Which Chain Actually Has The Better Value Breakfast Menu: McDonald's Or Chick-Fil-A?

Both McDonald's and Chick-fil-A serve fairly well built-out breakfast menus with a range of items that span from burritos to bagels and sandwiches to a handful of sweet items. But they're not identical, nor are their prices: So which offers better value?

First, bear in mind that "good value" is a little tricky to quantify, considering that the two chains' menus only partly overlap. To make for a fair comparison, we'll mostly look at menu items that are similar at both chains. Be aware that both chains' prices vary by location, so prices here may not exactly match your local restaurant.

Both chains have classic bacon or sausage, egg, and cheese sandwiches — on biscuits at Chick-fil-A and on muffins at McDonald's (we particularly recommend the classic egg McMuffin). Here, Chick-fil-A is the cheaper deal with both sandwiches hovering around $5, compared to $6 at Mickey-Dees, which also has fewer calories in its equivalents. For meatier equivalents (chicken-egg-cheese at Chick-fil-A, arguably the best breakfast item there, or steak-egg-cheese at McDonald's), it's a little closer, with Chick-fil-A around $6 compared to $6.50 at McDonald's. Both have similar calories. Both also have a chicken biscuit on the menu, and it's the inverse here, with McDonald's cheaper, around $4 compared to $5 for Chick-fil-A (although the latter has slightly more calories). For hash browns, Chick-fil-A takes the cake with prices closer to $2 (more like $3 at McDonald's), and the portion gives you more calories. So, with generally lower prices and more energy in comparable items, Chick-fil-A tends to have better value.

Both chains offer comparable meal deals with a main item (generally a sandwich), hash brown, and a drink. The gap closes a little here, but McDonald's is still more expensive, with the classic sausage or bacon-egg-cheese meals a little under $10, compared to Chick-fil-A at around $9.50. The meatier chicken-egg-cheese meal at Chick-fil-A and the steak-egg-cheese meal at McDonald's are basically the same price ($10.50-ish). Somewhat surprisingly, the prices are totally flipped for the chicken biscuit meal, where Chick-fil-A charges over $9, compared to about $6.50 at McDonald's.

There are a few caveats to note. One is that Chick-fil-A allows other sides on these deals, like fruit cups and berry parfaits, but you'll pay several dollars more. For drinks, both chains offer a range of drinks but you'll pay extra for many of them. One big catch is that while Chick-fil-A advertises coffee as a menu item, some locations don't appear to list it as an option. If you don't want to pay extra, your options are limited to juice or milk (although soda, not exactly a breakfast drink, is just a few cents extra).

Finally, there's the question of special deals: The McDonald's app can unlock possible savings like the option of buying a sausage burrito, biscuit, or muffin and getting a second one for just $1 (compared to regular prices around $3.50-$4). While Chick-fil-A will occasionally offer freebies, they seem less common — but overall, Chick-fil-A's prices generally (but not always) offer better value.