We compared prices at Canada's biggest fast food chains to find the cheapest menu items
Where can you get low prices on burgers, fries, nuggets, drinks, and more? 🍔🍟
A&W food in a restaurant. Right: McDonald's sign at a location in Canada.
You might think that fast food restaurants in Canada are places to get meals at lower prices.
So, we decided to compare prices at the country's biggest chains to find out where you can get the cheapest menu items.
Narcity looked at the menus of five big national fast food chains with locations in all or most provinces: McDonald's, Wendy's, Burger King, A&W and Harvey's.
Then, we selected staple menu items — like burgers, fries, chicken nuggets, fountain drinks, and more — that you can get at each restaurant.
Since each of these fast food chains has different toppings and menu offerings, we chose items that are as similar as possible.
That includes similarities of ingredients and sizes.
So, here's how prices of eight menu staples compare at five of Canada's biggest fast food chains, including a breakdown of which restaurants have the cheapest items.
Burger
McDonald's: $2.79 for a burger topped with pickles, onions, ketchup and mustard on a toasted bun
Wendy's: $2.39 for a Junior burger topped with lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles and mayo on a sandwich bun
Burger King: $2.69 for a burger topped with pickles, mustard, and ketchup on a toasted sesame seed bun
A&W: $6.49 for a Mama Burger topped with pickles, onions, ketchup and mustard on a toasted sesame seed bun
Harvey's: $6.59 for a burger topped with whatever you want on a toasted bun
Cheeseburger
McDonald's: $3.39 for a burger topped with cheese, pickles, onions, ketchup and mustard on a toasted bun
Wendy's: $7.29 for a Dave's Single burger topped with cheese, lettuce, onion, pickles, ketchup and mayo on a toasted bun
Burger King: $3.09 for a burger topped with cheese, pickles, mustard and ketchup on a toasted sesame seed bun
A&W: $8.79 for a Teen Burger topped with cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomato, onions and pickles on a sesame seed bun
Harvey's: $7.39 for a burger topped with cheese and whatever you want on a toasted bun
Burger, fries and drink combo
McDonald's: $8.99 for a burger topped with cheese, pickles, onions, ketchup and mustard on a toasted bun, plus medium fries and a medium fountain drink
Wendy's: $13.44 for a Dave's Single burger topped with cheese, lettuce, onion, pickles, ketchup and mayo on a toasted bun, plus medium fries and a medium fountain drink
Burger King: $7.49 for a burger topped with cheese, pickles, mustard and ketchup on a toasted sesame seed bun, plus medium fries and a medium fountain drink
A&W: $14.09 for a Teen Burger topped with cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomato, onions and pickles on a sesame seed bun, plus regular fries and a regular drink
Harvey's: $12.29 for a burger topped with cheese and whatever you want on a toasted bun, plus regular fries and a regular fountain pop
Fries
McDonald's: $4.39 for medium-sized fries
Wendy's: $4.19 for medium-sized fries
Burger King: $3.49 for medium-sized fries
A&W: $4.19 for regular-sized fries
Harvey's: $3.89 for regular-sized fries
Poutine
McDonald's: $4.99 for a regular poutine
Wendy's: $5.19 for a regular poutine
Burger King: $5.49 for a regular poutine
A&W: $6.59 for a regular poutine
Harvey's: $6.19 for a regular poutine
Chicken nuggets
McDonald's: $5.79 for six-piece chicken nuggets — $0.96 per nugget
Wendy's: $3.69 for six-piece chicken nuggets — $0.61 per nugget
Burger King: $2.99 for eight-piece chicken nuggets — $0.37 per nugget
A&W: $10.99 for five-piece chicken strips — $2.19 per strip
Harvey's: $4.99 for five-piece chicken nuggets — $1.24 per nugget
Chicken wraps
McDonald's: $7.99 for a chicken and bacon wrap, sweet chilli chicken wrap or creamy chipotle chicken wrap
Wendy's: $7.39 for a grilled chicken wrap, spicy chicken wrap or classic chicken wrap
Burger King: $3.29 for a spicy chicken wrap or a ranch chicken wrap
A&W: $3.89 for a bacon chicken wrap or a spicy chipotle chicken wrap
Harvey's: $8.29 for a grilled chicken wrap or crispy chicken wrap
Fountain drinks
McDonald's: $1.29 for a medium-sized Coke, Sprite, iced tea or root beer
Wendy's: $3.29 for a medium-sized Coke, Sprite or root beer
Burger King: $2.49 for a medium-sized Coke, Sprite, iced tea, lemonade or root beer
A&W: $2.99 for a regular-sized Coke, Sprite, iced tea or root beer
Harvey's: $3.09 for a regular-sized Pepsi, 7-Up, iced tea or root beer
WHO HAS THE CHEAPEST MENU ITEMS?
Now that we've gone through the costs of classic menu items at these five fast food chains, let's get into which restaurant has the cheapest prices.
Five of the menu items are cheapest at Burger King: cheeseburger, fries, chicken nuggets, chicken wraps and the burger, fries and fountain drink combo.
Two are cheapest at McDonald's (fountain drinks and poutine), and only one is cheapest at Wendy's (regular burger).
A&W and Harvey's didn't have the lowest price for any of the classic menu items that were compared.
So, it seems like Burger King is the cheapest of these fast food chains in Canada!
Even though Burger King dominated, most of Canada's big fast food chains do have cheap options, it just depends on what you order.
These prices are confirmed at the time of publishing, but they can change at any time. Taxes and fees may not be included.
This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.