Ranking McDonald's Breakfast Items From Worst To Best

If you've ever been hungry and on the go, or perhaps just experienced a ridiculous hash browns craving, surely you can admit you've tried something from the McDonald's breakfast menu. 

McDonald's first launched breakfast in 1971 with the introduction of the Egg McMuffin, and it's only continued to grow in popularity since then. According to Time, items on the breakfast menu accounted for 18 percent of the chain's sales by 1981, proving how popular breakfast was becoming. By 2015, McDonald's announced they would start offering breakfast all day, allowing breakfast fans to enjoy an Egg McMuffin and french fries for dinner. Sales numbers experienced an uptick, showing that all-day breakfast was actually bringing in a new customer base, and the world was forever changed. Today you can grab a hash brown with your McFlurry or a Sausage Biscuit to pair with your salad. It's all up to you! 

But just how delicious are some of these menu items? We decided to take a hard look. From the Egg McMuffin that started it all, to one of the newest breakfast additions, the Chicken McGriddles, we've compiled a list of McDonald's breakfast items and ranked them worst to best for you.

You'll notice a trend here in the products named the worst. Too much black pepper. And the new Chicken McGriddles sandwich is certainly in that same wheelhouse. McDonald's debuted this concept for testing in certain franchises in August, 2019, and so far, so bad. 

The concept is pretty simple. It's basically like McDonald's said, hey, what can we make with things we already have in-house — enter, the Chicken McGriddles.

It's two McGriddles with a McChicken patty in the middle, and that's it. And while the theory of that soft, maple syrup flavored pancake-like piece of bread sandwiched with a piece of the chicken we eat in our McChicken all the time seems amazing, try again. It's the strangest pairing of flavors McDonald's could have come up with. 

Sure, the chicken and waffles pairing is all the rage, but this totally missed the mark. At first bite, it's delicious with the syrup and the chicken, but then the black pepper from the patty hits, and all of your taste buds are wildly confused. Definitely a great example of a genius idea but with poor execution. 

In true McDonald's fashion, modeling after the giant multi-layer Big Mac, comes the new triple stack series, with the option of a biscuit, English muffin, or McGriddles base. And this thing truly is a monster. The sandwich is stacked with two sausage patties, two slices of bacon, two slices of cheese, and an egg, all layered between a biscuit — another one of those McDonald's ideas to utilize items they already have in stores to make a new item.

This behemoth of a sandwich serves up 890 calories and 65 grams of fat. Oh, and don't forget the 2,080 milligrams of sodium. But if the nutrition facts don't scare you away, the flavor probably will. First of all, if you can even get a bite in of this giant sandwich, you'll be lucky. Fitting the multiple layers, along with two thick biscuits, into your mouth may be a bit of a challenge, making the experience frustrating from the get-go. After that first, far-too-difficult bite, you find the mixture of sausage and bacon, which is a strange combo. Sure, on a plate for breakfast, sausage patties and bacon are great, but all of it on a sandwich is totally breakfast meat overboard. And with the combination of the two, you get a giant salt bomb, really making you realize why that sodium count is over 2000 milligrams. Definitely not worth it.

First of all, it's probably safe to say you're only ordering oatmeal at McDonald's because you absolutely have to. Perhaps you're normally a ridiculously healthy eater and your friend demanded you swing by Mickey D's. Or, you forgot breakfast and need something relatively okay for you in a pinch? There can't possibly be anyone who actually goes to McDonald's for their oatmeal, right? 

The Fruit & Maple Oatmeal debuted in 2011 with a mixture of oats, light cream, diced apples, and a little bag of cranberries and raisins. All of these items together sound delicious, but overall it's just terribly boring.

First of all, there is no actual maple in this oatmeal. It's in the name, but certainly not on the ingredients list, and truthfully if there actually was it would make it so much better. The oatmeal is wildly bland, and the toppings don't make it any better. The diced apples are a nice touch, but the cranberries and raisins certainly add nothing special. It'll work in a pinch but definitely not something McDonald's is known for. 

