The
Price guide
McDonald's in the United Kingdom: what to order and what it costs
What is McDonald's like in the UK?
McDonald's opened its first UK restaurant in 1974. Today it is one of the country's most familiar high-street names, and one of the cheapest places on our UK lists to buy a hot meal. By the middle price of the items we list, it is the third cheapest of the 33 UK chains we track, behind only Greggs and Caffè Nero.
Like most McDonald's around the world, UK restaurants are mostly run by franchisees, so prices can differ from branch to branch. The figures on this page are a guide, not a guarantee. We explain where they come from at the end.
What are the best-value items on the UK menu?
The cheapest hot burger on our list is the Double Cheeseburger at £3.59. The Big Mac costs £4.19, which is 60p more, and the Quarter Pounder with Cheese is £4.79.
That makes the Double Cheeseburger a strong choice if you're hungry and watching the bill. Add a medium Coca-Cola at £1.19 and you pay £4.78 in total, which is one penny less than a Quarter Pounder on its own.
Here is how the main items compare:
| Item | Price | Compared with a Big Mac |
|---|---|---|
| Double Cheeseburger | £3.59 | 60p cheaper |
| Big Mac | £4.19 | — |
| Quarter Pounder with Cheese | £4.79 | 60p more |
| 9 Chicken McNuggets | £7.49 | £3.30 more |
| Big Arch with Bacon | £11.29 | £7.10 more |
The Big Arch with Bacon stands out. At £11.29 it costs almost three times as much as a Big Mac. It may be a meal price rather than a burger on its own, so check the app before you order.
How much are the sides, drinks and desserts?
Small extras add up quickly, so it helps to know what they cost:
- Large fries: £3.39
- Mozzarella Dippers: £3.59
- Medium Coca-Cola: £1.19
- Cornetto Classico McFlurry: £3.59
- Cornetto Strawberry McFlurry: £3.59
A Cornetto McFlurry costs the same as a Double Cheeseburger, so it's worth deciding which you want most. The Cornetto flavours are named after the well-known ice-cream brand.
The 9-piece McNuggets work out at about 83p per nugget. If you want a chicken snack, that's a useful number to keep in mind when you compare it with KFC, where a single Original Recipe piece is £2.99 on our lists.
Do you pay tax or tip at McDonald's in the UK?
No extra tax appears at the till. UK menu prices already include VAT, which is 20% on hot food. There's also no tipping at McDonald's counters or kiosks.
Since 1 October 2024, UK employers must pass on tips in full to staff, but a tip isn't expected at fast-food chains. For more on how bills work in Britain, see our UK eating-out guide.
Is McDonald's cheaper in the restaurant or on a delivery app?
Usually the restaurant. Delivery platforms often list higher prices than the counter, and they add delivery and service fees on top. Our UK McDonald's prices come from a menu aggregator that draws on delivery-platform listings, so a price on our list may be higher than the price at a restaurant counter.
If you order delivery often, our delivery markup calculator shows what the extra fees really cost. Ordering through the McDonald's app or collecting from the restaurant is often cheaper, and the app runs deals you won't see on a printed menu.
What are the alternatives to McDonald's in the UK?
If you want something different for a similar price, try these:
- Greggs: sausage rolls and bakes from £1.70, the cheapest chain on our UK lists.
- Burger King: a Whopper costs £7.99 on our lists, so it sits higher than McDonald's burgers.
- Wendy's: a similar burger menu, with a lower middle price than most burger chains.
- Five Guys: made-to-order burgers at a higher price.
To see how McDonald's works in other countries, read our McDonald's guide.
How did we get these prices?
McDonald's doesn't publish one UK price list, so we use a third-party menu aggregator, Menuspot. We fetched its McDonald's page on 8 September 2026. It isn't tied to one restaurant, and it reflects delivery-platform pricing.
That means these prices are representative, not exact. Your local restaurant may charge less, or a little more. We show the date we last verified the menu at the top of the page, and you can read how we check prices on our methodology page.