INCREDIBLE

OFFER!

$200 Bonus + Up to 5% Cash Back

Earn a $200 bonus after spending $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening.

Plus, enjoy 0% intro APR for 15 months on both purchases and balance transfers (then 18.24% - 27.74% Variable APR).

APPLY NOW

Member FDIC

9 Fast-Food Value Menus That Still Feel Like 2019 Prices

These meal combos all fall into approximately the $5 to $7 range.

By Cassandra Yorgey , Edited by Amanda Machado

Updated Aug. 8, 2026

Add Us On Google

Cruising through the drive-thru comes with sticker shock these days, and a surprisingly long wait that leaves customers wondering why they didn't just order from a higher-end restaurant for the same price.

The expectation of fast food is that it's both fast and cheap, allowing customers to stretch a restaurant budget further in exchange for convenience. Rising prices combined with lowered quality and quantity have consumers wondering where they can still get a cheap meal on the go, and we've found the best value menu deals for your dollars.

Learn which fast food value meals offer the best deals.

Editor's note: Prices and availability are subject to change and may vary by location.

Earn $200 cash rewards bonus with this incredible card

The Wells Fargo Active Cash^® Card (Rates and fees) has no annual fee and you can earn $200 cash rewards bonus after spending $500 in purchases in the first 3 months.

Cardholders can also earn unlimited 2% cash rewards on purchases.

The best part? There's no annual fee.

Click here to apply now.

Taco Bell

Classic Luxe Box: $5

The dollar-to-food ratio on Taco Bell's Classic Luxe Box is a solid deal, but only if you don't want any add-ons like toppings or sauces. The value meal comes with a Beefy 5-layer Burrito, Crunchy Taco, Cinnamon Twists, and a medium fountain drink. The customizations are where the total starts to rise quickly, so adding things like tomatoes, lettuce, or sauce costs extra. Buying just the burrito individually costs $4.19.

Make Money: 8 dumb ways to make money (almost anyone can do this)

Dunkin'

$6 Meal Deal: $6

Getting coffee to go has become a luxury quickly cut from daily budgets as prices rise. A single medium iced coffee is nearly $5 on its own, but Dunkin' has a $6 meal deal that comes with a medium coffee (iced or hot) and two Wake-Up Wrap sandwiches. A single wrap is priced individually at $3.89, and the total combo would cost $12.68 without the combo meal deal.

Cook Out

Tray Combo: $7.39

You have to go in person to pick up your food, but the Cook Out value combo leaves customers with a substantial amount of food.

Each Tray Combo comes with a choice of a burger, two hot dogs or quesadillas, a chicken sandwich, or chicken strips. Then customers can choose two sides from options of a bacon wrap, cheese bites, nuggets, corn dog, fries, hushpuppies, onion rings, quesadilla, coleslaw, or chili. Finally, the meal can be topped off with a milkshake.

Earn as much as $1K doing simple online tasks

A company called Freecash has compiled all sorts of quick cash tasks from about a dozen advertisers and market research companies thirsty for more data. Freecash has paid out over $13 million to users since 2019, and has over 50,000 five-star reviews on Trustpilot.

Kentucky Fried Chicken

Box Feast: $7

When you want to skip the burger, head to KFC for the Box Feast. It comes with a Snacker (small chicken sandwich with pickles and mayo), five nuggets, fries, a medium drink, and one dipping sauce choice for $7. Extra sauces cost an additional $0.29 each, though, so that can add up quickly if you need a few. The total cost of the meal deal if purchased individually is $12.76.

Little Caesars

Crazy Puffs Crave Combo: $4.99

Little Caesars consistently offers some of the lowest-priced pizza among the chain options, and that's before even looking at the special deals and combos.

The Crazy Puffs combo gets you four Crazy Puffs (either cheese or pepperoni) and a 16oz. Mountain Dew, which is perfect for eating pizza on the go. Each Crazy Puff is the size of a handheld meat pie, and is roughly equivalent to a slice of pizza from a standard pie. Buying the two items individually would cost $6.98.

Bojangles

Southern Gravy Biscuit Combo: $7.79

Second breakfast? Yes, please! Bojangles offers all-day breakfast combos, which sets them apart from other fast food options.

It's also the only chain that serves biscuits and gravy, and the combo meal deal gives customers a hot open-faced biscuit covered in country-style sausage gravy, Bo-tato rounds (hashbrowns), and a coffee (or other medium drink). Priced individually, these would add up to $10.97.

Don't miss: 8 clever ways to save money so you can still afford to eat out

Sonic

Big Deal Meal: $7

Sonic Drive-In gives off the nostalgic vibes by using carhops on roller skates to serve food in a classic 50s drive-in setup and has some of the lowest-priced value menu items. The Big Deal Meal combo gives customers a cheeseburger, small premium chicken bites, medium tots or fries, and a medium drink. Individually, these would add up to a total of $16.86.

Checkers & Rally's

$5 Meal Deal: $5

Checkers & Rally's has three Meal Deals for $5 to choose from: Loaded Tender Wrap, Spicy Chicken, or a Classic Burger. Each comes with the named entree, 8-piece Chicken Bites, value-sized fries, and a small drink.

A regularly priced Spicy Chicken combo is $7.90 and only includes the sandwich, small fries, and a small drink. Even upgrading the $5 Meal Deal to a medium size comes in at less than the standard combo ($6.60).

McDonald's

$5 Meal Deal: $5

The Golden Arches have been the go-to for American fast food, but the meal prices have gotten shockingly high over the years. If you like the McChicken or the McDouble, you can now get it as a meal for just a five-spot. The customer can choose between either sandwich, and it comes with a 4-piece nugget box, small fries, and a small drink.

Earn as much as $1K doing simple online tasks

Bottom line

The base prices on fast food remain at all-time highs, but good deals are returning to the Value Menus after a prolonged period of dwindling customer sales. As more households struggle to tackle high grocery costs, budgets for little "luxuries" like fast food dwindle.

Prices for fast food without a special value deal are nearly the same as dining at a regular restaurant, despite being poorer quality and generally less healthy. Bringing fast food options back into the $5 to $7 range for a meal makes it an affordable on-the-go option for the average consumer again.

More from FinanceBuzz: