McDonald’s is using artificial intelligence to help determine menu prices for individual restaurants in the United States and some international markets. As a result, the price of items such as a Big Mac can vary between locations that are geographically close, including cases where restaurants are owned by the same franchisee.
Both outlets report that the approach relies on AI tools that examine local conditions. The systems consider factors including local demand, competitor pricing, and patterns in customer spending to recommend pricing. McDonald’s describes the effort as a way to improve profitability.
The sources also highlight potential downsides and scrutiny. One outlet notes that such highly localized pricing can frustrate customers expecting uniform prices and may attract attention from competition or antitrust regulators, given concerns that pricing practices could reduce competition or influence market behavior. Another outlet focuses more directly on how customers may pay different amounts for the same item depending on the specific restaurant.
