McDonald’s rolls out new value menu with extended $5 meal deal

McDonald’s on Tuesday began rolling out new value menu items at its restaurants to boost foot traffic among price-conscious customers.

The McValue menu category, part of the fast-food company’s comeback strategy, offers customers “buy one, get one for $1” options for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

The company is also rolling out app-specific offers to attract customers to the platform, such as free medium fries with a $1 purchase every Friday in 2025 and a free McCrispy Chicken Sandwich for new app users.

The company said local franchisees are also launching their own special offers on items such as McGriddles and app-exclusive offers such as 20% off on $10 orders.

McDonald’s operates more than 13,500 restaurants in the United States.

During the company’s third-quarter earnings call in October, executives said the company was working to build a “more comprehensive U.S. value platform” starting this year to stand out from competitors.

The quick-service restaurant sector has suffered a second straight quarter of declining customer traffic as inflation-conscious consumers dine more at home. McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski said the trend continued in the third quarter.

The company “anticipated a challenging environment in 2024,” but its performance for the year fell short of expectations, Kempczinski said.

He acknowledged that the “value leadership gap has shrunk.” In response, Kempczinski said the company “moved with urgency in partnership with our franchisees” to improve its value proposition in most of its major markets.

The company also announced Tuesday that it would extend its $5 meal deal for a second time. The deal will run through next summer and become part of the McValue platform.

In October, McDonald’s Chief Financial Officer Ian Bowden said the $5 meal deal helped “drive customers back to our restaurants” in the third quarter.

Bowden said the deal, which launched in June, “particularly with low-income consumers, successfully growing traffic share with this group for the first time in over a year.”

The new Value Menu platform includes:

The $5 menu includes your choice of a McDouble or McChicken sandwich with a small portion of fries, four Chicken McNuggets, and a small soft drink for $5.

The McValue “Buy One, Add One for $1” Breakfast menu includes the following items: