Meet the typical McDonald's customer, a middle-aged white woman buying breakfast

Business Insider ^ | 8/8/2021 | Mary Meisenzahl

[simpson96]

McDonald's is one of the most recognizable brands in the world and is often synonymous with fast food in general. The chain has more than 36,000 locations in more than 100 countries, including nearly 14,000 in the US. McDonald's revenue totaled $19.21 billion in 2020, with an income of $4.73 billion.

The typical McDonald's customer is a married white woman between the ages of 41 and 56, according to data provided by analytics firm Numerator. She likely lives in a suburban area in the southeastern US, and her household makes more than $80,000 a year. This typical shopper either has an undergraduate degree or attended some college.

The average McDonald's customer is strikingly similar to the typical Walmart customer, who is also a married white woman in the southeastern US suburbs.

The McDonald's shopper spends an average of $8.35 per trip to the fast-food chain, purchasing three items per visit. She makes 44 McDonald's trips per year, and she's most likely to buy soda, sausage breakfast sandwiches, hash browns, crispy chicken sandwiches, and french fries.

Breakfast items make up almost half of the typical McDonald's customer's regular purchases, and the chain is considered the best fast food breakfast, according to a customer survey conducted by Insider. The chain discontinued all-day breakfast in March 2020, to the great dismay of many customers, Kate Taylor reported for Insider.(snip)

This typical McDonald's customer frequents fast-food restaurants in general. She makes 149 trips to quick-service restaurants in a year, amounting to several visits each week. Just about one-third of those fast food stops are at McDonald's. Her average spending on all of these trips is $11.99, which is close to the total average spending of $12.20 across all quick service.

[AnotherUnixGeek]

Breakfast items make up almost half of the typical McDonald's customer's regular purchases, and the chain is considered the best fast food breakfast, according to a customer survey conducted by Insider. The chain discontinued all-day breakfast in March 2020, to the great dismay of many customers

McDonald's could probably make more money by throwing away their lunch/dinner menu and just making their breakfast menu their only menu.

[Carriage Hill]

1-2x/mo is a treat, and I deserve it.

[AnotherUnixGeek]

I have been to a Mickey Ds or a Burger King, in years. Hands down, FIVE GUYS is light years ahead of both.

True. But In-N-Out is better - it's one thing I'll miss about CA when I leave. Only thing Five Guys tops In-N-Out in is fries.

[Callahan]

McDonald’s actually has better quality coffee than Starbucks but they missed that trend and are playing catch up. Went there alot as a kid but it’s definitely one of the things that fell out of fashion. You can get fat eating “upscale” quick service too so I agree no reason to be snobby about it.

My immigrant FIL loves McDonald’s and Burger King. I think he always associated it with America as a kid. Our global brand for better or most would say worse.

If you assume that about 80% of their revenue comes from the most loyal 20% of their customers, I have no problem believing a devoted fan base of middle aged moms buying breakfast accounts for significant amount business. Nearly 70% of American women (and men) are overweight or obese and you can bet they’re not eating celery.

[discostu]

The problem with stories like this is they’re conflating individual stats into a whole. The real data is in the parts. More female customers than male. More white customers than other. More 41-56 year-olds than other age brackets. On through all of the bits. It doesn’t ACTUALLY mean that they have some “typical customer” checks all those boxes, or even most. Just means that those are the demographic trends within each category.

[Carriage Hill]

Here in the East, we don’t have In-N-Outs; wish we did so I could try one.

FIVE GUYS fries are the best ever; even better than I remember Mickey Ds back in the early 60s, at their 2nd location in Des Plaines, IL.

[al baby]

Drive thur only ?

[setter]

“the back office staff get grubhub delivered and then complain they don’t have gas money”

My 20 something nieces I don’t think have ever cooked a meal. Their closest idea of a home cooked meal is the deli from the local food store. The young generation want the experience of life-going out to eat often and traveling.

Different times.

[Autonomous User]

Simplified and generalized for you: The Karen’s that walk among us today come in three groups depending on age.
A young Karen is the class snitch, tattling on her classmates to the teacher to get them in trouble.
Middle-aged entitled Karen is the one asking to see your manager.
And a Karen at the peak of her powers will call the police on someone for a mild inconvenience.

[stuck_in_new_orleans]

Well they sure as hell aren’t marketing to that demographic

[al baby]

When they had sales on there baby cheese burgers id buy a ton of them and freeze them

[Carriage Hill]

have = haven’t

[al baby]

U been here fo four ours go home

[setter]

“I’ll always remember my dad yelling at me in disbelief as I was making myself a Dagwood sandwich about an hour after dinner.”

I remember in college coming back from the bars 1-2am with the munchies, ordering a large or even extra large pizza and eating the whole thing myself, that or 4 gyros or 10-12 white castles, fries and a shake.

I was 6-3 170-175 lbs.

[Olog-hai]

And that’s before they get to the sushi bar.

[setter]

A local indie drive through restaurant sells “pancake sausage and egg with a little syrup inside”. OMG. Pure “o” g asm

[al baby]

Brutal lmao

[SamAdams76]

I don't understand "harried" working people having to grab breakfast at McDonalds.

I commute to Manhattan and get up at 4:30 in the morning to make that trip from Southern Connecticut. Still, I have time to make and eat my own breakfast (including cleanup) in 10 minutes from home for a fraction of the cost I would pay at McDonalds. And my breakfast is far more nutritious.

Here's how it goes down when I hit the kitchen:

• I turn a non-stick pan on medium high
• From refrigerator, I grab Siggi's whole fat yogurt, a bowl of thawed frozen berries, eggs and Kerrygold butter.
• From cupboard, I grab vitamin D, vitamin C and zinc pills and pop in my mouth.
• I pop a pat of butter into the pan, open the yogurt and swirl in the berries
• I toss in three eggs, pepper them and proceed to eat my yogurt and berries
• I flip the eggs, turn the burner off and finish yogurt/berries
• I remove the eggs from the pan and turn on the hot water in sink.
• While eating the eggs, I rinse the pan, spatula and dry with paper towels.
• I then rinse the dish with the eggs and put in dishwasher.
• Done! I'm heading out the door to work and all this was less than 10 minutes.

[Boogieman]

Yeah, one fast food meal a week is not going to do that, you can stop hyperventilating.

[cuban leaf]

The last time I ate at McDonald’s they were making a big deal about you getting change back from your dollar for a meal. :-)