How To Give Your McDonald's Burger Extra Protein

Many people have been trying to get more protein in their diet (thus the protein-maxxing trend), and food companies have responded by focusing on it themselves. Now, the federal government has gotten on board the effort too. The USDA released new food guidelines that advise Americans to make protein part of every meal, with 1.2 to 1.6 grams of it per kilogram of body weight per day – twice what they used to suggest. That means sticking to your protein goals even when you make a McDonald's run, and one way to give your burger more protein is adding another beef patty.

Some of the chain's burgers already have two, so if you were planning to get a Quarter Pounder, just order a Double one instead, and if you were going to pick up a cheeseburger, up it to a McDouble. But if you were set to get a Big Mac or a Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese, which is among the fast food burgers with the most protein at 48 grams, go ahead and triple it if you're hungry enough to eat it! For reference, the regular and Big Mac beef patties have around 7.5 grams of protein, while the Quarter Pounder ones have 18.

You could alternatively add a McCrispy's chicken filet, which has 20 grams, rather than more beef, or the McChicken's, which boasts 9. Or surf and turf your meal by using a Filet-o-Fish patty, which is made from wild-caught Alaskan pollock, and has 9.

Another approach is to think outside the patty or filet box. Instead of putting another one of them on your burger, add one or more McCrispy chicken strips, which have 10 grams of protein each. You can take advantage of a couple of the other components too. Each piece of cheese has about 3 grams, so ask for an extra slice. Additionally, the applewood smoked bacon on the Bacon Quarter Pounder with Cheese has 6, and you could add it to your sandwich, too.

Your protein maxxing doesn't have to end with your main meal. A few of McDonald's dessert treats can help out while also satisfying your sweet tooth. The small vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry shakes have between 10 and 12 grams of protein each — the regular size Oreo McFlurry has 10, and the M&M's McFlurry has 11.

McDonald's has actually made it simpler for interested customers to see how much protein is in its food. In one of the biggest changes McD's made in the first half of 2026, it added yellow badges next to some menu items in the app and the ordering kiosks that show how much protein they have. It did it for 17 regular and breakfast foods — although they're not necessarily all the ones that have the most protein, so if you want to really compare, be sure to check out the nutritional info on each item.