‘Learn how to finesse it’: McDonald’s app customer says you can always get free food if you’re struggling to make it to payday
When it comes to fast food mobile apps in the realm of meal deals, a TikToker named Carmen (@carmenbarbie) says one's restaurant's offering stands tall above the rest: McDonald's.
Carmen claims there's no reason anyone with a smartphone should ever have to "go hungry" as long as they scroll through the McDonald's app to find deals that'll leave both their bellies and wallets full. She discusses the app's fiscally-friendly promotions in a viral TikTok that's accrued over 325,000 views as of Friday.
"Learn how to finesse it," she says of the app. "Learn how to work it because it really is a good thing to have just in case. Even the people who don't like McDonald's, that don't eat...whatever the case may be. If you hungry, get the app, they not even paying me to say that I'm just saying get that app."
Several viewers seemed to agree with her assessment of McDonald's mobile rewards application program.
One person commented, "That app comes in clutch! Especially when I'm trying to make it to payday," while another penned, "I don’t pay full price for nothing at McDonald’s. They have the best rewards app in the game."
Some users may notice the app is set up in such a way that there's a limit to how many deals or promotions one can use at once. However, some TikTokers claimed they have discovered ways to get around this ordering obstacle.
"Use a code for pickup 15 min before leaving your house then use another code when you get there," one commented.
@carmenbabie @McDonald’s ♬ original sound - CarmenDanielle
It seems that this technique has been employed by other Mickey D's app users as well, with one user writing, "And if you have time, you can use a code every 15 minutes."
So what kinds of specials can one expect? According to this TikToker, getting an early morning sandwich for just a buck. "Me with my $1 breakfast sandwhich every morning the besttttt," they wrote.
Someone else said they're using the application to make sure their kids are fed, too. "My kids been tearing that 2 10 piece nuggets with 2 medium free fries total is like $8.00 free kids meals and all," they wrote.
"This! No way I’m paying $12 for one meal. I’m feeding the family," another said. Others said that they prefer to let their points accrue for extended periods and then use those points for meals when they're a bit tighter on cash.
While several app users admitted those willing to dedicate time to getting the best deals have a better time with it, others have complained online about the application glitching. This means if you're trying to use a deal while in the drive-thru line and it malfunctions, you hold up everyone behind and you may opt to pay full price for your order, or just abandon the order entirely.
One Redditor remarked that a particular update for the mobile application was "garbage" in an upload to the site's r/McDonaldsEmployees subreddit.
"Probably the most recent mobile app update being garbage. It's given us so many problems, from people being unable to cancel orders to freezing one of our registers whenever we took a mobile order on it to sending orders to the wrong store. Ugh," they said.
However, like many folks said in response to Carmen's video, if you're in a bind and need to ensure that you're getting yourself some grub before payday, you might not mind having to pre-plan your trip to McDonald's and "finesse" your food by spending a little bit of extra time working the app.
The Daily Dot has reached out to McDonald's via email and Carmen via Instagram direct message for further comment.
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