McDonald's launching loyalty program: Here's how many points you'll need for a Big Mac

(NEXSTAR) – McDonald’s will soon reward its best customers with — what else? — more McDonald’s.

McDonald’s is launching its MyMcDonald’s Rewards loyalty program on July 8, allowing customers to earn points with qualifying purchases, which can be redeemed for “freebies” from the restaurant during a future visit.

The news, announced Tuesday, comes after the program had been tested in select markets in the U.S.

Here’s how it works: Guests will be required to register with the McDonald’s app before making qualifying purchases. Customers will earn 100 points for every $1 spent on orders placed through the app’s Mobile Order & Pay feature. Customers can also earn points by scanning their QR code at a register or kiosk or simply by giving their account code to an employee when placing an order.

Customers who do not use any of these methods to identify their online accounts will not be eligible to redeem points. Home delivery orders will also be excluded from the program.

Guests who accrue points can later redeem their choice of “Rewards Options” from one of four tiers. Tier 1 options can be unlocked at 1,500 points; Tier 2 at 3,000; Tier 3 at 4,500, and Tier 4 at 6,000. Rewards options in each tier include:

Tier 1: hash brown; vanilla cone; cheeseburger; McChicken
Tier 2: medium fries; sausage burrito; chicken McNuggets (6 pieces); large iced coffee
Tier 3: Filet-O-Fish; large fries; large frappe; sausage McMuffin with egg
Tier 4: Big Mac; Quarter Pounder with cheese; Happy Meal; bacon, egg and cheese biscuit

In other words, it would cost McDonald’s customers more than $60 to earn a Big Mac, seeing as taxes (and any other surcharges for bags, bottle fees, etc.) do not count towards the price of a qualifying purchase.

McDonald’s has also confirmed that any guests enrolled in the MyMcDonald’s Rewards program will earn 1,500 points after making their first purchase, redeemable for any item in Tier 1 during a future visit.

McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski has previously said the company expects to expand the program to several international markets by the end of 2022.

McDonald’s is the latest national food-service chain to expand its rewards program to U.S. customers. Starbucks, Red Lobster, Chipotle, 7-Eleven and Dunkin’, among others, already offer some type of loyalty program for guests.

Source: Fox 8 News Channel