McDonald’s Unveils New McValue Platform to Help Customers Save Money

McDonald’s is planning its business strategy for 2025, and a focus on affordability will continue to inform many of its decisions. Last week the fast food chain announced plans to roll out a new digital “McValue” platform in January that will display every special offer available to users, and help customers who are feeling the pinch from higher food costs easily leverage the deals available at the chain.

The platform, which rolls out January 7, is separate from the already existing McDonald’s app. Whereas the restaurant’s app does list the discounts that are available nationwide, it doesn’t always display any additional promotions that individual franchisees might be running in their restaurants.

In creating the McValue platform, the company hopes to bundle together and prominently display every possible way for customers to save money when ordering from McDonald’s. Beyond national and local discounts, this will also include exclusive deals that can only be found through McValue.

“When it comes to value, we know there’s no one-size-fits-all,” McDonald’s USA president Joe Erlinger said in the brand’s official announcement about the platform. “We worked closely with our franchisees to create a new platform that will let our customers define value on their own terms.”

Working with franchisees to determine the best way to carry out a new initiative or discount isn’t always the industry standard. Subway’s deal for $5 foot-long sandwiches was famously contentious, as franchisees pointed out that they were required to participate even though the promotion made it very difficult to break even.

For McDonald’s, listening to the voice of its franchisees has proven beneficial — as industry publication Restaurant Business reported recently, the company’s popular $5 Meal Deal was created by one of its local markets.

The $5 Meal Deal was so successful that alongside its plans for McValue, McDonald’s confirmed it will be extending the deal into the new year — and of course customers can find it on the platform. The meal, which launched in June, includes a McChicken or McDouble, a four-piece order of chicken nuggets, fries, and a drink, all for the price outlined in its name.

The response to this promotion has been resoundingly positive, as evidenced by the “great excitement and energy in our restaurants,” that Erlinger observed when it was announced. “It’s a way to really bring value and affordability to our customers at a time when the consumer is really stretched, feeling the stress of several years of inflation.”

One distinct feature of McValue will be a permanent deal dubbed “Buy One, Add One for $1.” This means that when patrons purchase one full-priced item, they can buy an additional menu item for just $1. For example, they might purchase a McMuffin at its regular price and add a Sausage Biscuit for $1, or grab a Filet-O-Fish and tack on a $1 order of Chicken Nuggets. 

This feature, coupled with the in-app deals, national discounts, and local promotions all accessible in one convenient platform, is setting McDonald’s up to potentially attract even more customers in 2025.