; median $8.49, 8% above Tropical Smoothie Cafe'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.
IHOP: a Original Buttermilk Pancakes (Full Stack) costs $8.99 at two IHOP restaurants in Clifton and Totowa, NJ and $16.79 at two IHOP restaurants in Bronx and Springfield Gardens, NY, $7.80 (87%) more. Across its 59 restaurants in the New York City area, the median is $11.79, 7% above IHOP's US median of $10.99.
Taco Bell: a Crunchwrap Supreme costs $5.19 at the Taco Bell in Jackson Heights, NY and $8.99 at the Taco Bell in New York, NY, $3.80 (73%) more. Across its 148 restaurants in the New York City area, the median is $6.69, the same as Taco Bell's US median of $6.69.
Cinnabon: a MiniBon costs $3.49 at the Cinnabon in Brooklyn, NY and $5.99 at three Cinnabon restaurants in Garden City, NY, and Paramus and Secaucus, NJ, $2.50 (72%) more. Across its 37 restaurants in the New York City area, the median is $4.79, 4% below Cinnabon's US median of $4.99.
Jersey Mike's: a Original Italian costs $8.25 at the Jersey Mike's in Union, NJ and $13.85 at the Jersey Mike's in Newark, NJ, $5.60 (68%) more. Across its 90 restaurants in the New York City area, the median is $11.50, 5% above Jersey Mike's US median of $10.95. At the airport in Queens, NY, it costs $16.99.
Tropical Smoothie Cafe: a Sunrise Sunset smoothie costs $7.89 at the Tropical Smoothie Cafe in Linden, NJ and $12.00 at four Tropical Smoothie Cafe restaurants in Staten Island, NY, $4.11 (52%) more. Across its 32 restaurants in the New York City area, the median is $8.49, 8% above Tropical Smoothie Cafe's US median of $7.89.
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.
Frasi da citare
The same IHOP Original Buttermilk Pancakes (Full Stack) costs $8.99 at one restaurant in Clifton, NJ but $16.79 at another in Bronx, NY.
The same Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme costs $5.19 at one restaurant in Jackson Heights, NY but $8.99 at another in New York, NY.
The same Cinnabon MiniBon costs $3.49 at one restaurant in Brooklyn, NY but $5.99 at another in Garden City, NY.
The same Jersey Mike's Original Italian costs $8.25 at one restaurant in Union, NJ but $13.85 at another in Newark, NJ.
The same Tropical Smoothie Cafe Sunrise Sunset smoothie costs $7.89 at one restaurant in Linden, NJ but $12.00 at another in Staten Island, NY.
Immagini
I dati dietro il comunicato
Ogni dato viene dai nostri prezzi del 2026-10-05, con la pagina di questo sito che lo mostra.
| Dato | Valore | Dove vederlo |
|---|---|---|
| IHOP Original Buttermilk Pancakes (Full Stack): $8.99 to $16.79 (+87%) | Cheapest restaurant in Clifton, NJ, most expensive in Bronx, NY; median $11.79, 7% above IHOP's US median. | Vedi la pagina |
| Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme: $5.19 to $8.99 (+73%) | Cheapest restaurant in Jackson Heights, NY, most expensive in New York, NY; median $6.69, the same as Taco Bell's US median. | Vedi la pagina |
| Cinnabon MiniBon: $3.49 to $5.99 (+72%) | Cheapest restaurant in Brooklyn, NY, most expensive in Garden City, NY; median $4.79, 4% below Cinnabon's US median. | Vedi la pagina |
| Jersey Mike's Original Italian: $8.25 to $13.85 (+68%) | Cheapest restaurant in Union, NJ, most expensive in Newark, NJ; median $11.50, 5% above Jersey Mike's US median. | Vedi la pagina |
| Tropical Smoothie Cafe Sunrise Sunset smoothie: $7.89 to $12.00 (+52%) | Cheapest restaurant in Linden, NJ, most expensive in Staten Island, NY; median $8.49, 8% above Tropical Smoothie Cafe's US median. | Vedi la pagina |
| IHOP Original Buttermilk Pancakes (Full Stack) più economico (ristoranti) | $8.99 (2) | Clifton, NJ, Totowa, NJ |
| IHOP Original Buttermilk Pancakes (Full Stack) più caro (ristoranti) | $16.79 (2) | Bronx, NY, Springfield Gardens, NY |
| Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme più economico (ristoranti) | $5.19 (1) | Jackson Heights, NY |
| Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme più caro (ristoranti) | $8.99 (1) | New York, NY |
| Cinnabon MiniBon più economico (ristoranti) | $3.49 (1) | Brooklyn, NY |
| Cinnabon MiniBon più caro (ristoranti) | $5.99 (3) | Garden City, NY, Paramus, NJ, Secaucus, NJ |
| Jersey Mike's Original Italian più economico (ristoranti) | $8.25 (1) | Union, NJ |
| Jersey Mike's Original Italian più caro (ristoranti) | $13.85 (1) | Newark, NJ |
| Il più caro in assoluto (airport) | $16.99 (1) | Queens, NY |
| Tropical Smoothie Cafe Sunrise Sunset smoothie più economico (ristoranti) | $7.89 (1) | Linden, NJ |
| Tropical Smoothie Cafe Sunrise Sunset smoothie più caro (ristoranti) | $12.00 (4) | Staten Island, NY, Staten Island, NY, Staten Island, NY, Staten Island, NY |
Metodologia, chi siamo e contatti
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 restaurants within 25 miles (40 km) of downtown of New York City, each restaurant counted in its nearest city. 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
Fonti di contesto
Non fanno parte del comunicato: articoli che sostengono la sua unica frase di contesto, per rispondere alle domande dei giornalisti.
- 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.