I Tasted 10 Fast Food Chocolate Milkshakes And Ranked Them Worst To Best

Milkshakes are synonymous with fast food. They're just one of many ideas that chains gladly borrowed from the soda fountains of the '40s and '50s. Restaurants realized that nothing goes with a quick and greasy meal of a burger and fries quite like a sippable cup of ice cream. Then, with inventions like the commercial Multimixer and soft serve, milkshakes became an absolute staple at quick-serve establishments. And, among them, chocolate emerged as one of the most iconic flavors. A chocolate shake is both decadent and nostalgic, so it's no wonder it's stood the test of time. Restaurant chains, from McDonald's (the OG milkshake maker) to Shake Shack are still gladly churning them out, and I'm on the hunt for the best one money can buy.

I recently took to the drive-thrus to get a hold of several different fast food chocolate milkshakes. By some small miracle, I didn't encounter a single broken ice cream machine, so the procurement process was a breeze. Then, I began slurping and ranking them from worst to best. I noted each shake's consistency, sweetness, chocolatey flavor, ingredients, and freshness. I didn't care how it was made or how much it cost — just that it was good. Garnishes like whipped cream and a cherry were nice extras, but the true test was underneath. After all, a dollop of whip on a mediocre shake is just a Band-Aid on a broken blender.

Arby's is known for having the meats, not so much the milkshakes. The chain's description of its chocolate shake is also not very telling, as it only mentions its richness. Ridiculously generic, I know. So I kept my expectations low for this one. The look is promising enough, with a swirl of whipped cream on top and swirls of dark brown chocolate sauce below. But one sip and I knew this wasn't the crème de la crème of chocolate shakes.

For starters, the chocolate flavor comes on strong — too strong, in my opinion. It feels like someone at the restaurant got a bit drizzle happy with an off-brand syrup. It lacks the familiarity and time-honored taste of Hershey's syrup and is instead more of a mystery chocolate situation. The texture additionally doesn't help its case. Even though it has a nice thickness to it, it's not what I would call creamy. It has more of a frostbitten consistency with small icy patches throughout. If my ice cream has any kind of crunch to it, I'm immediately out.

The best part may just be the whipped cream cap. It's fluffy and buttery, just like I like it. This can't carry the entire drink, though. So I would still consider it my least favorite pick. If you're a Java lover, I would say to stick with the chain's Jamocha shake instead. There's a reason this one gets more attention: the rich coffee notes help to mask some of these chocolatey imperfections.

Ever since they were first introduced in 1949, McDonald's milkshakes have been touted as "Triple Thick." It's not just an empty promise, either. The chain backs up its statement with ingredients like extra milk fat and the thickening agent cellulose gum. It also churns its ice cream in order to add more air and, consequently, more creaminess. So, with all that going on behind the scenes, tell me why my Golden Arches' blend of soft serve and chocolate syrup was still only of medium thickness, at best. The thinner consistency makes it feel less indulgent and causes the shake to fall behind many other chains in comparison.

That said, it's still decent for a cheap and widely available chocolate shake (meaning I would still order again). It's smoother than the one found at Arby's, and it does actually have that classic Hershey's syrup flavor, even though its shake is not made in partnership with the global chocolate company. McDonald's instead uses its own proprietary blend of cocoa, sugar, glycerin, and corn syrup that is evenly incorporated into the ice cream.

We also can't forget about the respectable dollop of whipped light cream. It just makes everything better. And if you want zhuzh up your shake even more, as of October 2025, you can also swap in pink whipped cream on top of your shake. The option is available because of the Mt. McDonaldland Shake, which the chain was promoting at the time, but could help you forget about the lack of body in your chocolate shake, too.

The Burger King chocolate shake looks like a bit of a mess. No, that's not a layer of whipped cream perched at the top. That's a band of soft serve that was left untouched by the chocolate syrup that can be seen smeared on the plastic cup below. It seems like someone in the kitchen may have been in a rush (even though I was the only one in the drive-thru line).

I had to do some self-mixing before I gave this one a shot. When I finally did, though, I liked it more than I thought I would. Given that it's simply soft serve blended with syrup, it bears resemblance to the frozen dessert from McDonald's. But somehow, the Burger King shake surpasses its competitor thanks to its denser consistency. The taste also isn't half bad. There's a hint of nostalgia in the syrup that transported me straight back to movie and sundae nights with the family. All that's missing are the nuts and rainbow sprinkles.

It's not a to-die-for milkshake. It's far from perfectly blended, and it's not filled with decadently gourmet chocolate. But it's not too artificially sweet or too cloying. For the price I paid for it, it's hard to be mad about this kind of outcome.

