A proposed class action filed against McDonald’s in Illinois alleges that an AI-assisted pricing tool and shared restaurant data helped coordinate menu prices across locations. McDonald’s disputes that account: the company says its tools only offer optional recommendations, franchisees set their own prices, and it does not use dynamic pricing. The case is at the complaint stage; the sources available here do not show a court ruling on the allegations.
What the lawsuit alleges
Michael Thomas filed the proposed class action against McDonald’s USA, LLC and McDonald’s Corporation on October 2, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. The docket identifies it as an antitrust action under 15 U.S.C. § 1, case number 1:2026cv12149. The complaint alleges that McDonald’s used a shared AI- or machine-learning-assisted tool drawing on nonpublic sales and pricing data from franchise and company-run restaurants. According to the complaint, the tool made recommendations that helped coordinate prices among locations that would otherwise compete, and franchisees faced pressure to follow them.
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Those are the plaintiff’s allegations, not established facts or a finding of liability. Plaintiff’s lawyer Lark Turner characterized the alleged conduct as “leveraging its troves of data and its franchised system to nickel-and-dime consumers down to the last French fry,” as reported by Reuters, republished by Investing.com.
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In a statement dated October 1, 2026—one day before the complaint was filed—McDonald’s said it offers U.S. franchisees optional tools and recommendations, while franchisees independently decide menu prices. The company says the tool responds to local market conditions and does not set or change prices, determine what an individual customer pays, or use that customer’s willingness to pay.
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McDonald’s stated: “AI does not set the price of a Big Mac or any other menu item. It does not change prices. And it does not determine what an individual customer pays.” It also said, “McDonald’s does not use dynamic pricing.” After the lawsuit was filed, the company called it inaccurate and said it would vigorously defend itself, according to the Associated Press.
How the two accounts differ
The dispute is not simply whether a customer’s personal profile causes a different price to appear on their screen. McDonald’s denies individualized and real-time price changes. The complaint instead alleges that a tool using shared, nonpublic information and recommendations could coordinate prices across competing restaurants. The company presents its recommendations as optional and restaurant-level; the plaintiff alleges that franchisees were pressured to follow them. The sources do not establish how the tool operated in practice or resolve these competing accounts.
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| Question | Plaintiff’s allegation | McDonald’s stated position |
|---|---|---|
| What information does the tool use? | The complaint alleges it draws on nonpublic sales and pricing data from franchise and company-run restaurants. | The company describes a recommendation tool responsive to local market conditions; its statement does not confirm the complaint’s account of cross-store data use. |
| Do franchisees have a choice? | The complaint alleges pressure to follow recommendations. | McDonald’s says recommendations are optional and franchisees independently set prices. |
| Does the tool change a customer’s price in real time? | The complaint’s central allegation concerns coordination through shared information and recommendations, not a proven customer-specific price change. | McDonald’s says the tool neither changes prices in real time or at different hours nor sets an individual customer’s price. |
| Has a court decided which account is right? | No merits finding is shown in the docket listing described here. | McDonald’s disputes the allegations and says it will defend itself. |
What the available record establishes—and what it does not
The case is a proposed class action, not a certified class. The docket listing records the complaint and civil cover sheet on October 2, 2026, and plaintiff’s counsel appearance on October 3. It was last retrieved on October 3 and warns that later entries may be available through PACER, so this is not a verified account of the complete docket through October 9. The listing does not show a ruling on the merits.
McDonald’s background figures help explain the franchise context but do not decide the case. The company said on October 1, 2026, that its worldwide network included more than 46,000 restaurants. The Associated Press reported on October 6 that, according to McDonald’s, 95% of its 14,000 U.S. stores are franchise-owned and operated, and that the AI-enhanced pricing tool had been used for more than a decade. AP also reported that CEO Chris Kempczinski said during an August 2026 investor call that rolling out a value menu requires franchisee conversations: “in our system, that’s not something that we just flip the switch on.” These company-attributed details provide context; they are not evidence that the alleged coordination occurred or raised prices.
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The reviewed sources provide no independent statistic measuring whether the tool increased consumer prices or caused coordination. Any such effect remains alleged, not established.
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