McDonald’s comes in last in customer satisfaction in fast food study

McDonald’s may be making progress in winning back inflation-weary customers with initiatives like lower-priced meals and bigger, more filling burgers, but it still ranks last in a customer satisfaction study for the second year in a row.

The American Customer Satisfaction Index (ASCI) recently released its annual 2024 Restaurant and Food Delivery Study, which ranks the top 23 quick-service restaurant chains in the United States, as well as a selection of smaller chains. Created in 1994, the ASCI serves as an economic indicator that measures consumer satisfaction across a range of products and services.

To arrive at its annual findings, ASCI uses customer interview data to calculate a restaurant’s satisfaction score from 0 to 100 using a range of criteria, including accuracy of food order, quality and variety of food and beverages, courtesy and helpfulness of staff, layout and cleanliness of the restaurant, quality and reliability of the mobile app, layout and cleanliness of the restaurant, speed of checkout or delivery, and satisfaction with the website.

While McDonald’s once again came in last, it actually gained two points to 71, up from 69 in the 2023 study. It’s closely followed by Jack in the Box and Popeyes at 72, followed by Taco Bell at 73, and Subway at 74. Meanwhile, Chick-fil-A leads in customer satisfaction for the tenth year in a row with a whopping 85 points.

As for why McDonald’s is consistently ranked so low, former McDonald’s CEO Mike Haracz has floated a few theories on his popular TikTok account, where he regularly divulges insider tips.

“McDonald’s is the biggest restaurant, so there are more people who go there than anywhere else,” Haracz says. “There are more people who have an opinion, there may be some bias because everyone has been there, so there’s a bigger pool of information.”

“People are more likely to leave a negative review than a positive one, that’s just the way the world works,” he continued. “But let’s be very clear here, in terms of percentage and as the study shows, yes, McDonald’s is not very good at customer satisfaction.”

However, Haracz also notes that McDonald’s burgers used to rank lowest in customer satisfaction, prompting the company to introduce Quarter Pounders made with fresh beef. Given all the changes the chain has made in recent months, it will be interesting to see if it can improve its score in next year’s study.