McDonald’s is facing a proposed nationwide class action alleging that its AI-powered pricing system coordinated menu prices across thousands of U.S. restaurants and caused customers to pay more for Big Macs, Quarter Pounders, and other items.
The lawsuit, filed October 2, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, accuses McDonald’s of violating Section 1 of the Sherman Antitrust Act. Illinois customer Michael Thomas alleges the company used nonpublic restaurant sales data to coordinate pricing across its U.S. network.
Thomas claims McDonald’s has operated the machine-learning system since at least 2019 and used combined transaction data to generate price recommendations across its nearly 14,000 U.S. restaurants. He is seeking to represent customers nationwide who say they paid more because of the alleged coordination.
McDonald’s disputes the allegations and says franchise owners set their own menu prices. The company describes its AI-powered tools as recommendation systems that account for local market conditions and says franchisees retain final pricing authority.
Thomas alleges McDonald’s used confidential transaction data from across its restaurant network to generate location-specific prices for individual menu items. He argues that sharing those recommendations across independently operated restaurants amounted to coordination prohibited by Section 1 of the Sherman Antitrust Act.
“Independent businesses must set their prices independently,” the complaint states.
The system can analyze millions of transactions and account for local conditions, including how much customers in a particular area may be willing to pay. It can also produce different recommendations for nearby restaurants selling the same food.
A September review of prices on the McDonald’s app found a company-operated restaurant in Fresno, California, selling a Big Mac for $5.69, while another company-run location about two miles away charged $6.89, a difference of roughly 21%.
McDonald’s says differences between restaurant prices reflect local operating costs, competition and other market conditions.
The complaint also alleges McDonald’s monitored franchisees that moved away from recommended prices and pressured operators to use the company’s pricing tools. Thomas says participation became mandatory in January 2026.
The lawsuit seeks damages for affected customers and a court order barring the alleged conduct. Thomas must still persuade the court to certify the proposed class before he can pursue the claims on behalf of McDonald’s customers nationwide.
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