In a moment of somewhat questionable laziness, I decided that having a McDonald’s delivered could be an option for dinner.
When I spotted that delivery was just 99p, it almost didn’t seem worth getting in the car and driving to the restaurant. For 99p, why not just have it brought to the door?
So I started adding a few items to my order.
As the basket grew, though, something didn’t quite seem right.
I’m not enough of a regular McDonald’s customer to know the entire menu by heart, but I have a vague idea of what some of the items cost. The prices I was seeing on the delivery menu seemed a little higher than I remembered.
That got me thinking.
Was I imagining it? Or does McDonald’s actually charge different prices depending on whether you collect your food or have it delivered?
So I decided to investigate.
And what I found probably helps explain how McDonald’s can advertise delivery for just 99p.
The 99p delivery that isn’t quite 99p
For the purposes of this comparison, let’s imagine I’ve decided to have a small gathering with friends.
We’ve picked 16 items from the McDonald’s menu. It’s a somewhat random selection, but stick with me.
We’re now deciding whether to have the food delivered for 99p, or send one of us to the restaurant to collect it.
At first glance, the 99p delivery option sounds like an easy decision.
But before we get to the delivery charge, let’s look at the price of the food itself.
The same food, different price
I compared the prices shown in the McDonald’s app for collection against the prices shown when ordering for delivery.
Here are the results:
| Product | Collection price | Delivery price | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Big Arch® with Bacon | £9.49 | £11.19 | +£1.70 |
| Big Arch® | £8.59 | £9.89 | +£1.30 |
| Big Mac® | £5.19 | £6.19 | +£1.00 |
| Double Quarter Pounder™ with Cheese | £6.69 | £7.79 | +£1.10 |
| Quarter Pounder™ with Cheese | £5.49 | £6.19 | +£0.70 |
| Hot Honey McCrispy® | £7.49 | £8.99 | +£1.50 |
| Cheese & Bacon McCrispy® | £7.19 | £8.29 | +£1.10 |
| Spicy McCrispy® | £6.09 | £7.19 | +£1.10 |
| McCrispy® | £6.09 | £7.19 | +£1.10 |
| McChicken® Sandwich | £4.79 | £5.89 | +£1.10 |
| Double Filet O Fish® | £5.59 | £6.59 | +£1.00 |
| Filet O Fish® | £4.79 | £5.69 | +£0.90 |
| Double Cheeseburger | £2.59 | £3.59 | +£1.00 |
| Cheeseburger | £1.59 | £2.59 | +£1.00 |
| Mayo Chicken | £1.59 | £2.59 | +£1.00 |
| McPlant® [VE] | £5.19 | £6.19 | +£1.00 |
| Total | £88.44 | £106.04 | +£17.60 |
And this is where things get interesting.
The exact same 16 items cost £88.44 to collect, but £106.04 for delivery.
That’s an extra £17.60 before we’ve even paid for the delivery.
In percentage terms, the food is 19.9% more expensive when ordered for delivery in this comparison.
The average difference across the 16 items is £1.10 per item.
Some differences are even larger. The Big Arch with Bacon, for example, increases from £9.49 to £11.19, a difference of £1.70 on a single burger.
Now let’s add the delivery charges
This is where the 99p headline becomes a little less straightforward.
McDonald’s displays the following additional fees:
| Fee | Cost |
|---|---|
| Delivery | £0.99 |
| Service charge | 10% of the basket value, capped at £2.99 |
| Small order charge | £1.50 if the order is under £10 |
| Bag fee | £0.10 in Scotland and Wales |
Our imaginary order is comfortably above £10, so the small order charge doesn’t apply.
That leaves us with:
| Charge | Cost |
|---|---|
| Food, collection | £88.44 |
| Additional food cost for delivery | £17.60 |
| Delivery fee | £0.99 |
| Service charge | £2.99 |
| Bag fee | £0.10 |
| Total delivery cost | £110.12 |
So how does it all stack up?
£88.44 versus £110.12.
If one of us drives to McDonald’s and collects the 16 items, the food costs £88.44.
If we have exactly the same food delivered, the total becomes £110.12.
That’s a difference of £21.68.
Or, put another way, our delivery order costs 24.5% more than collecting the food ourselves.
And only 99p of that £21.68 is the actual delivery charge.
The remaining £20.69 comes from the higher menu prices, service charge and bag fee.
That’s the part I hadn’t really appreciated when I saw the “Delivery £0.99” message.
So is this a hidden charge?
There is an important distinction here.
McDonald’s isn’t hiding the fact that its prices can vary.
At the bottom of the menu, it explicitly states: “Menu item prices vary by store & channel. Review prices before checkout.”
So McDonald’s is telling customers that the prices can differ depending on how and where you order.
The difference simply hadn’t really registered with me until I actually put the two menus side by side.
And that’s why I think it’s worth highlighting.
The cost of convenience
There’s nothing inherently wrong with paying more for delivery. It’s a pattern I keep bumping into, not so different to the markup on a pre mixed can of Jack Daniel’s and Coke compared to making it yourself, just with a takeaway instead of a drinks cabinet.
If you’re unable to get to your local McDonald’s, having someone bring the food to your door for 99p can look like a pretty good deal.
Even if you’re perfectly capable of collecting it yourself, you might decide that paying an extra £21.68 on this particular order is worth it for the convenience.
That’s entirely a personal decision.
The important thing is knowing what you’re actually paying.
I had initially looked at “Delivery £0.99” and mentally calculated that getting the food delivered would only cost me another 99p.
It doesn’t.
The 99p is just one part of the cost.
The food itself can be more expensive through the delivery channel, and then the service and other applicable charges are added on top.
The Sensible Spender verdict
This isn’t an article telling you not to order McDonald’s delivery.
It’s about understanding the cost of convenience.
A 99p delivery charge sounds extremely cheap, and on its own, it is.
But if the menu prices are higher when ordering for delivery, the true cost of choosing delivery can be considerably more than that headline figure suggests.
In my example, the difference was £21.68 on an £88.44 collection order.
That’s almost a quarter more for having the food delivered.
So next time you see “Delivery £0.99”, don’t just compare the delivery charge.
Check the menu prices too.
That extra minute of checking could tell you whether you’re getting a genuine bargain, or simply paying for the convenience in a different way.
McDonald’s prices are also one of the ten items I track every month in the Sensible Basket, and I’ve written before about what a Big Mac has done over 35 years of inflation if you want the longer term picture on McDonald’s pricing.
Prices in this article were taken from the McDonald’s app and compared between collection and delivery. McDonald’s states that menu item prices vary by store and channel, so prices may differ depending on your location and when you order.
Interesting!