McDonald's Rewards App Explained: How Points Work in the UK After the 2026 Changes
McDonald's points now expire after 6 months and the reward tiers changed in March 2026. Here's how the app works in the UK, from adding points with a receipt to transferring them, and what your points are really worth.
If you opened the McDonald's app recently and noticed your free Big Mac suddenly costs more points, you're not imagining it. McDonald's overhauled MyMcDonald's Rewards on 17 March 2026, moving every reward to a new set of point tiers. That came hot on the heels of another change in December 2025, when points went from lasting 12 months to expiring after just 6.
Between the two updates, a lot of the advice floating around online is now out of date. So here's how the McDonald's Rewards app actually works in the UK right now, including the answers to the questions McDonald's makes you dig through its terms and conditions to find. Can you claim points from a receipt? Can you transfer points to someone else? And after the changes, is the scheme still worth bothering with?
Quick housekeeping first: MyMcDonald's Rewards lives inside the free McDonald's app on iOS and Android. There's no physical loyalty card and no Apple Wallet pass. If you want the rewards, you need the app. And if you want money off before you've built up any points at all, check the latest McDonald's discount codes first, because a straight discount will usually beat weeks of point collecting.
And if the shrinking value here has you shopping around for a scheme that treats loyalty a little better, our guide to the best loyalty cards in the UK shows which ones still reward you properly.
How do McDonald's points work in the UK?
The earning side is simple and hasn't changed: you get 1 point for every penny you spend on food and drink at participating restaurants. Spend £5.60 on a meal, earn 560 points. You need to download the app, create an account and opt in to MyMcDonald's Rewards before anything starts counting.
The catch is that points only land if McDonald's knows it's you ordering. How you do that depends on where you order:
- In the app (for collection or McDelivery): points are added automatically.
- At a kiosk: scan or enter the one-time code from the 'Code' section of the app before you pay.
- At the front counter or drive-thru: read out your one-time code to the crew member before you order.
That word "before" matters more than anything else in this guide. Hand over your code after you've paid and the points are gone. There's no scanning your receipt later in the UK, which brings us to the question everyone asks.
There are a few earning limits worth knowing. Points only count on your first 10 transactions a day and 40 a week, your balance is capped at 100,000 points, and you won't earn anything on delivery fees, tips, the bag charge, gift card purchases or charity donations. The scheme covers participating restaurants in the UK, Jersey and the Isle of Man, and a small number of branches don't take part. You can check yours on McDonald's restaurant locator, filtered to show rewards restaurants only.
What else does the McDonald’s app do besides rewards?
Points are the headline, but they're arguably not even the app's best feature. If you're weighing up whether it's worth the space on your phone, here's the full picture of what you get beyond the rewards scheme:
- Weekly deals every Monday. The Deals section refreshes at the start of each week with offers like discounted Big Macs or cheap McMuffins, and they're often better value than anything the points scheme pays out. Turn notifications on or you'll miss the good ones.
- A first-order offer. The app usually runs an introductory discount for new accounts. Check the Deals section straight after signing up, before you place anything, because these are typically time-limited from the moment you register.
- Order ahead and skip the queue. Build your order in the app, pay, and collect in store, at the drive-thru or via table service without standing in line reciting a complicated order to a stranger.
- Easier refunds. If your order arrives wrong or cold, your order history is right there in the app. Open the order, tap Help, and report the problem. It's considerably less painful than going back to the counter.
- Digital Monopoly peels. When McDonald's Monopoly runs, adding your stickers to the app earns you an extra digital peel per sticker, effectively doubling your chances.
- Personalised offers. Order through the app regularly and it starts tailoring deals to what you actually buy, which sounds mildly dystopian but does mean coffee drinkers see coffee deals.
None of this requires you to touch the rewards scheme, so even point sceptics get real value from the app. But since the points are free money on spending you're doing anyway, you may as well opt in.
Can you add McDonald’s points from a receipt in the UK?
Here's the honest answer, because this is the single most searched question about the scheme and most of what you'll find online is wrong for the UK.
No, the UK app has no receipt feature. If you see a video showing an 'Add Missing Points from Receipt' option in the McDonald's app, that's the American app. US customers can submit receipt details for missed points. UK customers can't, and McDonald's UK is blunt about it: if you didn't use your app or code at any point during the order, points can't be added retrospectively. Keeping the receipt makes no difference.
