It’s not just you — fast food has gotten expensive. According to the latest Consumer Price Index Summary, the cost of “limited service meals” is up 6.2% since October 2022. In contrast, overall inflation is up 3.2% over that same period, and full-service restaurant meals are up 4.3%.
I don’t eat fast food often, but I’ve been around long enough to remember when $5 bought you a feast at your local McDonald’s or Taco Bell. Those days are now long gone — restaurant price aggregator PriceListo notes that the average item price at McDonald’s is now $5.41. So your $5 may not even fully cover the cost of a sandwich, let alone a drink and a side of fries to go with it. With prices like these, what’s a hungry person to do? Try these hacks to make your fast food budget go further and keep those credit card bills down.
1. Download the app
Here’s a tip I would use myself if I ate fast food more frequently (usually, it’s more of a road trip thing for me). Just about every fast food joint worth its salt has a mobile app now, where you can order food and likely save money in the process. When you get the McDonald’s app and join the restaurant’s rewards program, you get a free large order of fries when you make a $1 minimum purchase, and you also get the chance to earn points on eligible orders. You can turn these points into free food later.
2. Order a kids’ meal
Ordering off the kids’ menu is basically always going to be cheaper than not, because you’re getting less food (makes sense, right?). This may not be such a bad thing, however. Getting a kids’ meal means a smaller portion that might still be enough food for you, and you can’t argue with the lower price point. Plus, free toys!
3. Buy cheap gift cards
This hack introduces a middle man, but since it’ll save you money, it’s worth checking out. Costco sells gift cards at a discount (including lesser-known ones) when you buy them in bulk. It’s Costco, after all. For example, right now you can get $60 worth of Krispy Kreme gift cards for just $44.99. Prefer Subway? $75 worth of Subway gift cards will run you $64.99. Yes, these do make excellent stocking stuffers, but you could also get them for yourself and translate the savings to your own fast food meals in 2024.
4. Do the survey on the receipt
These days, it’s rare that I don’t get a receipt with a request that I scan a QR code or go to a URL and complete a survey. Often, the thanks I’d receive for doing so is the chance at a big prize — for example, the survey on my grocery receipt from this morning offered me an entry in a drawing to win free groceries for a month. But check the bottom of your fast food receipt carefully, as completing the survey could mean a free side or drink the next time you come in.
5. Use a food delivery service
I’m a big fan of food delivery app DoorDash, and ordering fast food through it has the potential to save you some money (note: I don’t recommend trying this unless you’re already a subscriber to a delivery service, as otherwise the extra fees you’ll be charged will eat up those savings).
For example, I just opened the DoorDash app and found several fast food coupon offers. If I spend at least $20 (and order a Dr. Pepper) at Wendy’s, I’ll save $5. And if I spend $20 at KFC (no Dr. Pepper required), I can save $4.
Rising prices are just a part of everyday life in America, apparently. Thankfully, with a little planning and strategy, you can still make the hit to your checking account a little bit less when you visit your favorite fast food drive-thru.
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