Fast food menu price increases have outpaced inflation [Video]

Inflation has been top of mind for many Americans in recent years thanks to the pressure it has put on their wallets, especially the rising cost of food.

Additionally, rising fast food prices have inspired multiple viral social media posts. One post with 59,000 likes compared the price of Taco Bell’s Beefy 5-Layer Burrito from 2009 to 2024 and contrasted that with the stagnation of the federal minimum wage. Another post uses the “Taco Bell Index” to calculate the inflation rate of Taco Bell’s menu since 1999, which the creator of the post suggested is a more accurate measure of inflation than the official rate released by the federal government.

THE QUESTION

Have fast food prices risen faster than inflation in the last 15 years?

THE SOURCES

THE ANSWER

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