DRAFT — not yet published
The same Whopper costs $6.59 at one Los Angeles Burger King and $9.99 at another
As fast food pricing becomes more data-driven, Drive Thru Index compared the pickup prices of the same items at 722 restaurants of five chains in the Los Angeles area. Within each chain, prices for the same item differ by up to 52% from one restaurant to the next.
Data as of .
Key facts
- Burger King Whopper: $6.59 to $9.99 (+52%)Cheapest in Monrovia, CA, most expensive in Los Angeles, CA; median $7.99, 27% above Burger King's US median.
- KFC Chicken Sandwich: $5.49 to $7.99 (+46%)Cheapest in Norwalk, CA, most expensive in Duarte, CA; median $6.19, 15% above KFC's US median.
- McDonald's Big Mac: $5.59 to $7.99 (+43%)Cheapest in San Fernando, CA, most expensive in Lakewood, CA; median $6.59, 10% above McDonald's US median.
- Popeyes Classic Chicken Sandwich: $5.49 to $7.49 (+36%)Cheapest in Burbank, CA, most expensive in Culver City, CA; median $5.99, 3% above Popeyes' US median.
- Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme: $5.49 to $7.49 (+36%)Cheapest in Burbank, CA, most expensive in Anaheim, CA; median $6.99, 4% above Taco Bell'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.
Burger King: a Whopper costs $6.59 at the Burger King in Monrovia, CA and $9.99 at the Burger King in Los Angeles, CA, $3.40 (52%) more. Across its 86 restaurants in the Los Angeles area, the median is $7.99, 27% above Burger King's US median of $6.29.
KFC: a Chicken Sandwich costs $5.49 at the KFC in Norwalk, CA and $7.99 at two KFC restaurants in Duarte and San Gabriel, CA, $2.50 (46%) more. Across its 87 restaurants in the Los Angeles area, 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.
McDonald's: a Big Mac costs $5.59 at the McDonald's in San Fernando, CA and $7.99 at nine McDonald's restaurants in Lakewood, Downey, Hawaiian Gardens, Long Beach, Maywood and Seal Beach, CA, $2.40 (43%) more. Across its 314 restaurants in the Los Angeles area, the median is $6.59, 10% above McDonald's US median of $5.99.
Popeyes: a Classic Chicken Sandwich costs $5.49 at two Popeyes restaurants in Burbank and Hawthorne, CA and $7.49 at three Popeyes restaurants in Culver City, Glendale and Torrance, CA, $2.00 (36%) more. Across its 72 restaurants in the Los Angeles area, the median is $5.99, 3% above Popeyes' US median of $5.79.
Taco Bell: a Crunchwrap Supreme costs $5.49 at the Taco Bell in Burbank, CA and $7.49 at 15 Taco Bell restaurants in Anaheim, Buena Park, La Habra, La Mirada, Downey, Fullerton, Hollywood, Long Beach, Santa Fe Springs, South Gate and Whittier, CA, $2.00 (36%) more. Across its 163 restaurants in the Los Angeles area, 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.
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 Burger King Whopper costs $6.59 in Monrovia, CA but $9.99 in Los Angeles, CA.
The same KFC Chicken Sandwich costs $5.49 in Norwalk, CA but $7.99 in Duarte, CA.
The same McDonald's Big Mac costs $5.59 in San Fernando, CA but $7.99 in Lakewood, CA.
The same Popeyes Classic Chicken Sandwich costs $5.49 in Burbank, CA but $7.49 in Culver City, CA.
The same Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme costs $5.49 in Burbank, CA but $7.49 in Anaheim, 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Burger King Whopper: $6.59 to $9.99 (+52%) | Cheapest in Monrovia, CA, most expensive in Los Angeles, CA; median $7.99, 27% above Burger King's US median. | See the page |
| KFC Chicken Sandwich: $5.49 to $7.99 (+46%) | Cheapest in Norwalk, CA, most expensive in Duarte, CA; median $6.19, 15% above KFC's US median. | See the page |
| McDonald's Big Mac: $5.59 to $7.99 (+43%) | Cheapest in San Fernando, CA, most expensive in Lakewood, CA; median $6.59, 10% above McDonald's US median. | See the page |
| Popeyes Classic Chicken Sandwich: $5.49 to $7.49 (+36%) | Cheapest in Burbank, CA, most expensive in Culver City, CA; median $5.99, 3% above Popeyes' US median. | See the page |
| Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme: $5.49 to $7.49 (+36%) | Cheapest in Burbank, CA, most expensive in Anaheim, CA; median $6.99, 4% above Taco Bell's US median. | See the page |
| Cheapest Burger King Whopper (restaurants) | $6.59 (1) | Monrovia, CA |
| Most expensive Burger King Whopper (restaurants) | $9.99 (1) | Los Angeles, CA |
| Cheapest KFC Chicken Sandwich (restaurants) | $5.49 (1) | Norwalk, 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 |
| Cheapest McDonald's Big Mac (restaurants) | $5.59 (1) | San Fernando, CA |
| Most expensive McDonald's Big Mac (restaurants) | $7.99 (9) | Downey, CA, Hawaiian Gardens, CA, Lakewood, CA, Lakewood, CA, Lakewood, CA, Lakewood, CA, Long Beach, CA, Maywood, CA, Seal Beach, CA |
| Cheapest Popeyes Classic Chicken Sandwich (restaurants) | $5.49 (2) | Burbank, CA, Hawthorne, CA |
| Most expensive Popeyes Classic Chicken Sandwich (restaurants) | $7.49 (3) | Culver City, CA, Glendale, CA, Torrance, CA |
| Cheapest Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme (restaurants) | $5.49 (1) | Burbank, CA |
| Most expensive Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme (restaurants) | $7.49 (15) | Anaheim, CA, Anaheim, CA, Buena Park, CA, Buena Park, CA, Downey, CA, Fullerton, CA, Hollywood, CA, La Habra, CA, La Habra, CA, La Mirada, CA, La Mirada, CA, Long Beach, CA, Santa Fe Springs, CA, South Gate, CA, Whittier, CA |
| Most expensive overall (theme park) | $8.99 (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 restaurants within 25 miles (40 km) of downtown of Los Angeles, 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: {{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.