10 Overpriced Burger Chains That Aren't Worth It, According To Customers

It's no secret that food prices are out of control. The average price of butter has increased more than sixfold since 1970, and milk prices in the U.S. are among the highest in the world. While it's understandable that high costs are also getting passed on to restaurants that need to adjust pricing accordingly, that's led to once-affordable options suddenly handing customers sky-high bills. Burger chains have long been a nationwide option for a decent, fast meal at a reasonable price point, but even these stalwarts have been raising prices. 

That's left consumers to lament that going through the drive-thru of their favorite fast food chain leaves them with a bill that's close to or higher than a meal at a sit-down restaurant. Some have sworn off fast food altogether because it's simply no longer worth it, while others rely on discounts via apps to bring down hefty price tags. Even those are disappearing, and when you add in concerns about quality and shrinkflation, you'll find a lot of people are upset at the state of the fast food world.

Let's talk about burger chains and take a look at some of them that have lost customers simply because once-loyal fans see them as overpriced and under-delivering. We headed out to Reddit to get in on the conversation about burger chains that are losing customers to find out why, and people aren't holding back.

Five Guys consistently gets called out on pricing. Those who step up to defend the cost of the food on social media will absolutely get dragged, and dragged hard — and they're definitely in the minority. Cost analysis has shown that some Five Guys burgers are particularly bad deals when compared to the other, also-pricey options, and we've seen receipts that show how much prices have gone up (thanks to some customers who never throw anything away).

In February 2025, one X user posted a receipt from 2011 beside a screengrab from the app. A bacon cheeseburger went from $5.79 to $11.17, while the regular soda rose from $1.89 to $2.79. That's not the only time price hikes have gone viral, either, and people have noticed. In a Reddit thread from 2022, one user said that prices were almost physically painful: "I don't care if I had sacks of hundred dollar bills in my basement filling up a whole room, their prices would still make me want to vomit."

Five Guys has always presented itself as a better kind of fast food chain, but plenty of customers have soured on the company. You'll see a lot of complaints about burnt fries, greasy food, and burgers that are nothing special. Longtime fans grumble about a drop-off in quality and point out you can pay the same for a better burger in a sit-down restaurant.

While you might see Whataburger pop up in more places, there has certainly been no shortage of complaints about the apparent disconnect between pricing and quality. We'll start with pricing first, and take a look at a mind-bending receipt one Reddit user shared back in 2023. The meal costing $12.67 wasn't the shocker, and instead, it was the extra 75 cents for a slice of cheese. Others were stunned — and some said that at their location, it was 99 cents per slice. 

Fast forward to 2026, and there are a lot of people complaining about the ever-climbing prices at Whataburger. Even employees chimed in to say that, yes, they know prices are going up because they're the ones that had to change displays. That's bad enough, but it's also being coupled with complaints about the food.

People have serious beef with Whataburger, with complaints about tasteless chicken bites, smaller gravy cups, bad cinnamon rolls, and food that tastes old, as though it's been sitting around for way too long. Others note vast inconsistencies between different locations, a sentiment that pops up a lot. Some customers report finding locations that even have different closing times, and the thing about a chain is that you should know what you're going to get. With Whataburger? People aren't happy that's no longer the case — and that they're paying more for inconsistency.

There are a lot of menu items that Burger King has discontinued to the ire of its customers, but that's not the only way this massive chain has made a lot of people very, very annoyed. It hasn't gone unnoticed that pricing is much higher than it used to be. Reddit is filled with screengrabs of prices, which vary by location. Going back to 2025, we found a Bacon King Meal for $25.49, a Double Whopper Meal for $22.89, and a Whopper Meal (with a small fries and drink) for $9.99. 

Want us to make that sound even more expensive? We can, because we also came across some Reddit users reminiscing about how it wasn't long ago you could get two Whoppers for $5, and sometimes, they'd be on sale for 99 cents. That actually brings us to another major complaint, which is the lack of deals — even in the app. Now, add complaints about quality and consistency plummeting, too.

