Most Overpriced Fast-Food Chain in America Revealed

What's your opinion on this question? What is the most overpriced fast-food chain in America?

I read an article in Reader's Digest, where they used the analysis of a study Preply conducted on over 57,000 Google reviews of more than 10,000 restaurants in 50 major U.S. cities to determine which chain is most overpriced.

The study was looking for keywords in the language reviewers used to describe overpriced restaurants, with the analysis picking up on how often words like “pricey,” “expensive,” “overpriced,” and “rip-off appeared.

Preply also found that fast-food costs have risen by nearly 50% in the past decade, making going to any favorite fast-food joint feel much less like a good deal than back in the day.

What is the Most Overpriced Fast-Food Chain in America?

The study found the chain Shake Shack to be the most overpriced fast-food restaurant in the country.

It just so happens that Shake Shack is my favorite fast-food option when I can find it. That's usually when we are traveling on the Garden State Parkway.

I admit to making special stops at the Judy Blume rest stop on the GSP because there's a Shake Shack there.

According to Preply’s study, Shake Shack received the most complaints of any national chain about its food being overly expensive.

How Much is Shake Shack?

I haven't been to Shake Shack recently enough to remember how much everything costs, so I will trust the numbers from the Preply study.

The cost of a single hamburger, or ShackBurger as it’s called, typically falls between $6.99 and $7.99.

Want fries to go with that? Or the really tasty onion rings.

An order will run you around $4.49, bringing your grand total to at least $11.48, and that’s not including one of its namesake shakes or another beverage.

One thing I have to tell you right now is that going to Shake Shack without getting a shake is like traveling to Italy and eating Chinese food.

There's a reason the place is called Shake Shack.

Their milkshakes are delicious and the perfect complement to a Shake Shack burger and fries.

Consequently, if I am eating at Shake Shack, I am all in on the meal and the shake. A search of the price of a milkshake at Shake Shack is $7.25 to $8.25.

Oh boy, that is a little pricey. Still good, though.

Okay, I will say my shake costs $7.75, so now my one-person total is $19.23.

In Defense of Shake Shack

I think there is a reason for the chain’s higher prices. For starters, Shake Shack says they use only high-quality, fresh ingredients. The restaurant even has its own proprietary blend of humanely raised beef.

Shake Shack has the tastiest hamburger rolls -- Martin’s Potato Rolls.

What’s more, Shake Shack makes every single item to order. So even though it may feel like a fast-food restaurant, it feels more like casual dining.

The proof to me that it's worth spending a little more for a meal that really tastes good is this: until I read that Shake Shack was the most overpriced fast-food restaurant, I had never even considered how much money I was spending when I went there.

I was too busy eating.