Don't Forget To Claim This McDonald's Freebie On Your Birthday

Birthday freebies from fast food chains are fun little treats that help make your special day even better. After all, who doesn't love free stuff? McDonald's is on that list of chains and its birthday gift to you is a grand one: a free order of medium fries. There's a catch though: You need to have the McDonald's app (and be registered with it). Luckily, McDonald's has one of the better fast food apps that are actually worth using, and obtaining a birthday reward is super easy. 

When you download and register with the McDonald's app, be sure to enter your birthday so that the reward shows up in the "deals" section. Then you just select that deal to add it to your cart, and you've got yourself some free fries. You don't even need to order anything else if you don't want to, but you do have to use the reward on the actual day of your birthday (or it disappears). In the past, McDonald's has given you the option of choosing your birthday reward from a list of items, but this is no longer the case. But, hey, a medium fry is still pretty good.

Mastering the McDonald's app can get you tons of savings — and not just on your birthday. The app uses a points system where you earn 100 points per every dollar spent. If you frequent McDonald's, these points can add up fast, getting you smaller items like the vanilla cone or apple pie at the lowest tier of points. More substantial items (like various sandwich options and Chicken McNuggets) are available as rewards as the tiers go up. Once you get up to 7,000 points, for example, you can get yourself a free Happy Meal (or even a 10-piece McNugget).

The McDonald's app has recently undergone some changes, however, and placed various items in new tiers. This updated tier system has shaken longtime fans a bit and they're not too happy. In particular, the 4,000 point tier is under scrutiny by Redditors, which offers you $3 off your whole order. Regardless, if you are a fan of McDonald's, the rewards system is still a great way to earn free food in a world where fast food has gotten very expensive. Points do expire, however, so be sure to use them in the time allotted to you (around six months).