The Latest McDonald's-Burger King Battleground: $6 Meal Deals

Nevin Barich

Nevin Barich

LOS ANGELES , December 18, 2018 () – The war between McDonald’s and Burger King continues. The latest battleground? $6 meal deals.

Last month, McDonald's announced the launch of its $6 Classic Meal Deal, which includes one entrée, small fries, a drink or sweet tea of any size, and an apple pie or seasonal pie. Customers can pick from one of four entrées: a Quarter Pounder with cheese, a Big Mac, 10-piece McNuggets, or a Filet-O-Fish sandwich.

Then earlier this month, Burger King launched its $6 King Box. The bundled deal comes with a choice of entrée (Whopper, Crispy or Spicy Crispy Chicken Sandwich, or three-piece chicken tenders), a small fries, a small drink and two chocolate chip cookies.

The latest back-and-forth between the two burger chains follows a similar pattern: Burger King going on the offensive. The war began in the late 1970s when Burger King to generate increased market and mind-share by attacking the size of bigger rival McDonald's hamburgers.

More recently, Burger King announced it was "turning more than 14,000 McDonald's into Burger King restaurants." If customers went within 600 feet of a McDonald's location until Dec. 12, they could order a Whopper for one penny via the revamped Burger King app.

Burger King was also the instigator in a brief attempt to unite the two rivals. On Aug. 26, 2015, Burger King released an open letter to McDonald's proposing a joint promotion for Peace Day called the "McWhopper,” a combination of the two restaurants' signature burgers. The overture was rejected by McDonald's, a response that drew mostly criticism for its tone and the sense of a missed opportunity. 

These $6 meal deals are certainly not the first battleground between McDonald’s and Burger King. What else is certain? It won’t be the last.

Nevin Barich is the Food and Beverage Analyst for Industry Intelligence, which can help YOU better address your own industry challenges. We invite you to come take a look at our service. Call us today at 310-553-0008 and we’ll schedule you for a 15-minute demo.

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