Which McDonald's Has The Cheapest Big Mac In The US?
The McDonald's Big Mac has been a staple of the fast food chain's menu since its inception in 1967 when it cost a mere $0.45. However, as the decades go on, inflation rises and prices must go up. Food analytics website Pantry & Larder shared their McCheapest map, which shows the most and least expensive Big Macs in all of the United States. On the map, a Big Mac sold in Stigler, Oklahoma, in 2023, cost just $3.45. For comparison, the priciest sandwich was located in Lee, Massachusetts, costing $8.09, more than twice what it would in Stigler. By checking prices on DoorDash, we confirmed that the Oklahoma burger stands at $4.99 and the Massachusetts location stayed about the same, only rising up to $8.19. Big Mac prices tend to rise yearly due to inflation, labor costs, and operational prices.
Pantry & Larder founder Veronica Fletcher elaborated on the map with Food & Wine. "Everyone can relate to the price of a McDonald's," Fletcher said. "By using every McDonald's location, users can zoom into their area and check where their cheapest Big Mac is." The goal was to create a useful guide for consumers hunting for a deal. And although the map hasn't been updated since 2023, its information can still be used to give a broad idea about which locations in your area may have cheaper prices.
Why did the Big Mac cost go up?
McDonald's released a fact sheet last year that dove deep into the truths about their pricing. The average overall price of a Big Mac jumped 21% from 2019 to 2024, with the median price rising from $4.39 to $5.29. The increase is connected to the rise of costs to run restaurants, with increased wages for workers carrying part of that cost. The standard price across most McDonald's menu items went up 40% over the last five years as food and paper prices soared.
If we go back even farther to 2000, the sandwich averaged about $2.24, according to the Economist's Big Mac Index. By 2005, the price was $2.58 and in 2013, the burger cost $4.18. The Big Mac Index was created in 1986 by the financial publication to gauge the prices of the product throughout the years and by comparing burgers in other countries.