McDonald’s has once again found itself at the bottom of the list in a recent customer satisfaction study. Despite efforts to attract customers with value meals and larger burgers, the chain scored the lowest among 23 major fast food brands and several smaller chains in the 2024 American Customer Satisfaction Index (ASCI) Restaurant and Food Delivery Study.
The ASCI, established in 1994, annually evaluates consumer satisfaction across various criteria such as food order accuracy, quality and variety of food and beverages, staff courtesy and helpfulness, restaurant cleanliness and layout, mobile app reliability, checkout speed, and website satisfaction.
While McDonald’s improved its score slightly to 71 points from 69 in 2023, it still lagged behind competitors. Jack in the Box and Popeyes followed closely with 72 points each, while Taco Bell” data-wpil-keyword-link=”linked”>Taco Bell and Subway scored 73 and 74 points, respectively. Chick-fil-A maintained its dominance with an impressive 85 points, marking its tenth consecutive year as the top-ranked chain for customer satisfaction.
Former McDonald’s chef Mike Haracz, known for sharing industry insights on TikTok, suggested that McDonald’s lower ranking could be due to its sheer size and widespread popularity, which leads to a higher volume of feedback, both positive and negative. Despite improvements like introducing Quarter Pounders made with fresh beef to address past dissatisfaction, McDonald’s continues to face challenges in improving its customer satisfaction scores.
Looking ahead, industry observers are curious to see if McDonald’s ongoing initiatives will yield better results in next year’s study.