McDonald’s customers are once again calling out the fast-food giant over the size of its burgers, with one viral Reddit post sparking commotion over just how thin a standard beef patty appears. A photo shared to Reddit’s r/shrinkflation—a popular Subreddit filled with complaints about shrinking portions for higher prices, especially when it comes to fast food—shows a McDonald’s burger with a patty that looks noticeably thinner than the slice of cheese sitting on top of it.
The post, titled “McDonald’s meat is now thinner than its cheese,” quickly sparked a debate about whether the chain’s burgers have actually gotten smaller—or whether customers are simply noticing how thin the patties have always been.
McDonald’s meat is now thinner than its cheese
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u/esporx in
shrinkflation
Customers Say McDonald’s Burgers Are Getting Smaller
The original post received more than 16,000 upvotes, with one commenter claiming they had recently received a burger that looked especially skimpy.
“I have coupons for free food, but everything is different now and barely edible,” they wrote, adding that the patty was reportedly 1.6 ounces before cooking and just 28 grams afterward.
Others were quick to agree with the sentiment. “So sad. Avoid at all costs. Let them burn/learn,” one person commented.
Another Reddit user joked about the size, writing, “So it’s a zip.”
But not everyone believed the photo proved shrinkflation.
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Has McDonald’s Actually Shrunk Its Patties?
Several commenters pointed out that McDonald’s standard patties have traditionally been made using a "10:1" ratio, meaning 10 patties are produced from a pound of beef. That works out to about 1.6 ounces per patty before cooking.
One person who said they had worked at McDonald’s explained that the standard patties were "10:1" and questioned whether anything had actually changed.
Another commenter who said they currently work at McDonald’s wrote: "It is but we get this post literally daily."
When another user asked why the patties look noticeably thinner if the weight hasn't changed, the employee responded: "It’s not."
McDonald’s itself says its U.S. burger patties are made with 100% USDA-inspected beef, with no fillers or preservatives. The company also says its classic burgers—including the Hamburger, Cheeseburger, McDouble and Big Mac—use its standard beef patties.
Why Do the Patties Look So Thin?
Some Redditors suggested that cooking could be responsible for at least some of the dramatic difference in appearance.
"Changing the fat/lean ratio and water content will cause patties to shrink into these communion wafers to capitalist Jesus," one commenter wrote.
Another speculated that the patties could have a higher moisture content before cooking, causing them to shrink more when that water cooks out.
That doesn't necessarily mean McDonald's has reduced the amount of beef in its patties, however. The standard 1.6-ounce measurement is a pre-cooking weight, and beef naturally loses moisture and fat during cooking.
Still, that hasn't stopped customers from feeling like they're getting less for their money.
"Does it still taste like hot, greasy salt?" one Reddit user joked, while another simply declared, "Generous to call it meat."
For now, the Reddit debate appears to be less about definitive proof of shrinkflation and more about a familiar frustration among fast-food customers: when prices go up, they expect their food to at least look as substantial as it used to.