Soft serve cones, sundaes, and Blizzards: That's what I think of when I think of Dairy Queen. So the ice cream shop's shakes seem like new territory for me — despite the fact that they've been around since 1949, 36 years before the debut of the Blizzard in 1985.

Filed under "Blended Beverages" on the menu, the chocolate shake is a mix of the chain's "world-famous" soft serve, milk, and a chocolatey topping. My whipped topping was evidently forgotten, so I cannot confirm that it is as "light-as-a-feather" as DQ promises. What I can say, though, is that the shake tasted very Frosty-like. I chose not to include Wendy's beloved Frosty in the taste test because it is decidedly not a sippable milkshake (if you're drinking your Frosty out of a straw instead of scooping it with a spoon or fry, I can't trust you). But Dairy Queen manages to bring that same Frosty flavor into the fold, just with a thinner, toned-down texture.

Overall, it's not super rich, yet it has that classic, can't-go-wrong kind of taste that makes it a reliable pick — and one that stands above the previous burger joint options. For anyone looking to up the ante, there's always the option to make it a malt. This will obviously boot it from the milkshake category, but turn it even thicker and richer. Throw on that whipped topping that was missing earlier, and we have ourselves a truly satisfying, old-school treat.

The stakes are high for a chocolate milkshake served at a place dubbed Steak 'n Shake. It's clearly a pillar item at the chain, especially an OG flavor like chocolate. So it's kind of a big deal.

From the jump, I liked the look of this shake, from its picture-perfect puff of whipped cream and maraschino cherry garnish to its unmoving chocolate base and wide-set straw. The taste is also pretty delicious — just not quite as delicious as other fast food milkshakes. Steak 'n Shake uses real ice cream in its milkshakes, automatically separating it from the soft serve pack. It then blends in chocolate syrup for a sippable treat that's creamy and lightly chocolatey with a homemade kind of taste. I could imagine whipping up something similar in my personal blender. A light-tasting whipped cream, clearly sprayed from a can, only adds to its enjoyability. Swigs from the top, where the white cream had dissolved into the shake, were that much better.

Steak 'n Shake spins up a decent chocolate shake, yet one that's ultimately forgettable. Where I think the restaurant shines is when it starts to mix other fixins like candy or cookies into its shakes. Picks like Oreo mint cookie, Nutella, and Reese's peanut butter cup reign supreme at the chain, while simpler flavors like chocolate feel incomplete.

Word on the street is that Five Guys whips up a tasty shake. And my first thought was that it better be tasty at that price. This shake was the most expensive one I purchased by far, sitting at about twice the price of other fast food options.

Supposedly, what makes these shakes so special (and subsequently so pricey) is the fact that they are made from real ingredients and hand-spun – a manual process that typically results in a thicker, creamier shake compared to those born from automated machines. After giving it a taste, I can tell you that this checks out. It's oh-so-velvety, and it's clear it was made with great care and consideration for texture. Where I think it missteps is in the chocolate flavoring itself. Five Guys starts all its milkshakes with the same plain Jane vanilla base, then mixes in toppings from there. The chocolate recipe gets both chocolate and fudge for a "double chocolate punch," and I fear it's a bit too much chocolate (something I never thought I'd say). The shake ends up tasting like an extra-sweet frozen hot chocolate that borders on saccharine.

For big-time sweet tooths and mega chocolate lovers, this is going to be your holy grail of chocolate shakes. For me, though, I found it to be too rich to the point that I could hardly finish off half a cup. I would probably trade it for the chain's peanut butter or salted caramel shakes, or even the bacon shake (out of pure curiosity).

In terms of consistency, Sonic's classic chocolate shake is similar to that of Five Guys. It may even be thicker. I had some real trouble trying to suck it up through my straw. I don't know how Sonic does it, either. Unlike Five Guys, which holds tight to its hand-spun method, Sonic uses simple vanilla soft serve as its foundation. So, how does it get so dense and creamy?

In terms of taste, Sonic's classic chocolate shake couldn't be more different from the Five Guys rendition. The light grayish color of the shake clued me in that it wasn't going to be super chocolatey, and this assumption proved correct. The drive-in was stingy with the chocolate sauce, so it had a very subtle flavor. Some sips tasted almost like pure vanilla. What it lacks in chocolate indulgence, though, it makes up for with a delicious butteriness that leaves you craving more and more.

Unlike the over-the-top sweetness of Five Guys, this shake is far more reserved. It's not a chocoholic's dream or the best remedy for an intense cocoa craving, but it's immensely satisfying in its own right. I also have to mention that the whipped topping is more like Cool Whip than whipped cream. I tend to prefer the lighter stuff — I like to save the Cool Whip exclusively for pies — but we'll let that slide.