One Reddit user asked: "Are there good Burger Kings out there? Because in my mind they are essentially a void that I drive by without a second thought." The answers are not something that would make BK corporate proud, with customers wondering how it's still even a thing. As another wrote, "My local one sucks, every time i get food from there i feel like a chump for giving them another chance." They went on to say, "Like some say when a BK is on point its amazing but usually it is literal trash."

Wendy's has a pricing problem, and it's been making headlines for a long time. In 2022, Wendy's had the dubious honor of having the highest fast food price hike of the year, and you'd better believe that people noticed. In 2026, the chain announced major closures, as sales had recently dropped nearly 5%. There are a number of reasons for that, starting with a lack of good deals and discounts on the app — especially in the face of those price increases.

Other customers have a major issue with the quality they've found, citing everything from floppy bacon to burgers that are nowhere near as good as they once were, dry baked potatoes, and unappetizing lettuce. The overall taste leaves much to be desired for many, for that matter, and when prices are skyrocketing, it's no wonder that people have just stopped going there. Remember when Wendy's 4 for $4 changed fast food in 2015? Those days are long gone.

On one Reddit thread discussing the seemingly dismal state of Wendy's, one person wrote, "Wendy's has priced me and my construction buddies out of fast food. ... What used to be a convenience is now priced like a luxury." And people are finding new, better, cheaper options: Some are quick to point out that microwave meals are a legit and tasty alternative, especially when spending regularly on fast food can quickly add up to the equivalent of a monthly car payment.

Bareburger might stand out as one of the best spots for delicious dipping sauces in New York City, and it might get some buzzy press as a chain restaurant that's impressively vegan-friendly, but it's possible that some of the hype has died down about this one. That's certainly the case for many Reddit users. Plenty say that when it debuted, it was pretty cutting-edge as far as burger places went. Now? Fun and unique burgers are the norm elsewhere, too, and with a shift in focus from funky offerings to chain expansion, it hasn't kept up with the expectations it set.

Those who remember an adventurous menu from the early days say that a lack of options and burgers that are just sort of acceptable mean that this no longer stands out as it once did. One once-frequent customer explained, "They kinda began to have this corporate/chain restaurant a la Applebee's feel. Most of the menu changed around too. Haven't had them in years."

When Park Slope's Bareburger closed in 2025, Reddit wasn't surprised. There were a ton of complaints that ranged from boring, barely edible, barely warm burgers to increasing delivery fees and allegedly questionable health and hygiene ratings. Prices, however, were still high, and area Reddit users, it seems, will not miss this place in the slightest. 

We get that this might be a bit of a hot take, but we're only calling it as Reddit sees it. Smashburger was a huge deal when it hit, there's no denying that. The chain actually set a record for the time it took to reach more than 200 locations after opening in 2007, but more recently, people seem to be less and less impressed by both the chain and smashburgers in general. One Reddit thread that unleashed on the whole idea called it an excuse to sell McDonald's-style patties at a higher price point, and we get where they're coming from.

As for the chain itself, it's been dropped into conversations about the most overpriced burgers on the market for years ... when people remember it, that is. One Reddit user noted, "Smashburger has been so consistently underwhelming for me that I completely forgot it existed." And when you consider that alongside a price point that has customers saying they could have — and should have — just opted for a sit-down restaurant at that point, it just doesn't fly.

One of the other things we heard mentioned a lot was the saltiness in Smashburger's patties and sauces, which just doesn't seem to sit well with some. At the time of this writing, Smashburger is sitting with a dismal 3.0 Trustpilot rating, with a ton of one-star reviews and complaints about everything from claims of unsafe food handling practices to wrong orders, poor customer service, soggy fries, and inedible burgers.

We here at Tasting Table have written about the woes of Jack in the Box: The chain came last in our ranking of America's burger chains. The years have not been kind to this giant, and in 2025, the company sold the fairly recently acquired Del Taco for a whopping $470 million less than what it had been purchased for. That's pretty much the exact opposite of how you'd want business to work, and it's kind of indicative of how things have been going for the chain. Reddit threads wonder what the heck is going on with Jack in the Box, and users are baffled by the fact this one-time go-to for a cheap yet decently tasty meal has seemingly pivoted to skyrocketing prices and worse food.

