If you're ever out and about, you know the pain of trying to find food at an affordable price. But, through some careful planning, there might be a way where you can make it through a whole day of fast food meals with just one crisp $20 bill from McDonald's Canada.
So, to try and figure out if there is a way to make this work, we analyzed the menu of one of Canada's most affordable fast food restaurants to try and figure out if there is a way to live off of $20 if you're ordering from the Golden Arches.
Of course, should you attempt this, be careful because we all need different amounts of food intake per day and sometimes saving money on fast food is not as crucial as getting a square meal that will nourish you — so be aware that your lifestyle might not work for $20, bump it up to $30 or $40.
So, with that being said, here is the little experiment where we tried to find out if it was possible to eat for a whole day off of $20 from one of Canada's fast food giant McDonald's.
However, double-check your local prices, as that can change from location to location.
Breakfast
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, at least that's what they say. It also might be the one with the most affordable options.
One of the densest and cheapest options you can probably go for, fast food wise, is something resembling a complete breakfast, such as a breakfast burrito and coffee from McDonald's.
The breakfast burrito is a tortilla wrap with scrambled eggs, sausage bits, processed cheese, green peppers and onions and it will cost you $3.14 after taxes.
Add the coffee, which runs about $1.67, and you've got yourself a breakfast worth roughly $4.81.
However, that's not the cheapest option for a snack and coffee. If you get a muffin and coffee deal and opt for the small cup of Joe, that will only run you about $2.99 after taxes. While lighter, it could very well do the job, so, in the interest of this exercise, we will choose the muffin and coffee.
Muffin and coffee from McDonald's: $2.99
Money left over: $17.01
Lunch
Lunch is one of those meals which can be many different things. Is an apple and some chips lunch? Or is a steak and fries lunch? Of course, it depends on the person, but here's a basic outline of a potentially full lunch from a Canadian fast food joint.
But, looking at the McDonald's menu, once again, you're options for a cheap full meal are limited, however, you're not completely up the creek without a paddle.
Your cheapest option would likely be taking a look at the McPicks, which offer some great value for fries and a burger. The cheapest option is the hamburger, $2.61 after taxes, but depending on how the rest of your day is going, finance-wise, you might even be able to spring for the cheeseburger, $2.93 after taxes.
Along with that, you can grab a small bag of fries and you'll have a light lunch that will cost you less than $6.
Hamburger, small fry from McDonald's: $5.63
Money left over: $11.38
Dinner
At this point, this is the meal that you might actually have the most options on, especially if you have that $11.38 kicking around.
If those smaller meals left you feeling a bit cold, you could spend part of your budget on one item for your dinner by getting something like a Big Mac, $7.33 after taxes, or a McWrap, $9.03 after taxes.
If you're looking to have a bit, like a little bit, of change left over for some snackage, you could get the full Junior Chicken meal which would cost you $9.82 after taxes and that meal comes with the junior chicken, medium fries and medium drink.
After some analysis of what you get from it, it might be the best value for your money.
Junior Chicken Meal from McDonald's: $9.82
Money left over: $1.56
Snack
Well, if you've gone this far and followed the lead for all the other choices, you don't have a lot of money left over for a snack. Only $1.56 can't buy you a lot these days.
However, you're in luck at McDonald's because you know what only costs $1.04 after taxes? One of their cookies, either brownie or chocolate chunk.
Once you buy that you'll have a whopping $0.52 left over.
Look at that, you're 52 cents ahead of your budget the next day. Heck, if you eat this every day — and it's not suggested that you do — you could have enough to buy a house in a major Canadian city in 1,923,076.92 days, aka 5,268.70 years! That's assuming the average cost is exactly $1 million.
And who said young people didn't know how to budget?
A cookie from McDonald's: $1.04
Money left over: $0.52
We should also say, once again, that this might not be the ideal meal for you, but it is only a guide to help you know some of the cheapest options when dining out at places like the fast food giant McDonald's.
And this is also assuming that you can eat meat, dairy, gluten and all that other stuff. This would undoubtedly change for anyone with any kind of food restrictions.
Along with this, it should also be said that Narcity isn't a nutrition expert and that this list is based entirely on the cost of the items. Only someone who knows you and your needs can say what you should or shouldn't order.
But one thing we do know over here at Narcity is how to save money.
For those looking to save some cash out there, you should also check out the best-frozen pizzas in the market, some of which were also some of the cheapest ones you can get at your local grocery store.
