This Is the Best-Selling McDonald's Menu Item of All Time (2024)

Remember being a kid, in the car with your parents, when you’d spot a red and yellow McDonald’s logo on the side of the road? You’d sit up and ask in a hectic, hurried voice, “Can we stop at McDonald’s?”

Sometimes the answer was no, but when it was a yes, that changed everything. Nothing was more exciting than coming home with McNuggets, fries and a Happy Meal toy.

Now that we’re grown-ups, we can’t help but wonder: What’s the best-selling item on the McDonald’s menu?

The Most Popular Thing at McDonald’s Is…

…the french fries! Are you surprised? I doubt it. Ever since the first McDonald’s menu from when the chained opened in the 1950s, french fries have been a star. The famous Golden Arches sell upward of 9 million pounds of fries per day! That’s a whole ‘lotta large fries. How can anything be so gosh darn tasty?

Well, there’s a scientific reason McDonald’s are so good. It has a lot to do with the perfect combination of salt, sugar and fat. McDonald’s uses specific potatoes like Russet Burbank, Ranger Russet, Umatilla Russet and Shepody potatoes to get the right base. Then, with a genius combination of oil and salt, these french fries get launched into the delicious atmosphere. Basically, once you start eating them, you just can’t stop.

What Else Are People Obsessed With?

Not long ago, Taste of Home covered a top 10 list of the most popular items at McDonald’s. While fries took the number one spot, some of our other favorites weren’t much further down. The double cheeseburger comes in at #9 while McNuggets swoop in at #7. I remember begging for these nuggets when I was kid! The Egg McMuffin (my absolute favorite) takes its place at #5 while the Happy Meal takes #4, and the famous Big Mac sits just behind fries at #2.

McDonald’s wouldn’t comment on updated sales numbers for any of its menu items. But these World Famous Fries are in every McD’s restaurant around the world!

Now if only they’d bring back the Snack Wrap.

Melany has been writing food news for Taste of Home for four years. Her knowledge of current culinary trends comes from her extensive time spent on FoodTok and scouring Instagram for any unusual food, charcuterie design or coffee shop creation. Apart from freelancing, she has worked at bookstores like Barnes & Noble and Half Price Books and as a barista. She has always wanted a career in writing, and got her start at Taste of Home. When she’s not working, Melany is playing the latest video game, curled up with a book or spending time with her cats.