McDonald’s extends $5 deal through December to keep customers coming

Advertisement

Advertise with us

McDonald’s is extending its $5 value meal until December at most U.S. stores, a move that rivals are likely to follow.

Read this article for free:


or

Already have an account? Log in here »

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Subscribe and receive a limited-edition Free Press branded hat or tote.

Digital Subscription

One year of digital access for only $205*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles

*First annual payment billed as $205.00 + GST for one year. This annual subscription will automatically renew at $233.00 + GST every 52 weeks (10% off the regular annual price of $259.35). Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional

$1 for the first 4 weeks*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles
Start now

*Your next Brandon Sun subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $17.95 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.95 plus GST every four weeks.

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 12/09/2024 (726 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

McDonald’s is extending its $5 value meal until December at most U.S. stores, a move that rivals are likely to follow.

McDonald’s introduced the deal in June after a disappointing first quarter that saw fewer U.S. visits and lower spending per order, particularly from customers earning less than $45,000 per year. The $5 Meal Deal includes a McDouble burger or McChicken sandwich, small fries, a four-piece Chicken McNuggets and a small drink.

It’s the second time McDonald’s has extended the deal, which was originally only to last a month.

FILE - A sign is shown in front of an McDonald's restaurant in Pittsburgh on April 23, 2022. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)
FILE - A sign is shown in front of an McDonald's restaurant in Pittsburgh on April 23, 2022. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)

“Together with our franchisees, we’re committed to keeping our prices as affordable as possible,” McDonald’s U.S. President Joe Erlinger said Thursday.

As grocery price inflation has slowed, more people are choosing to eat at home. U.S. restaurant sales were up slightly in July, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. But that was largely because of higher menu prices. Adjusted for inflation, restaurant sales fell 0.7% from July 2023, according to the National Restaurant Association.

Rivals like Burger King quickly followed McDonald’s with their own $5 meal deals. Burger King recently extended its deal through October.

Wendy’s, which already offered a $5 meal deal, started throwing in a free Frosty in June. Now, it’s offering a $5 meal deal targeted at college football fans, with no delivery fees every Saturday this fall.

The deals are lifting store traffic. Placer.ai, which uses cellphone data to monitor retail traffic, said U.S. visits to McDonald’s rose 2.5% in June after the $5 meal deal was introduced and have remained elevated ever since.

Placer.ai said Taco Bell saw a 12.3% increase in visits the week of July 29 when it offered free drinks to celebrate the 20th anniversary of its Baja Blast.

Fast-food restaurants aren’t the only ones offering deals to get customers in the door. Earlier this week, Domino’s Pizza announced a monthlong deal that will let customers upgrade one medium pizza to a large for free if they buy two medium pizzas for $6.99 each. And Olive Garden recently announced that its Never-Ending Pasta Bowl special — which includes soup or salad, breadsticks and pasta for $13.99 — will run through Nov. 17.

McDonald’s said it will also offer other deals this fall, including free medium fries every Friday with a $1 minimum purchase and $1 10-piece Chicken McNuggets between Nov. 4 and Dec. 2.

Report Error Submit a Tip

More Stories

What’s open, what’s closed, what’s up in Winnipeg on Labour Day

Free Press staff 4 minute read Preview

What’s open, what’s closed, what’s up in Winnipeg on Labour Day

Free Press staff 4 minute read Friday, Sep. 4, 2026

Here's a roundup of hours of business for services and things to do on September 7.

Read
Friday, Sep. 4, 2026

The first day of school is a promise

Ann Evangelista 6 minute read Preview

The first day of school is a promise

Ann Evangelista 6 minute read 2:00 AM CDT

This week, thousands of Manitoba students will walk through school doors carrying backpacks filled with new supplies, new hopes and, for some, new worries.

For parents and caregivers, this may be a familiar September routine — shopping for school supplies, adjusting schedules, preparing lunches and getting children ready for another year of learning.

For educators and school staff, it is the beginning of another demanding year.

But for Manitoba, this week should mean something more. It should be a renewal of our promise to every child.

Read
2:00 AM CDT

Slow start but gritty play not enough in Bombers OT loss to Roughriders in Labour Day Classic

Ken Wiebe 7 minute read Preview

Slow start but gritty play not enough in Bombers OT loss to Roughriders in Labour Day Classic

Ken Wiebe 7 minute read Sunday, Sep. 6, 2026

REGINA – Leave it to Brady Oliveira to succinctly describe that fine line between jubilation and the alternate.

In the aftermath of another Labour Day Classic that went down to the wire, Oliveira went through the joy of tying the game with no time left on the clock to the empty feeling that came moments later when the Saskatchewan Roughriders finished off a 32-26 victory on Sunday night before a raucous crowd of 34,352 at Mosaic Stadium.

“It’s terrible,” said Oliveira. “You just kind of feel all of the emotions. I’m pretty pissed right now. We were close, we were right there. We didn’t play our best football and we still gave ourselves a chance, which could be a silver lining.

“I don’t like to look at silver linings because the fact of the matter is we play this game to get positive results. We want to win the game and we didn’t win the game. So, I’m pissed.”

Read
Sunday, Sep. 6, 2026

Letters, Sept. 8

6 minute read Preview

Letters, Sept. 8

6 minute read 3:00 AM CDT

I recently read Manitoba Hydro’s integrated resource plan (IRP) and the independent review by Daymark Energy. I’m no expert, but it seems clear that Hydro’s plan to add three new gas combustion turbines to the Brandon power station is going to cost Manitobans a lot more than we bargained for.

Read
3:00 AM CDT

Woman died while getting wisdom teeth out; case raises questions about transparency of dental association

Nicole Buffie 5 minute read Preview

Woman died while getting wisdom teeth out; case raises questions about transparency of dental association

Nicole Buffie 5 minute read Friday, Sep. 4, 2026

The parents of a 23-year-old southwestern Manitoba woman who died after receiving a local anesthetic during a wisdom tooth extraction say they are in the dark about the investigation into their daughter’s death.

Dulaney and Victoria Blatz say the Manitoba Dental Association has been unwilling to give them information about the probe into their daughter’s death, saying the self-governing regulatory body must be more transparent with the public.

“We have pushed through various channels trying to get information, but it’s nothing but stalling and sidelining,” Victoria said Friday. “This has crashed our world to pieces and we just want answers.”

Virginia Blatz went to Boundary Trails Dental Centre in Morden on Nov. 27, 2024, to have her wisdom teeth removed, but never returned home.

Read
Friday, Sep. 4, 2026

U of M study shows female entrepreneurs have it tough on dating market

Jen Zoratti 6 minute read Preview

U of M study shows female entrepreneurs have it tough on dating market

Jen Zoratti 6 minute read Yesterday at 10:00 AM CDT

Xiumei Li had a friend who had been on the dating scene for a while.

He’d been seeing an impressive woman, a startup founder building a successful business. She was a good conversationalist. She was interesting.

She sounded great. So why didn’t it work out?

Some gentle prodding revealed he was intimidated by her, but also felt that “there was a gap between what he expected for a partner versus what this female entrepreneur had to offer,” Li says.

Read
Yesterday at 10:00 AM CDT