McDonald’s is one of the world’s most popular restaurants, but the company has been witnessing a troubling shift in customer behavior lately as the economy has strained many of its customers, forcing them to reduce their visits.
Considering that prices in the quick service restaurant (QSR) industry have increased sharply and fast food has become significantly more expensive than in the past, customers cannot be blamed. When I went recently, a six-piece set of McNuggets, a small Sprite, and small fries cost me about $8. Crazy expensive, right? Still, it’s not uncommon to go to McDonald’s and see menu deals valued at over $10; This makes the cost of lunch or dinner for a small family feel more like a regular meal than fast food.
Unfortunately, the situation doesn’t seem to be getting any better. The latest inflation data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index shows food prices away from home are on the rise 3.7% every year in September.
With prices rising, it’s little wonder more people are skipping the Drive-Thru option; According to Placer.ai, this trend has worsened, increasing the pressure on McDonald’s.
McDonald’s (MCD) foot traffic decreased 3.5% overall in the third quarter, according to a recent report from Placer.ai. However, looking at the data, the numbers are even more worrying. New store openings partially compensated for this figure. When you remove these locations from the equation, traffic at stores open at least a year dropped by 4%.
McDonald’s foot traffic has declined as consumers shrink in the face of rising prices.Image Source: Chip East/Bloomberg via Getty Image” loading=”eager” height=”540″ width=”960″ class=”yf-1gfnohs loader”/>
McDonald’s foot traffic has decreased as consumers shrink due to rising prices.Image Source: Chip East/Bloomberg via Getty Image
“The quick-service category is under pressure from multiple fronts: persistent inflation, changing consumer behavior, value menu burnoutand even the increasing adoption of GLP-1 weight loss drugs damping Demand for food consumed away from home,” Placer.ai wrote.
Consumers are increasingly cautious about spending, especially households with lower total incomes, which are McDonald’s main customers. Rising layoffs and inflation outpacing wage increases are a major and persistent headwind.
“We have low-income consumers who are under pressure; their visits to QSR [industrywide] “We had a double-digit decline again in Q2,” McDonald’s CFO Ian Borden said in the company’s second-quarter earnings call.
Year of foundation: 1940
Number of locations worldwide: 43,477 in 2024.
Annual revenue: $25.9 billion in 2024.
Employees: Over 2 million worldwide, including franchisees. Source: SEC 10-K filing.
McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski said the pressure on low-income customers was driven by a decline in inflation-adjusted incomes and worsening sentiment, possibly due to uneasiness about tariffs and rising unemployment.
Unemployment rate in the USA in August 4.3%It reached the highest level since 2021 and increased from 3.4% in 2023.
Placer.ai says McDonald’s foot traffic this summer is tracking well into 2024, and that trend has worsened recently, leading to a 4.4% decline in September visits.
September 2025: -4.4%
August 2025: -4.4%
July 2025: -1.8%
McDonald’s foot traffic was positive in April, before most of the latest tariffs went into effect. CPI inflation has increased since then from 2.3% to 3%.
McDonald’s isn’t the only QSR chain experiencing a decrease in foot traffic. This is an industry-wide problem. Wendy’s traffic, for example, was worse in the third quarter, dropping 6.5%.
To address the problem and get people back to their locations, McDonald’s is using many methods, including:
Directing more customers to the loyalty program to increase visits.
It’s returning Snack Wraps to its menu in July at a low national price of $2.99.
We are launching the Extra Value Meal in September.
We’re bringing the popular Monopoly game back to loyalty members on October 6th.
On its second-quarter earnings conference call, McDonald’s confirmed plans to double down on deals and encourage more franchisees to adopt national pricing; That’s a challenge, given that franchisees face very different labor costs and other expenses from market to market.
“Current wage rates across the U.S. are pretty diverse. So we need to respect that and work with franchisees on how to figure this out in a way that suits everyone’s P&L. It’s not easy, but I think we’ve demonstrated the ability for the $5 Meal Deal, the $2.99, to come together and do it. But it all takes a lot of conversation and collaboration,” Kempczinski said.
“Re-engaging the low-income consumer is critical because they visit our restaurants more frequently than middle- and high-income consumers,” Kempczinski said.
This is especially true for McDonald’s loyalty program members. Its program has more than 185 million 90-day active users across 60 global markets, and visits increase significantly after someone signs up in the US. On average, visits to McDonald’s increased from 10.5 times to 26 times in the year after joining.
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