Customers Say These 10 Fast Food Milkshakes Are By Far The Best

The milkshake is an iconic part of American food culture, but it has undergone many iterations over the years. In the 19th century, a "shake" typically referred to a sweetened adult beverage that was shaken in an ice-filled tumbler until cold and frothy. Fast forward a few decades, and the same concept (minus the booze) was employed by parents who wanted their kids to drink more milk. Then, in 1922, the electric blender was invented, and that same year, a soda jerk at a Chicago Walgreens (yes, the pharmacy) used it to blend vanilla ice cream with milk. And the rest is history.

Today, the milkshake is a staple on most fast-food menus. But each chain does theirs a bit differently. Some use custard or hard ice cream, while a majority use a vanilla soft-serve base blended with syrups and toppings to create dozens of flavor combinations. But with so many options to choose from, how do you know which milkshake to pair with your burgers, fries, roast beef, and tacos? 

We turned to Reddit, Facebook, and other social media platforms to uncover which fast-food milkshakes are the tastiest. From fruity and fabulous to nutty and sweet to frustratingly seasonal, customers say these are the 10 best fast food milkshakes around.

Chick-fil-A is known for its top-notch customer service and for having one of the best spicy chicken sandwiches around, but the chain also offers a variety of frosty beverages to pair with your poultry. From a flashy pineapple-dragon fruit frosted lemonade to a classic ice cream float, there are many ways to balance savory dishes with something sweet.

But at the end of the day, it's the milkshakes that stand above the rest. You can go classic vanilla or a childhood classic like cookies and cream; however, if you want a genuine Chick-fil-A experience, you have to go with peach, a frigidly sweet homage to the chain's Georgia roots. 

In a Reddit thread ranking fast-food milkshakes, this flavor ranked at the top. It's made with Icedream dessert, peach purée, and bits of fresh peaches, making for a shake that's decadent yet subtly tart, with an undertone of fresh peach flavor. The only downside to this one, as many Redditors will lament, is that it's only available a few months of the year, usually when peaches are in season from early June to the end of August.

If you're from the Northeast (like me), you probably aren't too familiar with Cook Out. Well, it's time to get acquainted. There are over 350 locations of this fast-casual barbecue restaurant scattered throughout the southeastern United States. Its menu is tight but concentrated. On it, you'll find classic fast-food staples like homestyle chicken strips, Cajun fries, hot dogs, and char-grilled chicken and burgers, with options to add everything from chili to barbecue sauce to grilled onions. Hush Puppies and a house-made coleslaw can be added to any barbecue plate, reinforcing that cook-out feel.

But it's Cook Out's 30+ different milkshake flavors that continue to win over customers. But the one we see referenced over and over again on the message boards is Banana Pudding. Because it's often a feature of barbecue menus and soul food spreads, many people associate banana pudding with the South, which makes sense given the region's proximity to major banana-producing countries in Central and South America. However, food historians actually attribute the dish's conception to Northern recipe publications in the late 19th century.

Regardless of its origin, the blend of tropical banana with malty vanilla wafers is a magical combination that only gets better when in milkshake form. And customers simply can't get enough of it.

Arby's is known for its meats. And they do them well. While other chains focus on burgers and chicken sandwiches, Arby's stands apart by offering towering sandwiches layered with thinly sliced roast beef, corned beef, ham, and turkey. It's also one of the few fast food restaurants that offer curly fries. I know what you're thinking: Do I really want to pair my cheesesteak or Classic Beef 'n Cheddar with a cool and creamy milkshake?

You obviously do. The milkshake provides the perfect amount of sweetness to an otherwise salty, savory meal. And anyone who knows anything about Arby's knows there is one flavor that is the clear alpha of the pack: Jamocha. The name is peculiar yet self-explanatory, a reference to the combination of coffee and mocha that is so deftly concocted that no one flavor dominates. The Jamocha Shake has been a cornerstone of the Arby's menu since the chain opened its first location in 1964. And customers love it. In a Reddit thread dedicated to fast-food milkshakes, the Jamocha Shake is the clear top dog, still as delicious today as it was when it debuted more than 60 years ago.

