Priced on the same day at 441 Burger King and 416 Taco Bell restaurants. The clearest answer comes from the one product both chains sell that is exactly the same thing: a Dr Pepper costs $2.79 at Taco Bell and $3.19 at Burger King, 14% more.
On every item the two chains both sell, Burger King is the more expensive of the two. The gap is widest on fries and narrowest on bottled water.
A Whopper is not a Crunchy Taco, and no arithmetic makes it one. So this compares only what genuinely lines up, and says how closely each pair matches.
| What | How close | Taco Bell | Burger King | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A Dr Pepper | identical product | $2.79 | $3.19 | +14% |
| A bottle of water | same in kind | $1.99 | $2.19 | +10% |
| A medium portion of fries | same in kind | $2.79 | $3.49 | +25% |
Median across the restaurants that sell each item: a dr pepper at 231 and 441, a bottle of water at 264 and 441, a medium portion of fries at 395 and 440. A Dr Pepper is the same drink in both, so that gap is pricing and nothing else. The other two are the same thing in kind, not in brand.
Comparing like for like says one thing; the cheapest way in says another, and it is worth checking separately. At Taco Bell the cheapest single item that counts as food is usually a Cheesy Roll Up at $1.39; at Burger King it is usually Jalapeño Cheddar Bites at $1.69. Taco Bell is cheaper to get into.
By state, on the Dr Pepper alone, because it is the only pair identical enough to carry a state-level verdict. States with at least three sampled restaurants from each chain:
| State | Taco Bell | Burger King | Difference | Restaurants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oklahoma | $2.89 | $2.74 | -5% | 6 / 10 |
| Virginia | $2.89 | $3.19 | +10% | 6 / 10 |
| Arkansas | $2.89 | $3.29 | +14% | 3 / 9 |
| Pennsylvania | $2.89 | $3.29 | +14% | 6 / 10 |
| Utah | $2.79 | $3.19 | +14% | 4 / 10 |
| Colorado | $2.79 | $3.69 | +32% | 3 / 9 |
| Florida | $2.64 | $3.49 | +32% | 12 / 9 |
| California | $2.99 | $4.09 | +37% | 32 / 10 |
| Washington | $2.79 | $3.89 | +39% | 5 / 9 |
| Kansas | $1.99 | $3.39 | +70% | 5 / 10 |
25 states compared. Burger King is the cheaper of the two in 1 of them.
The median price of everything each chain sells is $2.99 at Taco Bell and $5.49 at Burger King. That number is on this page only to say that it is not used: Burger King lists far more meals and combos, so it mostly measures how each menu is written rather than what a customer pays. The comparisons above are built from named items instead.
Prices are what each chain's own ordering system quotes for pickup, not delivery, and they change. The price map shows the spread restaurant by restaurant.