Calories, nutrient density, protein, and prices across 45 tracked McDonald's items.
The McDonald's menu we track spans 18 to 1195 calories. Of 45 items, 23 are single-serving meals, 7 are sides, 6 are drinks or desserts, and 4 are sauces or condiments that no ranking should treat as food.
45 items carry a full USDA nutrient panel. On NRF9.3 they run from 170.98 (Side Salad) down to -10.63 (Sausage Biscuit), and 8 of them score below zero.
On NRF9.3, the median McDonald's meal ranks 9th of 11 chains we score: 8 chains above it and 2 below, measured the same way for all of them.
| Chain | Median NRF9.3 | Meals scored | Median calories | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5th | Wendy's | 9.0 | 7 | 367 |
| 6th | KFC | 8.9 | 20 | 121 |
| 7th | Domino's | 6.6 | 7 | 310 |
| 8th | Pizza Hut | 6.4 | 15 | 293 |
| 9th | McDonald's | 5.9 | 23 | 378 |
| 10th | Burger King | 5.2 | 16 | 470 |
| 11th | Popeyes | 4.4 | 11 | 134 |
The chains either side of McDonald's, of 11 ranked. Higher NRF9.3 is better: nine nutrients to encourage against three to limit, per 100 calories. A chain scored on few items is easy to flatter, so the meal count is on every row.
There is no price column. Store-level prices are proven for Taco Bell and not yet for the other chains, so a price ranking here would be one measured row and twelve guesses. It goes in when the data does.