I'm more of a strawberry shake (or, in the summertime, a peach shake) kind of person when I swing through the Chick-fil-A drive-thru. But it's my pleasure to share with you that the chain's chocolate shake is also a treat for the taste buds. With an old-fashioned appeal, it's scrumptious all around and garners no complaints from me.

All of Chick-fil-A's cones and milkshakes are made with its signature Chick-fil-A Icedream dessert (you'll find it in the chain's new floats as well). This is the chain's own take on soft serve, and technically, it can't be called ice cream because it doesn't have a high enough fat content. However, that small technicality in no way diminishes the shake's flavor. The milkshake has that hand-spun consistency that's craveably dense yet still sippable. Instead of being syrupy or a chocolate overload, it also offers smooth and mellow chocolate notes that aren't too sweet or too artificial; they're just right.

The whipped cream is a treat all on its own. Photos of employees adding the finishing touch prove that Chick-fil-A uses the standard Darifair brand whipped topping at least some of its locations. But somehow, it just tastes better under those domed lids. There's just something about the way it complements a silky chocolate shake, a plain vanilla, or a fruity strawberry. And to top it all off (literally), the dessert experience at Chick-fil-A ends on a high note with a maraschino cherry kiss.

A milkshake isn't just a milkshake at Shake Shack. It's a fine art. The burger joint makes its specialty custard in-house every single day using a careful blend of ingredients, including cane sugar, cage-free eggs, cream, milk, and vanilla. It prides itself on this fresh and reliable base, and I believe it's the reason why all of its milkshakes stand out compared to other fast food offerings. Of course, the chocolate flavor is included in that.

Shake Shack's hand-spun chocolate may not be the absolute thickest out there. But it's velvety and harbors one of the most authentic tastes. The chocolate is embedded into the custard rather than haphazardly added like a sauce or syrup. The result is an ultra-deep, chocolatey flavor throughout. It tastes like someone took a few scoops of a true, quality cocoa-based ice cream from a brand like Häagen-Dazs or Tillamook and plopped them in a blender with some milk. The chocolate works alongside the custard instead of coming off like an afterthought on top of vanilla ice cream. It's pure cohesive chocolatey goodness.

This shake puts most other soft serve-based options to shame with its balance. It's indulgent without being overbearing — a rare feat in the world of fast food desserts. Still, there was one more shake that followed a very similar formula but managed to elevate it just a touch higher. For that one, we'll have to travel from the streets of New York, where Shake Shack got its start, due east to the Midwest.

Clearly, there's just something about custard. I don't think it's a coincidence that both of my top two picks grace their shakes with a custard base. At Culver's, they're doing things in a similar fashion to Shake Shack. All of the Wisconsin-based chain's shakes are made with its fresh frozen custard, which the restaurant notes is made in-house with "real farm fresh dairy."

This milkshake would have topped the charts even in its unadorned vanilla state. Those egg yolks and high butterfat content in the custard are really working their magic here. It's the thickest, creamiest, and richest shake I came across. Then you blend in a perfect portion of chocolate syrup, and it's game over. The cocoa flavor is not overly intense, closer to milk chocolate than dark, yet it's just decadent enough to offer a dessert feeling without being too heavy. Just think of the best chocolate milk you've ever had in your life (for me, it's the gallons found at Kroger), then imagine it transformed into an ultra-thick frozen beverage. That's the Culver's chocolate shake.

What impresses me the most is that both Shake Shack and Culver's managed to come out on top, without any toppings. Neither bothered to add on any garnishes (perhaps due to my own ordering faults). But it didn't matter. You whip up a good enough, dense enough shake infused with yummy flavors, and things like whipped cream or a cherry just become superfluous.

A chocolate milkshake seems simple on the outside, but there's a lot that goes into it, and a surprising number of ways to approach both the ice cream and the chocolate portions. Fast food joints seem to hit them all.

As I ranked each milkshake, I gave the most consideration to texture and chocolatey taste. In doing so, though, it quickly became clear which formulas were superior. I looked first at consistency, hoping for a shake that was extra thick, walking the line between sippable and spoonable. It should travel through a straw, but still have plenty of body and creaminess. When it came to flavor, I wanted something rich and cocoa-forward, not overly sweet or artificial. I was perfectly fine with chocolate syrup or sauce (most chains opt for that anyway) as long as it delivered a deep, satisfying chocolate taste.

While I appreciate a good dollop of whipped cream, that — and a cherry on top — didn't play a big role in my rankings, since not all chains offered it. ​​So, I ranked solely based on the texture and taste of the shake itself. As I went through, it became obvious that chains that used real ice cream — and more specifically those that used custard — over soft serve were superior. You can't beat that thick, velvety consistency. Paired with a buttery taste and indulgent chocolate notes, those were the shakes that quickly earned a top spot.