McDonald’s will expand its $5 value meal in most US markets when customers visit restaurants again

McDonald’s plans to extend the $5 menu beyond its original four-week period in most U.S. markets as it claims the offer will bring customers back to its restaurants.

In a memo to its U.S. system obtained by CNBC on Monday, executives wrote that nearly all business units, or 93% of restaurants, voted to extend the promotion beyond its original end date at the end of this month. The majority of sites will vote to extend it through August, according to the memo.

The $5 menu will appear on menus starting June 25 and was originally scheduled to last about a month. It includes a McChicken or McDouble, four chicken nuggets, fries and a drink. The combination costs significantly less than buying each individual item separately.

“Our message is resonating with our millions of customers,” Myra Doria, national field president, and Tariq Hassan, U.S. chief marketing and customer experience officer, wrote in the memo. “When our customers are ordering the $5 Meal Deal, they aren’t visiting the competition, and early performance shows this deal is meeting the objective of driving guests back to our restaurants.”

The move comes at a time when restaurants are offering special deals to boost sluggish foot traffic as customers, especially lower-income groups, shy away from higher prices following years of inflation-related price hikes. The menu is facing competition from other chains, including Burger King, Wendy’s, Taco Bell and even Starbucks, with prices trading in the $3 to $5 range as the companies try to attract price-conscious customers in a competitive environment.

The memo further added, “We must remember that driving guest counts ultimately propels our business and is the key to sustained growth.”

Coca-Cola provided marketing funds to make its initial low-price offer more attractive to franchisees, CNBC reported in May. Some franchisee advocates had called for the company to make future contributions to make the discount offer more sustainable for operators in the long term.

The company is due to report earnings on July 29.