McDonald’s breakfast has long been one of the fast-food chain’s biggest draws. Who doesn’t love to grab a sausage biscuit, McMuffin, or another breakfast sandwich on the go? But some customers say the chain’s prices have gotten so high that even something as simple as adding an egg no longer feels worth the cost.
One McDonald’s customer recently took to Reddit to call out what they saw as a particularly frustrating example of the chain’s pricing: the cost of eggs.
“What kind of labor goes into a folded egg that it cost $4 more in a sausage biscuit. Is it hard to pour a premade mixture and cook it?” they wrote in a post on the r/McDonalds subreddit. This spurred a larger conversation about the chain’s rising prices—and the willingness of customers to pay for the convenience of fast food.
McDonald’s Customers Are Questioning The Price Of Its Eggs
The frustrated Reddit user pointed out that they could purchase a side of round eggs for $3.39 at their location, which they said were “fresh cracked and cooked,” rather than paying the higher price for the folded egg included in a breakfast sandwich.
In the comments, they went on to explain that they ultimately didn’t purchase the McDonald’s eggs, and made their own at home instead. But they said they were really pointing out what they considered to be the chain’s “terrible pricing.”
Other Reddit users weighed in, with some pointing out that McDonald’s egg prices can vary significantly depending on location.
“In my neck of the woods, it’s $2.09 for scrambled, $1.59 for round. BEC runs $3.89,” one person commented.
Another person argued that the issue isn’t necessarily whether the eggs are expensive to produce, but whether customers are willing to pay the price.
“It’s not about cost. It’s about your willingness to pay,” they wrote. “It hasn’t been about cost in a long time.”
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Customers Say McDonald's Breakfast Isn't A Bargain Anymore
Some commenters weren't surprised by the price, arguing that customers are paying for the convenience of getting breakfast from McDonald's rather than preparing it themselves.
"Like a lot of things at McDonalds, it is overpriced and you could certainly save money making it yourself at home. You pay a price for convenience,” one person wrote.
Another commenter took the comparison even further, saying that buying basic breakfast ingredients at the grocery store can make far more food for the same amount of money.
"A dozen eggs, a pack of twenty sausages, pack of cheap cheese, and a dozen bagels will give you 12 sandwiches for about $20," they wrote. "Or you could keep going to McDonald's."
That comparison resonated with at least one customer, who summed up their frustration with the chain's changing value proposition: "That's almost the same price of an entire dozen. They're McDreaming."
"The breakfast used to be cheap and convenient. Now it's neither," another commenter wrote. "The McDonalds brand has lost everything they were built on."
One commenter explained why the chain's folded eggs may not be as simple to prepare as they appear. According to the Reddit user, the folded eggs arrive precooked, are thawed in the refrigerator for 24 hours, and are then reheated on the grill before being served.
Whether customers consider McDonald's eggs worth the price seems to come down to the same question many fast-food customers are increasingly asking: How much is convenience worth when the price starts approaching what you'd spend on an entire grocery-store meal?