One Reddit user hit the nail on the head, and perhaps someone from Jack in the Box should take note of the comment: "Why am I going to go get a cheaper tasting burger for more money that makes no [expletive] sense." There are a ton of complaints about pricing, from burgers and combo meals to the revamp of the rewards program. 

Did complaints stop there? Absolutely not. One-time fans condemn the removal of fan-favorite items, the reworking of other dishes, smaller portions, and problems with quality. It's not surprising that stocks and earning were through the floor in 2026, and as another Reddit user remarked, "Wow, it's almost like Wall Street greed isn't good for business. Shocking."

In 2025, McDonald's CEO Chris Kempczinski said what people have been saying for a long, long time. Fortune quoted him: "Too often ... you're seeing combo meals priced over $10, and that absolutely is negatively shaping value perceptions." In other words? "Whoops, everyone thinks we're greedy." Price increases have been wild, and between 2014 and 2024, the McChicken saw a 199% increase, while the McDouble wasn't far behind with a 168% increase. 

Reddit users have taken to the platform to shake their collective heads and stare, presumably wondering if everyone at McDonald's is alright. Some say that the only way they'll go there is with app deals. For others, that's not even worth it. One Reddit user said, "I don't need a telephone relationship with McDonald's. So, I just stopped going," while another chimed in, "Don't make it a hassle for me to buy your garbage food at the appropriate price."

Other threads had a field day with the 2025 announcement that many McD's were going to be staying open longer, thrilled that we were all going to have even more chances to buy what they considered overpriced, less-than-awesome food. We'd also like to point out that we noticed this isn't only an American thing. There are plenty of McD's customers in other countries — including Ireland and the UK — who are complaining that it's just too expensive for the average customer. Are you listening, McDonald's? (And seriously: Are y'all ok over there?)

You'll hear all kinds of justifications for Shake Shack's notoriously high prices, but things are getting to the point where there are a lot of people who are saying that higher quality or not, it's just not worth it anymore. Interestingly, this includes some employees who have spoken out about how so much has changed behind the scenes that they feel even quality is being sacrificed in a big way. In one thread from 2025, a Reddit user, who said they were a current employee, explained that they hoped customers would simply stop coming in: "The Shake Shack price tag is insane. I would not recommend anyone come here. ... I don't blame you for saying White Castle has more value."

And that post isn't the only one that laments Shake Shack's quality ... or the apparent lack thereof. Other complaints include overcooked burgers that some say lean firmly in the direction of boring, bland sauces, drinks that are more ice than anything else, soggy buns, and, of course, all served at sit-down restaurant prices.

It's no wonder threads that start off discussing Shake Shack and its pricing end up discussing better, more affordable alternatives. It seems likely that prices — particularly of the higher-end items like specialty burgers — are going to continue to rise alongside rising beef costs. Price increases hit the burger chain's menu in September 2025, just another in a long line of price hike announcements.

Is there a difference between Hardee's and Carl's Jr.? Technically, yes, but these strange sibling restaurants have more in common than they have differences, and unfortunately, that includes being the target of a ton of complaints about food that's overpriced and less than satisfying. It's been that way for years, with Reddit threads going back to 2018 complaining about the prices at both restaurants — especially when you started looking at what places like In-N-Out were offering. 

You'll hear a lot of the same things being said by customers about Hardee's and Carl's Jr.: Burgers are nothing extraordinary, often end up overly dry, with a weird, liquid smoke sort of flavor. Interestingly, there are also several comments from Reddit users who suggest that the chains hit a high in the early 2000s, and now?

Now, both are known more for high prices than decent and delicious food, and some pinpoint just when that happened: Between 2015 and 2019. Customers miss affordable sandwiches like the spicy chicken, which some fondly remember buying at a price point of $1.50. Now, some say their local restaurants have raised that to $5, and similar hikes have consumers opting to just make their own burgers at home. Can you blame them?

In order to find the most overpriced and overrated burger chains in the country, we headed out to social media and Reddit. We were looking for a trend of customers not only saying that chains were vastly overpriced, but saying that it didn't always used to be that way. In addition, we looked for chains that now have consistent complaints about things like quality, freshness, and variety, along with a lack of deals and discounts, and rewards programs that seem like a sad reflection of what they once were.