{"slug":"mcdonalds-vs-wendys","question":"McDonald's vs Wendy's: Size, Beef and Menu","answer":"McDonald's is far bigger: it says it has over 44,000 locations in more than 100 countries and serves 70 million customers a day, with about 95% of restaurants run by independent franchisees. Wendy's, founded in 1969, says it has more than 7,000 restaurants worldwide and builds its menu around made-to-order square hamburgers using fresh beef in the contiguous U.S., Alaska, Canada and several other markets, plus the Baconator and the Frosty. Neither is better for everyone.","answer_curated":true,"verdict":"McDonald's: the larger global chain, with over 44,000 locations in more than 100 countries and about 95% franchise-run.\n\nWendy's: a smaller chain of more than 7,000 restaurants, built around square burgers using fresh beef in North America and select markets.\n\nPick by what you order and what is near you; neither is better for everyone.","keyDifferences":[{"label":"Restaurants","entityAValue":"Over 44,000 in 100+ countries","entityBValue":"More than 7,000 worldwide","winner":"tie"},{"label":"Ownership","entityAValue":"About 95% independent franchisees","entityBValue":"Company and franchised restaurants","winner":"tie"},{"label":"Burger","entityAValue":"Big Mac","entityBValue":"Square hamburgers using fresh beef","winner":"tie"},{"label":"Founded","entityAValue":"Drive-in in San Bernardino, California","entityBValue":"1969","winner":"tie"}],"winner":null,"confidence":"high","entities":[{"name":"McDonald's","slug":"mcdonald-s","url":"https://www.aversusb.net/entity/mcdonald-s","alternativesUrl":"https://www.aversusb.net/api/v1/alternatives/mcdonald-s"},{"name":"Wendy's","slug":"wendy-s","url":"https://www.aversusb.net/entity/wendy-s","alternativesUrl":"https://www.aversusb.net/api/v1/alternatives/wendy-s"}],"faqs":[{"question":"Which chain is bigger, McDonald's or Wendy's?","answer":"McDonald's. It says it has over 44,000 locations in more than 100 countries. Wendy's says it has more than 7,000 restaurants worldwide."},{"question":"Does Wendy's use fresh beef?","answer":"Wendy's says its square hamburgers use fresh beef in the contiguous U.S. and Alaska, Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico, the United Kingdom and select other markets."},{"question":"Who owns McDonald's restaurants?","answer":"Mostly franchisees. McDonald's says about 95% of its restaurants are owned and operated by independent local business owners."}],"attribution":{"source":"A Versus B","url":"https://www.aversusb.net/compare/mcdonalds-vs-wendys","license":"CC BY 4.0","citationFormat":"According to A Versus B (https://www.aversusb.net/compare/mcdonalds-vs-wendys), McDonald's is far bigger: it says it has over 44,000 locations in more than 100 countries and serves 70 million customers a day, with about 95% of restaurants run by independent franchisees. Wendy's, ","dateModified":"2026-10-19T00:00:00.000Z"},"relatedQuestionsUrl":"https://www.aversusb.net/api/faq/mcdonalds-vs-wendys","relatedComparisonsUrl":"https://www.aversusb.net/api/v1/related/mcdonalds-vs-wendys","knowledgeGraphUrl":"https://www.aversusb.net/api/knowledge-graph/mcdonalds-vs-wendys"}