There is one exception, and it's worth knowing. If you did identify your account when ordering but the points never showed up, that's a missing points claim rather than a forgotten scan, and McDonald's will investigate. Points normally appear instantly, though they can occasionally take up to 48 hours. If they still haven't landed after that:
- Keep your receipt, including the order number.
- Open the app and go to the 'More' tab.
- Select 'Customer Service' and use the Virtual Assistant at the bottom of the page.
- Do this within 30 days of your purchase. After that, McDonald's won't look into missing points claims at all, which is set out in the MyMcDonald's Rewards terms.
So the receipt isn't useless. It's your evidence for a claim. It just can't be scanned for points the way American TikTok would have you believe.
Can you transfer McDonald’s points to another account?
No. McDonald's rewards terms state that points can't be transferred between accounts or people, and you can't combine points across accounts either. So if you and your partner have 3,000 points each, there's no way to merge them into one 6,000-point pot, and there's no gifting option in the app.
There are two practical workarounds. The first is to redeem the reward yourself and simply hand over the food, since McDonald's has no problem with what happens to a McFlurry after it's been redeemed. The second is to order for other people through one account. If your household always orders through the same app account, all of that spending earns points in one place instead of being split across two balances that each take twice as long to reach a reward.
One thing not to do: don't buy or sell points, and don't share account logins with strangers offering to "top up" your balance. McDonald's can void points and close accounts where the terms are breached, and a scheme where points expire in 6 months is not worth losing your account over.
McDonald’s Rewards tiers in 2026: what you can get with points
Since 17 March 2026 there are four reward tiers. These replaced the old 1,500 / 2,500 / 4,000 / 5,500 structure, and every tier now costs more than its old equivalent. Here's what's currently on the rewards menu:
Points | Spend needed | Example rewards |
2,000 | £20 | Small Fries, Hash Brown, Mini McFlurry, medium soft drink, regular tea, Americano, Side Salad |
3,500 | £35 | Cheeseburger, Medium Fries, Mayo Chicken, 4 Chicken McNuggets, Apple Pie, regular McFlurry, latte, cappuccino, hot chocolate |
5,000 | £50 | McChicken Sandwich, Double Cheeseburger, 6 Chicken McNuggets, Filet-O-Fish, Sausage & Egg McMuffin, medium milkshake |
6,500 | £65 | Big Mac, McCrispy, 9 Chicken McNuggets, McPlant, Double Sausage & Egg McMuffin, Double Filet-O-Fish |
You can also donate the value of your points to McDonald's charity partners (Ronald McDonald House Charities, BBC Children in Need and FareShare), and there's even an option to swap points for a month of Snapchat+ if free chips somehow don't appeal.
To redeem, pick your reward in the Rewards & Offers section. Ordering in the app, tap 'Add to mobile order' or 'Add to McDelivery order'. Ordering at a kiosk, counter or drive-thru, choose 'Add to your code' and give the code before you order, exactly as you would when earning.
How much are McDonald’s points worth?
Here's something McDonald's doesn't shout about, but it publishes the answer itself. When you donate points to charity, the app converts them at £2 for 2,000 points, £3.50 for 3,500, £5 for 5,000 and £6.50 for 6,500. That's a flat rate of £1 per 1,000 points at every single tier. In other words, McDonald's itself values a point at 0.1p.
That gives you a dead simple rule of thumb: every £10 you spend earns roughly £1 back, provided you redeem sensibly and nothing expires. A return of around 10% sounds generous for a loyalty scheme, and by high street standards it is, but remember it only pays out in McDonald's food, in fixed chunks, on a menu McDonald's controls.
Food redemptions can land either side of that 0.1p benchmark depending on menu prices at your branch. The sharpest plays tend to be the priciest item within a tier, so a McCafé drink at 3,500 beats a Mayo Chicken, and a Filet-O-Fish at 5,000 beats a Double Cheeseburger. The 6,500 tier is the one to be sceptical of. A Big Mac sounds like the jackpot, but per point it's often weaker value than a good 5,000-point redemption, and with the new 6-month expiry, holding out for the top tier is exactly how points die on the vine. Unless you're in McDonald's most weeks, cashing out at 3,500 or 5,000 is usually the smarter move now.
Do McDonald’s points expire?
