McDonald’s is adjusting its change policy to combat a current penny shortage, and some customers aren’t happy.
A memo from the fast food chain went viral on Reddit, notifying customers it would be rounding change to the nearest five cents. This comes after President Donald Trump ordered the U.S. Treasury to halt the production of pennies earlier this year.
McDonald’s confirmed to the Mirror US that in locations experiencing a penny shortage, the restaurant will round up or down to the nearest 5 cents if a patron doesn’t have exact change. For customers using card, the order totals will remain the same. It comes after McDonal's added a new pyramid icon to menus to warn customers.
McDonald’s change update
Menu prices will stay the same, but the entire order total will be rounded depending on the change. The sign on Reddit explained how the rounding will work:- If the order price ends in 1 or 2 cents, it will be rounded down to 0 cents.
- If the order price ends in 3 or 4 cents, it will be rounded up to 5 cents.
- If the order price ends in 5 or 0 cents, exact change will be given.
- If the order price ends in 6 or 7 cents, it will be rounded down to 5 cents.
- If the order price ends in 8 or 9 cents, it will be rounded up to 10 cents.
The company confirmed it would not impact card payments or other cashless options, which represent the majority of transactions here in the U.S. Restaurants may ask customers to use exact change or cashless payment options like credit/debit or the App, where they can unlock a variety of national and local deals.
McDonald's added that in countries where similar currency changes have taken place, local businesses have followed similar rounding practices.
McDonald's customers react
McDonald’s fans had mixed reactions on the news. One user under the Reddit post wrote: “I guess it's okay and not a big deal but knowing how these companies work, I can see them pricing everything so they can pocket an extra two cents from every sale.”Another said: “Just change the d--- prices. You say the prices stay unchanged but then charge more or less at the end of the transaction.”
Others said other countries already do it this way, and it’s time to retire the penny.
One person wrote: “We should go this anyway, retire the penny. In fact, also retire the nickel.
“H---, the last time the US retired it's lowest coin was the half-cent and back then it was worth more than what a dime is worth today. Why are we even using pennies and nickels?”
Penny shortage
The U.S. Mint made its final order for penny blanks in May, and once those run out, it will no longer produce the coin. The Treasury said once the penny is out of production, it expects to save $56 million in material costs.Trump order the agency to end penny production shortly after taking office this year.
“For far too long the United States has minted pennies which literally cost us more than 2 cents. This is so wasteful!” Trump wrote at that time in a post on Truth Social. “I have instructed my Secretary of the US Treasury to stop producing new pennies.”
Businesses are using different tactics to combat the penny shortage. Sheetz, a convenience store chain, ran a promotion offering free soda to customers who brought in pennies, according to ABC News.
While many experts agree the penny isn’t needed, some say the abrupt halting with no federal government guidance will be stressful on businesses.
“We have been advocating abolition of the penny for 30 years. But this is not the way we wanted it to go,” said Jeff Lenard with the National Association of Convenience Stores.
