McDonald’s Plans $8.5 Billion Modernization of Restaurants Through 2036
McDonald’s has announced plans to invest approximately $8.5 billion through 2036 as the fast-food giant seeks to modernize its restaurants, improve operations and adapt to changing customer expectations.
The Chicago-based company announced the investment on September 23, 2026, as part of its new McDonald’s NEXT strategy. The programme is intended to support restaurant modernization, technology deployment and operational improvements across the company’s global system.
McDonald’s said approximately $5 billion of the planned support will be provided through 2030, with the remaining investment extending through 2036. The company expects the programme to involve a combination of capital support and rent relief for franchisees.
The announcement comes as McDonald’s looks for ways to increase customer traffic while also making restaurants more efficient. The company operates in a fast-food market where competition remains intense and where customers are increasingly looking for convenience, value and a wider range of food choices.
A Decade of Restaurant Modernization
The $8.5 billion programme is focused partly on updating the physical restaurants where customers place and receive their orders. McDonald’s says the modernization programme will include changes designed to improve the experience for customers as well as the working environment for restaurant crews.
Among the changes being introduced are lockers for delivery orders. The lockers are intended to make it easier for restaurants to handle the growing volume of delivery orders while keeping the collection process organized.
Restaurants will also receive changes to their coffee preparation areas. McDonald’s plans to make coffee preparation more visible to customers, with the company saying that this can help reinforce perceptions of freshness and quality.
Some restaurants will also receive larger play areas. The changes are therefore not limited to kitchen equipment and technology. McDonald’s is also looking at how restaurant layouts can be changed to provide different experiences for customers using its locations.
Kitchen Layouts Will Also Change
Behind the counter, McDonald’s plans to make changes to kitchen layouts as part of the modernization programme. The objective is to make restaurants more efficient while allowing employees to handle orders more effectively.
Improving the kitchen is particularly important as McDonald’s continues to handle orders through several different channels. Customers can order at the counter, through self-service kiosks, mobile applications, drive-thrus and delivery services.
A restaurant that was originally designed primarily around counter service has therefore had to accommodate a much more complicated flow of orders. McDonald’s modernization plans are intended to address some of those changes.
The company is also expanding the use of technology designed to improve order accuracy. McDonald’s said scales that help ensure orders are prepared correctly are already being used at around 10,000 restaurants globally.
The company plans to have those scales in approximately 20,000 restaurants by 2028. The technology is intended to help employees check orders and reduce mistakes before food reaches customers.
Artificial Intelligence Will Play a Bigger Role
Technology is another major part of the modernization programme. McDonald’s is accelerating the deployment of its ArchIQ system, which was developed with Google.
ArchIQ is designed to use artificial intelligence to improve restaurant operations. Among other functions, the system can help with tasks such as inventory management and employee scheduling.
The increased use of artificial intelligence reflects a broader effort by McDonald’s to automate some administrative tasks and provide restaurant operators with more information that can be used to manage their businesses.
For a company with tens of thousands of restaurants around the world, even relatively small improvements in inventory, scheduling and order accuracy can have an impact across the wider system.
McDonald’s says its NEXT strategy will combine globally developed technology with local decision-making. Markets will determine how and when different initiatives are introduced, taking account of local circumstances and the ability of franchisees to invest.
Franchisees Will Share the Investment
Although McDonald’s is providing significant financial support, franchisees will also be required to invest in restaurant improvements.
McDonald’s franchisees typically spend as much as $450,000 over a decade on required restaurant remodels. Under the new modernization programme, franchisees are expected to spend an additional $800,000.
McDonald’s says it will contribute toward part of that additional cost through the support included in the $8.5 billion programme.
The company estimates that the investments will provide franchisees with an approximately four-year payback after the financial support is taken into account.
McDonald’s also estimates that the operational improvements will produce approximately 250 basis points of gross restaurant-level efficiency gains. The company says that this would be equivalent to roughly $100,000 in annual cash-flow benefits for the average U.S. restaurant, with most of that benefit expected to eventually reach the restaurant's bottom line.
McDonald’s Wants More Customers to Choose Its Restaurants
The modernization programme is part of a broader attempt by McDonald’s to increase its share of the food and beverage market.
Under its NEXT strategy, McDonald’s has set a target of gaining 1.5 percentage points of market share in both the chicken and beverage categories by 2030, while maintaining its existing leadership position in beef.
That means the company is looking beyond its traditional hamburger business. Chicken and drinks are important areas where McDonald’s sees opportunities to attract customers who may otherwise choose competing restaurants.
The company also wants to improve the way restaurants operate once customers arrive. The strategy therefore combines efforts to generate more demand with efforts to make restaurants faster and more productive.
