DRAFT — not yet published
The same Classic Roast Beef costs $5.39 at one California Arby's and $9.24 at another
As fast food pricing becomes more data-driven, Drive Thru Index compared the pickup prices of the same items at 2,929 restaurants of five chains in California. Within each chain, prices for the same item differ by up to 71% from one restaurant to the next.
Data as of .
Key facts
- Arby's Classic Roast Beef: $5.39 to $9.24 (+71%)Cheapest in Mission Hills, CA, most expensive in Baker, CA; median $6.69, 31% above Arby's US median.
- McDonald's Big Mac: $5.39 to $8.99 (+67%)Cheapest in Twentynine Palms, CA, most expensive in Blythe, CA; median $6.89, 15% above McDonald's US median.
- Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme: $5.39 to $8.29 (+54%)Cheapest in Marysville, CA, most expensive in Sacramento, CA; median $6.99, 4% above Taco Bell's US median.
- Burger King Whopper: $6.59 to $9.99 (+52%)Cheapest in Monrovia, CA, most expensive in Los Angeles, CA; median $7.89, 25% above Burger King's US median.
- KFC Chicken Sandwich: $5.29 to $7.99 (+51%)Cheapest in Coalinga, CA, most expensive in Duarte, CA; median $6.19, 15% above KFC'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.
Arby's: a Classic Roast Beef costs $5.39 at the Arby's in Mission Hills, CA and $9.24 at the Arby's in Baker, CA, $3.85 (71%) more. Across its 59 restaurants in California, the median is $6.69, 31% above Arby's US median of $5.09.
McDonald's: a Big Mac costs $5.39 at the McDonald's in Twentynine Palms, CA and $8.99 at two McDonald's restaurants in Blythe and Needles, CA, $3.60 (67%) more. Across its 1,238 restaurants in California, the median is $6.89, 15% above McDonald's US median of $5.99.
Taco Bell: a Crunchwrap Supreme costs $5.39 at seven Taco Bell restaurants in Marysville, Yuba City, Grass Valley, Gridley and Lincoln, CA and $8.29 at two Taco Bell restaurants in Sacramento, CA, $2.90 (54%) more. Across its 842 restaurants in California, the median is $6.99, 4% above Taco Bell's US median of $6.69. At the theme park in Universal City, CA, it costs $8.99.
Burger King: a Whopper costs $6.59 at three Burger King restaurants in Monrovia, Twentynine Palms and Yucca Valley, CA and $9.99 at four Burger King restaurants in Los Angeles, Oceanside, San Marcos and Vista, CA, $3.40 (52%) more. Across its 447 restaurants in California, the median is $7.89, 25% above Burger King's US median of $6.29.
KFC: a Chicken Sandwich costs $5.29 at the KFC in Coalinga, CA and $7.99 at two KFC restaurants in Duarte and San Gabriel, CA, $2.70 (51%) more. Across its 343 restaurants in California, the median is $6.19, 15% above KFC's US median of $5.39. At the theme park in Universal City, CA, it costs $12.99.
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.
Quote, please approve“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.
Quotable lines
The same Arby's Classic Roast Beef costs $5.39 in Mission Hills, CA but $9.24 in Baker, CA.
The same McDonald's Big Mac costs $5.39 in Twentynine Palms, CA but $8.99 in Blythe, CA.
The same Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme costs $5.39 in Marysville, CA but $8.29 in Sacramento, CA.
The same Burger King Whopper costs $6.59 in Monrovia, CA but $9.99 in Los Angeles, CA.
The same KFC Chicken Sandwich costs $5.29 in Coalinga, CA but $7.99 in Duarte, CA.
Images
The facts behind the release
Every figure is from our prices of 2026-10-01, with the page on this site that shows it.
| Figure | Value | Where to see it |
|---|---|---|
| Arby's Classic Roast Beef: $5.39 to $9.24 (+71%) | Cheapest in Mission Hills, CA, most expensive in Baker, CA; median $6.69, 31% above Arby's US median. | See the page |
| McDonald's Big Mac: $5.39 to $8.99 (+67%) | Cheapest in Twentynine Palms, CA, most expensive in Blythe, CA; median $6.89, 15% above McDonald's US median. | See the page |
| Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme: $5.39 to $8.29 (+54%) | Cheapest in Marysville, CA, most expensive in Sacramento, CA; median $6.99, 4% above Taco Bell's US median. | See the page |
| Burger King Whopper: $6.59 to $9.99 (+52%) | Cheapest in Monrovia, CA, most expensive in Los Angeles, CA; median $7.89, 25% above Burger King's US median. | See the page |
| KFC Chicken Sandwich: $5.29 to $7.99 (+51%) | Cheapest in Coalinga, CA, most expensive in Duarte, CA; median $6.19, 15% above KFC's US median. | See the page |
| Cheapest Arby's Classic Roast Beef (restaurants) | $5.39 (1) | Mission Hills, CA |
| Most expensive Arby's Classic Roast Beef (restaurants) | $9.24 (1) | Baker, CA |
| Cheapest McDonald's Big Mac (restaurants) | $5.39 (1) | Twentynine Palms, CA |
| Most expensive McDonald's Big Mac (restaurants) | $8.99 (2) | Blythe, CA, Needles, CA |
| Cheapest Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme (restaurants) | $5.39 (7) | Grass Valley, CA, Gridley, CA, Lincoln, CA, Marysville, CA, Marysville, CA, Yuba City, CA, Yuba City, CA |
| Most expensive Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme (restaurants) | $8.29 (2) | Sacramento, CA, Sacramento, CA |
| Most expensive overall (theme park) | $8.99 (1) | Universal City, CA |
| Cheapest Burger King Whopper (restaurants) | $6.59 (3) | Monrovia, CA, Twentynine Palms, CA, Yucca Valley, CA |
| Most expensive Burger King Whopper (restaurants) | $9.99 (4) | Los Angeles, CA, Oceanside, CA, San Marcos, CA, Vista, CA |
| Cheapest KFC Chicken Sandwich (restaurants) | $5.29 (1) | Coalinga, CA |
| Most expensive KFC Chicken Sandwich (restaurants) | $7.99 (2) | Duarte, CA, San Gabriel, CA |
| Most expensive overall (theme park) | $12.99 (1) | Universal City, CA |
Methodology, about and 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 1, 2026, in US dollars. The area covers every restaurant in California. 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: {{press_contact_email}}
Background sources
Not part of the release: reporting that backs up its one line of context, for questions from journalists.
- 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.