McDonald's Cheeseburger vs. McDouble vs. Double Cheeseburger

A cheeseburger showdown.

The McDonald's cheeseburger, double cheeseburger, and McDouble: individually wrapped and stacked and cross-section view of each unwrapped.

Serious Eats / Robyn Lee

In This Article

This past Monday was the first time I ever bought a cheeseburger at McDonald's. And probably my last.

But I did it for you. With McDonald's release of the McDouble, they now have three basic cheeseburgers: the cheeseburger, McDouble (two patties with one slice of cheese), and double cheeseburger (two patties with two slices of cheese). Since it's AHT's job to document such a momentous occasion in McDonald's cheeseburger history, I went to the McDonald's a block away, got one of each burger, and took photos of and tasted each one.

Is it worth coughing up the extra cash for another slice of cheese? Yes. More details after the jump.

Cheeseburger

A McDonald's cheeseburger

Serious Eats / Robyn Lee

McDonald's cheeseburger is one of the saddest burgers I have ever touched in my life, perhaps only second to their hamburger. It felt so...dead. And I don't mean to imply that most burgers feel alive—I'm quite aware that they're inanimate objects—but something about this burger made me think "dead," "limp," and "sad."

A McDonald's cheeseburger cut in half.

Serious Eats / Robyn Lee

It looked and tasted like sadness. Dry sadness. Let's move on.

McDouble

A McDonald's McDouble cheeseburger.

Serious Eats / Robyn Lee

The McDouble is less sad. Two patties instead of one makes a big difference.

A McDouble cheeseburger cut in half, showing two patties and one slice of cheese.

Serious Eats / Robyn Lee

But it's still missing something...

Double Cheeseburger

A McDonald's double cheeseburger.

Serious Eats / Robyn Lee

It's missing the extra slice of cheese found in the double cheeseburger.

A McDonald's double cheeseburger showing two patties and two slices of cheese.

Serious Eats / Robyn Lee

This was the clear winner in our panel of testers. Not that we'd necessarily recommend it, just that if you were wondering if it was worth getting over the single cheese sliced McDouble, we'd say yes. The semi-melted processed cheese helps balance out the dry patties. The McDouble doesn't seem to have much reason to exist except in places where it appears on the Dollar Menu.

If I ever go back to McDonald's though, I'll probably get a Filet-O-Fish.

December 2008