Which McDonald's menu items get you the most calories/dollar?

Lots of people opt for McDonald's as a cheap/convenient source of (questionably healthy) food. We thought it would be interesting to pair the nutritional data with prices to see which menu items actually get folks the most calories for their dollar.

Which menu items get you the most calories per dollar?

Assuming we're optimizing for just calories (energy), these items will provide you the most per dollar:

mcd most cal dollar

Conversely, these foods offer you the least calories per dollar spent:

mcd least cal dollar

Which menu items get you the most protein calories per dollar?

Of the 3 macronutrients, protein is the most expensive. There are a ton of benefits to getting adequate protein in your diet, so instead of optimizing for just calories/dollar, it may be in your interest to look for foods with the most protein calories per dollar.

mcd most pro cal dollar

Conversely, these foods offer you the least protein calories per dollar spent:

mcd least pro cal dollar

Check out the complete menu here:

Here are the key stats for the items I was able to quickly gather information on. Grabbed the prices here (set for Michigan so could be higher/lower depending on your area, but will give you relative guidance), and the nutrition information here.

//csv to html dump here: http://www.convertcsv.com/csv-to-html.htm

Food Price Calories Protein Calories Calories/Dollar Protein Calories/Dollar
Sausage Biscuit (Regular Size Biscuit) $1.27 430 44 339 35
McChicken $1.07 360 56 336 52
Sausage McMuffin $1.27 370 56 291 44
Cheeseburger $1.07 300 60 280 56
Cinnamon Melts $1.70 460 24 271 14
Baked Hot Apple Pie $0.95 250 8 263 8
McDouble $1.49 390 88 262 59
Double Cheeseburger $1.70 440 100 259 59
Vanilla Triple Thick Shake (16 fl oz cup) $2.77 693 52 250 19
Sausage Burrito $1.27 300 48 236 38
Sausage Burrito $1.27 300 48 236 38
French Fries (Medium) $1.70 340 16 200 9
Ranch Snack Wrap (Crispy) $1.81 360 56 199 31
Big Breakfast (Regular Size Biscuit) $3.73 740 112 198 30
Chicken McNuggets (40 pc.) $9.62 1880 384 195 40
Mac Snack Wrap $1.81 330 60 182 33
Ranch Snack Wrap (Grilled) $1.81 290 72 160 40
Double Cheeseburger $2.76 440 100 159 36
Sausage, Egg & Cheese McGriddles $3.52 560 80 159 23
Vanilla Reduced Fat Ice Cream Cone $1.07 170 16 159 15
Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese $5.13 740 192 144 37
Sausage McMuffin with Egg $3.20 450 84 141 26
Sausage McGriddles $2.99 420 44 140 15
Fruit 'n Yogurt Parfait (7 oz) $1.07 150 16 140 15
Hash Brown $1.07 150 4 140 4
Big Mac $4.27 540 100 126 23
Quarter Pounder with Cheese $4.06 510 116 126 29
Bacon, Egg & Cheese Biscuit $3.41 420 60 123 18
McFlurry with Oreo Cookies (12 fl oz cup) $2.56 315 52 123 20
Chicken Selects Premium Breast Strips (3 pc) $3.20 384 92 120 29
Bacon, Egg & Cheese McGriddles $3.52 420 60 119 17
Southern Style Crispy Chicken Sandwich $4.16 430 96 103 23
Cheeseburger $2.99 300 60 100 20
Egg McMuffin $2.99 300 72 100 24
Orange Juice (Medium) $2.02 200 12 99 6
Chicken McNuggets (10 piece) $4.80 470 96 98 20
Hamburger $2.66 250 48 94 18
Filet-O-Fish $4.06 380 60 94 15
Premium Bacon Ranch Salad with Crispy Chicken $4.91 450 116 92 24
McDouble $4.27 390 88 91 21
Egg White Delight McMuffin $2.99 250 72 84 24
Apple Slices $1.07 70 0 65 0
Premium Southwest Salad with Grilled Chicken $5.13 330 120 64 23
Side Salad $1.7 20 4 12 2

Hope you enjoyed the post.