Fast food used to be synonymous with affordable meals, but these days some chains are charging sit-down restaurant prices for drive-thru convenience. While your wallet gets thinner at certain spots, other chains still honor the original fast food promise: quick, tasty food that won’t break the bank.
Let’s look at who’s gouging customers and who’s still serving up value.
1. Panera Bread
$11 for soup? Panera somehow convinced America that paying premium prices for basic comfort food is normal.
Their “fast casual” label tries to justify highway robbery for slightly upscale-looking sandwiches and salads. Remember when their bread bowl was a college student staple?
2. Shake Shack
Holy sticker shock! The basic ShackBurger starts at $6.19, and that’s before adding fries and a shake . Suddenly you’re out for what amounts to a slightly fancier version of a value meal elsewhere.
Sure, they use premium ingredients, but the portions would make a mouse ask for seconds.
3. Chipotle
Guac isn’t just extra—it’s extortion! A basic chicken burrito with guacamole can now set you back $13+. Chipotle was the affordable alternative to sit-down Mexican restaurants.
The worst part? They’ve mastered the psychological trick of making you feel like you’re still getting a deal while your bank account quietly weeps.
4. Five Guys
Highway robbery served with a side of peanuts! Their “little” burger is priced like a gourmet steakhouse sandwich, and their regular fries could feed a small village (which almost justifies the price).
Yes, the burgers are good. No, they’re not pay-your-car-payment good.
5. Starbucks
A Venti Caramel Frappuccino now costs what an entire breakfast used to. Starbucks has convinced us that paying luxury prices for coffee is normal through sheer force of pretentious Italian-sounding size names.
The “but it’s my little treat” justification starts to crumble when your monthly coffee spending exceeds your utility bill.
6. Sweetgreen
$15 for lettuce in a bowl should be a crime! Sweetgreen has somehow normalized paying premium restaurant prices for what amounts to ingredients most people have wilting in their crisper drawer.
Their marketing genius lies in making you feel virtuous for both eating healthy AND spending your entire food budget on a single meal.
7. Jamba Juice
Jamba Juice charges premium prices for what amounts to ingredients that cost pennies per serving. Their “boosts” add dollars to your total faster than you can say “highway robbery.”
The worst part? Those smoothies don’t even keep you full for more than an hour. You’re essentially paying luxury prices for colorful sugar water.
8. Pret A Manger
$13 for a pre-made sandwich smaller than your phone? Pret’s genius lies in making you feel sophisticated while emptying your wallet for basic lunch fare that wouldn’t impress a second-grader.
Their coffee subscription almost makes sense until you realize you’re locked into drinking their mediocre brew. The European café aesthetic fools Americans into thinking premium prices equal premium food.
9. Taco Bell:
Bless this Tex-Mex fever dream for keeping things affordable! While other chains inflate prices faster than a bounce house, Taco Bell’s value menu remains a beautiful constant in our chaotic world.
Their $5 boxes pack in more food than should be legally possible. Sure, nobody knows what’s actually in that beef, but at these prices, who’s asking questions?
10. Costco Food Court
$1.50 for a hot dog AND soda since 1985? Not even rampant inflation can touch this miracle of modern economics! The Costco food court stands as a monument to what fast food prices should be.
Their pizza slices are bigger than your face and cheaper than a gallon of gas.
11. In-N-Out Burger
Hallelujah for hamburger heroes who haven’t forgotten the meaning of value! In-N-Out’s Double-Double still costs less than most chains’ basic burgers, and it actually looks like the picture on the menu.
Their refusal to franchise keeps quality high and prices low. In-N-Out’s “secret menu” upgrades cost practically nothing.
12. Chick-Fil-A:
Praise the chicken gods! While their politics might be controversial, their pricing isn’t.
Chick-fil-A somehow maintains reasonable prices while serving food that doesn’t taste like it came from the bargain bin.
The real magic? Their app rewards program that actually gives you free food you’d want to eat. Plus, that sauce selection would make even fancy restaurants jealous.
13. Little Caesars
Little Caesars deserves a Nobel Prize in Economics! All for maintaining pizza prices that wouldn’t scare off a minimum wage worker.
Their Hot-N-Ready concept means no waiting, which saves both time and money. Sure, it’s not gourmet, but when you’re feeding hungry kids or drunk friends, nobody’s checking for artisanal crust.
14. Wendy’s
Bless Wendy’s for understanding that value meals should actually provide value! Their deals costs less than a single item at some competitors.
Their app deals frequently offer BOGO sandwiches that make feeding two people downright affordable. The square patties might be geometrically confusing, but there’s nothing puzzling about prices.
15. Del Taco
Hallelujah for Del Taco’s commitment to not emptying wallets! Their value menu makes other chains look like luxury restaurants.
Where else can you still get multiple tacos for less than the cost of a gallon of gas? The portions are actually filling too—no microscopic tacos here. Plus, they serve both Mexican AND American fast food.
16. Popeyes
Glory be to reasonable prices! Popeyes’ legendary chicken sandwich still costs less than $5 in most locations—practically theft considering its size and quality.
Their family meals could feed a small army for what competitors charge for individual combos. Their sides don’t feel like an afterthought, and they’re actually included in meal prices.