เผยแพร่เมื่อ 2026-10-19
Delivery adds 23% to the same McDonald's order in the US
As fast food pricing becomes more data-driven, Drive Thru Index compared the delivery and pickup prices of the same items at 13,535 McDonald's restaurants across the US on October 19, 2026. Delivery costs 23% more at the typical restaurant.
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- Delivery adds 23% to the same McDonald's orderThe same 6-item order picked up and delivered, at the median of 13,535 restaurants.
- Highest in Alaska: 29% more for deliveryAcross 25 restaurants.
- Lowest in New Mexico: 13% moreAcross 99 restaurants.
- Pickup: the typical Big Mac costs $5.99Median pickup price at 13,732 restaurants.
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. McDonald's said in August 2026 that across 70 markets it had nearly 220 million loyalty users active in the previous 90 days, and $40 billion in systemwide sales to loyalty members over the previous twelve months.
On October 19, 2026, ordering from McDonald's for delivery cost 23% more at the typical restaurant than picking up the same order from the same restaurant.
By state, the markup is highest in Alaska (29%) and lowest in New Mexico (13%).
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.
ข้อความที่นำไปอ้างอิงได้
Ordering McDonald's for delivery costs 23% more than picking up the same order.
Alaska has the highest McDonald's delivery markup (29%); New Mexico the lowest (13%).
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ทุกตัวเลขมาจากข้อมูลราคาของเราเมื่อ 2026-10-19 พร้อมหน้าบนเว็บไซต์นี้ที่แสดงตัวเลขนั้น
| ตัวเลข | ค่า | ดูได้ที่ |
|---|---|---|
| Delivery adds 23% to the same McDonald's order | The same 6-item order picked up and delivered, at the median of 13,535 restaurants. | ดูหน้านี้ |
| Highest in Alaska: 29% more for delivery | Across 25 restaurants. | ดูหน้านี้ |
| Lowest in New Mexico: 13% more | Across 99 restaurants. | ดูหน้านี้ |
| Pickup: the typical Big Mac costs $5.99 | Median pickup price at 13,732 restaurants. | ดูหน้านี้ |
ค่ามัธยฐานตามรัฐ
| พื้นที่ | ค่ามัธยฐาน | จำนวนร้าน |
|---|---|---|
| New Mexico | 13% | 99 |
| South Dakota | 15% | 31 |
| Arizona | 17% | 295 |
| Hawaii | 17% | 67 |
| Nebraska | 20% | 79 |
| North Dakota | 20% | 30 |
| California | 21% | 1,188 |
| Idaho | 21% | 64 |
| Montana | 21% | 46 |
| South Carolina | 21% | 231 |
| Utah | 21% | 118 |
| Washington | 21% | 258 |
| Alabama | 22% | 238 |
| Connecticut | 22% | 134 |
| Florida | 22% | 899 |
| Louisiana | 22% | 227 |
| New Jersey | 22% | 250 |
| New York | 22% | 566 |
| North Carolina | 22% | 475 |
| Rhode Island | 22% | 31 |
| Texas | 22% | 1,271 |
| Virginia | 22% | 384 |
| Wyoming | 22% | 28 |
| Illinois | 23% | 624 |
| Iowa | 23% | 143 |
| Maryland | 23% | 267 |
| Michigan | 23% | 511 |
| Nevada | 23% | 129 |
| Oklahoma | 23% | 205 |
| Oregon | 23% | 152 |
| Washington DC | 23% | 24 |
| Wisconsin | 23% | 288 |
| Arkansas | 24% | 168 |
| Colorado | 24% | 210 |
| Delaware | 24% | 39 |
| Georgia | 24% | 446 |
| Indiana | 24% | 350 |
| Kansas | 24% | 141 |
| Kentucky | 24% | 258 |
| Maine | 24% | 58 |
| Massachusetts | 24% | 229 |
| Missouri | 24% | 320 |
| New Hampshire | 24% | 55 |
| Ohio | 24% | 609 |
| Pennsylvania | 24% | 465 |
| Vermont | 24% | 24 |
| West Virginia | 24% | 94 |
| Minnesota | 25% | 216 |
| Mississippi | 25% | 136 |
| Tennessee | 25% | 340 |
| Alaska | 29% | 25 |
ระเบียบวิธี เกี่ยวกับเรา และการติดต่อ
Drive Thru Index reads every McDonald's restaurant's menu from the chain's own ordering app every day, for pickup and for delivery. The markup is the average difference between the delivery and pickup price of each item priced for both, at the same restaurant on October 19, 2026, in US dollars. Delivery fees and service charges added at checkout are not included. By state figures need at least 15 restaurants.
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
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