Introduction to Food Delivery Costs
McDonald’s takes a huge bite of American wallets. A new study by Financial Tech Company Himself unpacked surprising statistics related to delivery applications in the United States to better understand the increasing costs for fast food.
Methodology of the Study
By ordering the same McDonald’s order in the 100 largest cities in the nation on all major delivery apps – Doordash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub – their search also resulted in gaping price differences in the USA. Each order included a Big Mac combo meal, a quarter pounder with cheese deluxe meals, a 6-piece chicken McNuggets Happy Meal, and a Hamburg Happy Meal.
Price Comparison
In 2025, the study showed that the average costs of this order were $36.95 in a restaurant – an increase of 23.7% since 2023. This price was almost doubled when it was delivered via delivery apps from third-party providers with average costs of $62.36 – a 7.8% increase since 2023.
Variations in Delivery Costs
In the 2023 study, they found that the same order for delivery between 100 cities varied up to $33.88. While the price of food increased by 19.3% between 2023 and 2025 alone, there are also delivery fees, service fees, sales tax, and other urban fees that are taken into account.
Comparison of Delivery Apps
In the 2025 study, Doordash turned out to be the most expensive delivery option, with the food having a price of $63.21, which is 71.1% higher than buying directly from the golden arches. Uber Eats was the second most expensive app with a 69.4% surcharge of $62.60, and Grubhub was the cheapest with $61.26, which corresponds to an increase of 65.8%.
Surcharge Trends
In 2023, the average surcharge between the direct order at McDonald’s and the use of a delivery app was 93.8% – and despite the price increases since 2025, the results showed that the metric decreased on average to 68.6%. Uber Eats alone had the biggest difference in the study and fell by 34.8% between 2023 and 2025.
Delivery Driver Tips
The study also took into account 15% for the delivery drivers in a tip, although this is not necessarily mandatory, and some people can choose a different tip option.
Conclusion and Recommendations
According to the examination, the cheapest option for McDonald’s would be to pick them up. However, if you use a delivery app, the cheapest option is the app that has the best discount code for you at the time of order. The authors of the study also emphasized that the data comes from an analysis that only focused on McDonald’s. "McDonald’s is a large company that can afford to keep its markup lower than smaller companies. As a result, price healing for a local independent restaurant can even be higher or if you carry out an action, it can be lower."
