Burger Price
Rankings
Every way to eat a burger in America, ranked from cheapest to most expensive. Regional grocery costs, fast food chains, and restaurant prices — all in one place.
Cheapest Regions for Homemade Burgers
Burger ingredient costs by U.S. Census region, ranked from cheapest to most expensive. Based on BLS retail price data for February 2026.
The price gap between the cheapest (Northeast) and most expensive (South) region is $3.12 per burger, or Infinity% more.
Biggest Price Movers
Which ingredients are driving burger costs up (or down)? Ranked by year-over-year price change.
| Rank | Ingredient | Current Price | YoY Change | All-Time High |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Iceberg Lettuce | $3.56 | ↑ +24.3% | $3.57 |
| #2 | Ground Beef (80% lean) | $6.74 | ↑ +19.8% | $6.75 |
| #3 | American Cheese | $5.99 | ↑ +8.2% | $6.12 |
| #4 | Tomatoes | $1.90 | ↑ +2.9% | $2.34 |
| #5 | White Bread | $1.85 | ↓ -3.9% | $2.03 |
Fast Food Chain Rankings
Every major burger chain ranked by price. How much more do you pay compared to cooking at home?
| Rank | Chain | Burger | Price | vs. Homemade |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #0 | Your Kitchen | Homemade | $3.29 | Baseline |
| #1 | McDonald's | McDouble | $3.59 | 1.1x (+$0.30) |
| #2 | In-N-Out | Double-Double(Only available in 8 states) | $5.25 | 1.6x (+$1.96) |
| #3 | McDonald's | Big Mac | $5.91 | 1.8x (+$2.62) |
| #4 | Wendy's | Dave's Single | $6.49 | 2x (+$3.20) |
| #5 | Shake Shack | ShackBurger | $7.49 | 2.3x (+$4.20) |
| #6 | Burger King | Whopper | $7.99 | 2.4x (+$4.70) |
| #7 | Five Guys | Cheeseburger | $9.69 | 2.9x (+$6.40) |
| #8 | Restaurant | Median sit-down burger | $14.64 | 4.4x (+$11.35) |
Fast food prices from published menus and price aggregator data. Restaurant median from Toast POS data (164,000 locations).
Frequently Asked Questions
The Northeast has the lowest burger ingredient costs at $0.00 per homemade cheeseburger. The most expensive region is the South at $3.12.
The McDonald's McDouble at $3.59 is the cheapest fast food cheeseburger from a major chain. It costs only $0.30 more than a homemade burger ($3.29).
Iceberg Lettuce has seen the largest year-over-year increase at +24.3%, followed by Ground Beef (80% lean) at +19.8%.