Yes, and this is the change that catches people out. Since 30 December 2025, points expire 6 full calendar months after you earn them, down from 12. They vanish on the first day after those 6 months end, so points earned on 4 January 2026 are redeemable until 23:59 on 1 August 2026, then they're gone.
Two habits protect you. First, check the 'View History' tab in the Rewards & Offers section, which shows expiry dates against your points. Second, redeem when you cross a tier you're happy with rather than hoarding. Under the old 12-month rules, saving for the big tier was a reasonable strategy. Under 6-month expiry, it's a gamble that assumes you'll keep visiting at the same rate.
Do you earn McDonald’s points on McDelivery, Uber Eats or Just Eat?
Only if you order McDelivery through the McDonald's app itself. Order through the Uber Eats, Just Eat or Deliveroo apps and you earn nothing, even though Uber Eats couriers handle McDelivery behind the scenes. The route your order takes through the apps is what decides whether points land.
You also don't earn points on the delivery fees themselves, only the food. If you order delivery constantly, it's worth weighing the app-plus-points route against a subscription like Deliveroo Plus, which we've broken down in our Deliveroo Plus guide, because free delivery on every order can outweigh a 10% points return once fees are factored in.
Can you use McDonald’s UK points abroad?
Your login works in other countries and the app will usually switch to the local menu, but your points won't follow you. Each country runs its own rewards scheme with its own points, tiers and rules, so your UK balance can't be earned on or spent in France, Spain or the US, and holiday spending abroad won't top up your UK points. Think of it as one login, separate wallets.
Can you use McDonald’s points and app deals at the same time?
Yes. Redeeming a reward doesn't stop you earning points on the rest of that order, and the weekly app deals (refreshed every Monday, so turn notifications on) sit alongside the rewards scheme rather than replacing it. A decent pattern for a regular order: apply whatever Monday deal fits, pay for the rest as normal to earn points, and attach a reward whenever you've crossed a tier. Just add deals before you confirm the order, because they can't be applied to the basket afterwards.
Common McDonald’s app and Rewards questions
Can you use your points in the drive-thru?
Yes. Redeeming works the same way as earning: pick your reward in the app, choose 'Add to your code', and read the one-time code to the crew member before you order. Get parked safely with the engine off before you start fiddling with your phone, because staff are told not to serve app codes to anyone still rolling.
Can you add McDonald's Rewards to Apple Wallet?
No. There's no Wallet pass and no physical loyalty card. The code lives in the app and nowhere else, which is worth remembering if your phone battery is on 2% and you were counting on those points.
How do you remove a reward from an order?
Take the reward item out of your bag before you complete the order, or generate a fresh code without the reward attached. Any points deducted for an unredeemed reward go back onto your account, provided they haven't expired in the meantime.
Where do you find your receipt in the app?
Your order history sits in the app under your recent orders, and McDonald's also emails a receipt for app orders. For kiosk or counter orders where you scanned your code, keep the paper receipt, since that's what customer services will ask for if points go missing.
Why do staff ask if you're using the app?
Because points can't be added after payment, crew are prompted to ask before ringing anything up. It's your cue to open the Code section, not an upsell.
What happens to your points if you get a new phone?
Nothing. Points are tied to your account, not your handset, so install the app on the new phone, log in with the same details and your balance will be waiting.
Is MyMcDonald’s Rewards still worth it in 2026?
If you're already a regular, yes, without question. It's free, the earn rate works out around 10p back per £1 when you redeem well, and you'd be leaving money on the table by not scanning. For occasional visitors, the maths has genuinely got worse. Someone spending £10 a month now hits the first tier just inside the expiry window, with no room to drift, so a couple of skipped months means expired points and nothing to show for them.
The scheme also looks different next to its rivals. Greggs hands out a free hot drink just for downloading its app, which we've covered in our Greggs app guide, while Nando's chilli points ladder is explained in our Nando's Rewards guide. McDonald's beats both on flexibility but punishes infrequent visits harder than either since the expiry change.
The bottom line: scan every time, spend points at 3,500 or 5,000 rather than hoarding for a Big Mac, never order McDonald's through a third-party delivery app if you care about points, and stack the weekly deals on top. And before any order, big or small, it takes ten seconds to check our takeaway deals and McDonald's offers, because the best saving is usually the one you get today rather than the one you're 4,000 points away from.
