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The Smash Burger Index: Your Burger Costs Ten Times More Out
A double cheeseburger at a UK burger chain costs up to £16.50. The same two-patty burger made at home costs about £1.67. We priced 11 chains so you don't have to.
Eating a burger out has got expensive.
You've probably noticed. Your bank has definitely noticed.
So we priced up every burger chain we could find and put each one next to what the same burger costs to make at home.
It did not go well for the burger chains.
The Smash Burger Index
Here's what a double cheeseburger costs at the big UK chains, against making one at home. One burger, no chips, no drink.
| Chain | Burger | Price | vs home |
|---|---|---|---|
| Burger & BeyondSoho menu | Double cheeseburger | £16.50 | 9.9x |
| Black Bear BurgerShoreditch, Deliveroo | Double cheeseburger | £15.40 | 9.2x |
| BleeckerBleecker website menu | Double cheeseburger | £14.95 | 9.0x |
| Shake ShackLeicester Square, Deliveroo | Double ShackBurger | £14.75 | 8.8x |
| ByronLondon, Deliveroo | Double Smash | £14.50 | 8.7x |
| Five GuysLiverpool Street, Deliveroo | Cheeseburger (two patties as standard) | £14.15 | 8.5x |
| MEATliquorMEATliquor website menu | Cheeseburger (two patties) | £13.25 | 7.9x |
| GBKDeliveroo | Smash Classic, two patties | £10.95 | 6.6x |
| Wendy'sSurrey Quays, Deliveroo | Dave's Double | £8.79 | 5.3x |
| SmacksOrpington, Deliveroo | Double Cheese Burger | £6.99 | 4.2x |
| McDonald'sChelmsford, Deliveroo | Double Cheeseburger | £3.59 | 2.1x |
| Made at homeTesco prices | Two-patty smash, cheese, sauce, gherkins | £1.67 | 1x |
How much is a Five Guys burger?
The Five Guys cheeseburger comes with two patties as standard. At Liverpool Street on Deliveroo it's £14.15. In Birmingham it's £12.85.
Either way, the Five Guys burger price buys you a lot more than a burger at home.
The whole Tesco shop for four double burgers - mince, buns, cheese, gherkins, shallots and every sauce in the recipe - comes to £14.09.
That's four burgers for less than the price of one. And you've still got most of the ketchup, mayo, mustard and gherkins left for next time.
Next time is usually Friday.
Shake Shack isn't far behind. A Double ShackBurger is £14.75 in Leicester Square and £13.45 in Birmingham, so if you've been searching Shake Shack prices UK-wide, the answer is "it depends where you are, and it's a lot".
What it costs to make at home
This is my two-patty method, costed per burger. Two thin 60g-ish patties, two slices of cheese, a sesame bun, burger sauce and gherkins.
| Per burger | What you use | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Beef mince, 20% fat | 125g | £0.81 |
| Cheese slices | 2 slices | £0.26 |
| Burger sauce | Mayo, ketchup, mustard, shallot, pinch of sugar and garlic | £0.25 |
| Sesame bun | 1 | £0.22 |
| Gherkins | About one | £0.13 |
| Total | £1.67 |
The mince is the big one, and it barely matters where you shop. 20% fat beef mince was £3.25 for 500g at Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda and Aldi on the day we checked.
Shop at Aldi for the rest and it drops a few pence further.
Homemade burgers also let you choose the beef, the cheese and how hard you smash it. Very hard is the correct answer.
So why does eating out cost so much?
Because you're not just buying a burger.
You're paying for someone else's rent, staff, energy, chips you didn't order and a table you didn't have to wipe. Order through an app and there's often a bit added on top as well.
That's fair enough. Sometimes you want somebody else to do the washing up.
But if it's a weeknight and you've got a frying pan, the gap is about £12 a burger.
For a family of four, that's about £50 a go. Or several burger presses. Just saying.
The fair bits
McDonald's is the exception. A Double Cheeseburger at £3.59 is only about twice the home price.
Our chain prices come from each chain's own menu where they publish one, and from Deliveroo for the branch shown where they don't. App prices can be higher than eating in, and prices change by location.
The home price doesn't include the energy to run the hob, or your time. It also assumes you use the whole pack eventually. Buy everything from scratch for one burger and the till will be less friendly.
Want to try it?
You need a heavy pan, cold mince and something flat to press with.
A spatula and a rolling pin will do it. A proper cast iron smasher does it in one push, and it's still cheaper than one trip to Five Guys.
I'm biased. I'm also right.
How we worked it out
- All prices were seen online on 14 October 2026. Burgers only, no sides or drinks.
- Chain prices: Bleecker, MEATliquor and Burger & Beyond from their own published menus. Five Guys, Shake Shack, Byron, Black Bear, GBK, Wendy's, Smacks and McDonald's from Deliveroo listings for the branch named in the table.
- We compared each chain's double cheeseburger, or the closest standard two-patty cheeseburger on the menu.
- Home cost uses Tesco online prices: Beef Mince 20% Fat 500g £3.25, Seeded Large Burger Buns 4 pack 86p, 10 Mild Slices £1.30, Mayonnaise 500ml 89p, Tomato Ketchup 555g £1.15, American Inspired Mustard 310g £1.60, Finest Echalion Shallots 400g £1.55, Whole Pickled Gherkins 680g £1.40, Garlic Granules £1.00, Granulated Sugar 1kg £1.09.
- Each ingredient is costed for the amount one burger uses, from the recipe that makes four.
Now if you'll excuse me. I have a frying pan.