New Food Options Are Planned
Food is another part of McDonald’s response to changing customer preferences. The company plans to introduce grilled chicken sandwiches and wraps while also experimenting with products such as egg bites and bowls.
These products are intended to broaden the range of choices available to customers, particularly those looking for meals that emphasize protein or are perceived as lighter alternatives to some traditional fast-food items.
McDonald’s USA President Sky Anderson said that approximately 60 million Americans are actively seeking more protein in their diets. The company therefore sees an opportunity to develop menu items that respond to that demand.
McDonald’s also pointed to the growing use of GLP-1 weight-loss medications in the United States. Anderson said approximately 30 million Americans are now using those drugs and suggested that some users are seeking smaller meals with more protein.
The company is consequently examining how its menu can accommodate customers whose eating habits are changing, while still maintaining the core products that have traditionally driven McDonald’s business.
Technology and Convenience
The modernization programme also reflects the increasingly digital way in which customers interact with McDonald’s.
Mobile ordering, delivery and digital payment have changed the way restaurants receive orders. A customer may now place an order without entering the restaurant at all, while another may order from a kiosk or drive-thru.
That creates additional demands on restaurant kitchens and employees. Food has to be prepared for several ordering channels simultaneously, while customers still expect their orders to be accurate and delivered quickly.
The lockers planned for delivery orders are one example of how the physical restaurant is being adapted to this changing environment. Rather than treating delivery as an additional service bolted onto an existing restaurant design, McDonald’s is incorporating delivery requirements into the layout of its restaurants.
Improving the Customer Experience
McDonald’s has also launched a multi-year programme called Make It Golden, which is intended to improve the customer experience across its restaurant system.
The company describes the programme as a systemwide commitment to improving food and hospitality while maintaining the characteristics that customers associate with the McDonald’s brand.
The modernization work is therefore not solely about replacing old equipment. McDonald’s is attempting to make its restaurants more convenient and appealing while also improving the way employees work inside them.
Larger play areas, redesigned kitchens and more visible coffee preparation are examples of changes that customers may notice directly, while inventory and scheduling technology will largely operate behind the scenes.
A Global Programme With Local Decisions
Although McDonald’s describes the $8.5 billion programme as a global modernization effort, the company says individual markets will determine how they implement the strategy.
McDonald’s operates through a combination of company-owned and franchised restaurants, with franchisees playing a major role in the operation and investment of individual locations.
The company therefore says that markets will define their own paths while using solutions developed at a global level where appropriate. The timing of individual investments will also depend on local conditions and franchisee capacity.
This approach allows McDonald’s to pursue a common strategy without requiring every restaurant in every country to receive exactly the same changes at exactly the same time.
Investment Through 2036
The scale of the programme means that modernization will take place over many years rather than through a single round of restaurant renovations.
McDonald’s expects to provide approximately $5 billion in support through 2030, followed by additional support that brings the total to approximately $8.5 billion through 2036.
The long timetable reflects the size of the McDonald’s restaurant system and the amount of investment required to change restaurants operating in different markets around the world.
The company will also need to balance investment in existing restaurants with the costs associated with operating and expanding its overall business.
What Customers Can Expect
For customers, the modernization programme is likely to be most visible through changes to individual restaurants rather than through the financial announcements themselves.
Customers may encounter redesigned kitchens, improved delivery collection areas, larger children's play spaces and changes to coffee preparation areas. Digital ordering and artificial intelligence will also increasingly influence how orders are placed and processed.
The menu is expected to evolve as well, with grilled chicken sandwiches, wraps and experimental products such as egg bites and bowls being considered as McDonald’s looks for additional ways to appeal to customers.
At the same time, the company is maintaining its core focus on beef and intends to strengthen its position in chicken and beverages.
McDonald’s Looking Toward 2036
McDonald’s $8.5 billion modernization programme represents a long-term attempt to update one of the world's largest restaurant systems while responding to changes in how customers eat, order and use restaurants.
The plan combines physical renovations with artificial intelligence, automated operational tasks, improved order accuracy and new approaches to restaurant design. It also includes changes to the menu as McDonald’s seeks to attract customers interested in protein-focused and potentially smaller meals.
The company is providing substantial financial support to franchisees, but franchise operators will still be expected to contribute to the cost of modernizing their restaurants.
With approximately $8.5 billion in support planned through 2036, the changes announced by McDonald’s are intended to unfold over the next decade rather than being a short-term refurbishment programme. The company’s stated objective is to use that investment to improve restaurant efficiency, customer experience and its ability to compete for a larger share of the food and beverage market.