Here we are, back in McGriddles town again. But this time, it's with bacon! And, just as everyone says that bacon makes everything better, it may actually be true in this case. Kind of. 

This McDonald's McGriddles sandwich comes stacked with griddle cakes, applewood smoked bacon, a folded egg, and a slice of American cheese. Sounds amazing, right? Well, the sweet flavor of the McGriddles overpowers the smoked bacon a bit too much, but at least the texture is spot on. It's a soft sandwich with a bit of crunch from the bacon, all paired together with beautiful, melty cheese. 

Often, it seems like the folded egg texture can throw off a breakfast sandwich, and this is one of those options that could be made so much better if it used the same freshly cracked egg method as the Egg McMuffin, instead of the liquid egg mixture used for the folded eggs.

The Fruit 'N Yogurt Parfait is definitely one of the best options on the McDonald's menu, especially for those looking for a decent breakfast or a quick, sweet snack. Registered Dietitians have even agreed that it's an okay choice. 

The parfait is made up of low-fat vanilla yogurt, blueberries, and strawberries, and it's served with a little packet of crunchy granola to go on top. The strawberries are pretty sweet, with the addition of Konjac Flour listed in the ingredients label, which acts a little bit like cornstarch to create a sweet syrup, but their texture isn't too far off to make it disappointing. 

Overall, this is a delicious option, but the addition of the granola throws it off a bit. It has an overpowering cinnamon flavor, which doesn't pair too well with the rest of the flavors, but it definitely will do in a pinch. And with only 210 calories and 6 grams of protein it's definitely worth grabbing on the run. 

Ah, McDonald's Hotcakes. For most people, they go way way back with these hotcakes, whether it was for a Sunday morning breakfast at home or trying to eat them without spilling in the car on a road trip. Hotcakes launched in 1977 with the original full breakfast menu and have continued as a staple ever since. And rightfully so. 

For pancakes made in a fast food restaurant, Hotcakes are delicious, and their texture is spot on. They're not overly fluffy but have the right consistency to make for the perfect on-the-go pancake. 

They're served up with salted butter, which is a little strange, but it works. But what could really make these ten times better is an upgrade in syrup. Hotcakes are served with something called Hotcake Syrup, which is nothing even remotely close to maple syrup. It's a mixture of corn syrup, sugar, and water with the addition of caramel color to trick you. It definitely works in a pinch, but honestly, the Hotcakes are delicious enough on their own without even needing to add fake syrup.

The first McDonald's breakfast item must be good right? It sure is. And it lives up to its storied fame. The Egg McMuffin has been around since 1971, when a franchisee named Herb Peterson invented this eggs Benedict on-the-go concept in California. It's a simple concept really — English muffin, slice of ham, eggs, and cheese. Wrap it all up and you have the perfect warm breakfast on-the-go. 

Little did Peterson know it would catch like wild fire, and the Egg McMuffin went nationwide in 1975, ultimately sparking what we know as McDonald's breakfast. 

The McMuffin is the only item on the breakfast menu that uses a freshly cracked egg, and it sure would be nice if other items used it. The freshly cracked egg, paired with Canadian bacon and cheese is the most magical combination, especially if you let it sit just another minute after it's served to let that cheese get a little meltier. It's basically heaven wrapped up in one cute portable package. 

Well, here it is. You've made it to the last stop on the McDonald's breakfast train, and it's a doozy. This is not to be confused with the Sausage McMuffin, because without the egg, this sandwich doesn't even compare.

Maybe it's the freshly cracked egg, or maybe it's the delicious, slightly greasy sausage patty on top. Or, maybe it's all about the cheese, which, according to McDonald's head chef, Jessica Foust, is the company's own recipe that makes it melt immediately on that hot English muffin. Truthfully though, it's all of these components, all wrapped up in one. 

This savory sandwich is the ideal balance of breakfast flavors, with the slight sweetness from the sausage, pairing perfectly with its delicious, round egg. And there's just something so incredible about that soft, warm, buttery English muffin that rounds out all of the flavors into the perfect little bundle of breakfast magic. It may not have been the first McMuffin on the menu, but it sure is the most delicious.