With a name like Shake Shack, you have to be able to execute a solid milkshake. And, for the most part, Shake Shack delivers. Sure, there are a few comments on Reddit complaining that the shakes are too foamy, too warm, or too sweet, but the overall consensus is that Shake Shack knows what it's doing. For whatever reason, the company doesn't make its full ingredient list available online, but its website says it makes its shakes with custard, which, unlike ice cream, uses egg yolks in its recipe, resulting in a creamier, more decadent final product.

The cool thing about Shake Shack's milkshake menu is that it's always in flux. The chain will add limited and seasonal flavors throughout the year, from Dubai chocolate to key lime pie to Christmas cookie. But according to customer responses on Reddit, the clear favorite is an old faithful off Shake Shack's permanent menu — the Black & White. It's the ideal combination of creamy vanilla custard and rich chocolate fudge, not to be confused with the Chocolate & Vanilla Shake, which is a mix of vanilla and chocolate custard.

Culver's is not your average fast food chain. Like Wendy's, the restaurant uses fresh, not frozen, beef to make its signature ButterBurgers. Not only are the patties griddled to order, but they're also layered on a buttered Kaiser roll, creating a burger experience that's unlike any other. But the attention to detail goes beyond the burgers. Culver's sells fried fish, which it batters and cooks to order, as well as a solid grilled chicken sandwich. And if burgers and fried fish aren't your thing (which is hard to imagine), Culver's is also one of the few fast-food companies that has a pot-roast sandwich on its permanent menu!

But above all, Culver's is known for its shakes. Made with real dairy, the frozen custard-based shakes are more decadent than comparable shakes made with soft serve. The key to a Culver's shake is the proper ratio of custard to milk, which some customers note can be off, resulting in a shake that's either too thick or too milky. Flavor-wise, the chain hits it out of the park every time. Although taste is subjective, customers seem to truly adore the seasonal Pumpkin Shake, an annual fan favorite they look forward to every year. One TikToker praised the drink's texture and spices, comparing it to a cold, creamy pumpkin pie filling—a clear upgrade from your ordinary PSL.

Like many fast food chains, Sonic has a long and winding history. Still, over the decades, it has managed to preserve its nostalgic, carhop feel while keeping up with current food trends. It might be hard to believe, but in 1959, when the chain was just six years old, you could buy a Sonic hamburger for just 35 cents and a small root beer for just a dime. Shake malts were on the menu back then, too, but they weren't quite like what they are today.

Back in the 1980s, Sonic experimented with allowing franchise owners to customize menus based on regional or local preferences, but they abandoned that concept in 1995, when the milkshake became a permanent menu fixture nationwide. And boy are we glad. Because Sonic's milkshakes are some of the best in the country. 

A Sonic milkshake is made with a vanilla soft-serve base and various syrups/mix-ins. You can go in many directions within this basic framework, but an overwhelming crowd favorite, according to multiple Reddit threads, seems to be the peanut butter milkshake with hot fudge or chocolate syrup, which is essentially a sippable frozen peanut butter cup. Pair this with a burger, fries, and onion rings, and enjoy a tasty trip back in time.

Jack in the Box will surprise you. The predominantly Midwestern restaurant chain has some of the most affordable food around, with a budget-friendly menu that includes an eclectic mix of onion rings, mini empanadas, tacos, chicken wraps, burgers, and all-day breakfast (although, despite its new under $4 Munchies Menu, prices at Jack in the Box have ticked up in the past couple of years).

Still, the one item you don't often hear discussed is its milkshakes. If you haven't had one, prepare to be surprised. On the r/fastfood subreddit, Jack in the Box was the top-ranked milkshake, with one user going as far as to say that, "Jack is S tier. Everything else is inferior." So what's the secret? After doing a little digging on TikTok, you can see firsthand how the shakes get made. The formula is as straightforward as it gets: vanilla soft serve + any syrups or mix-ins. The mixture is then blended until creamy and smooth and topped with whipped cream.

If this sounds like you're just drinking a cup of ice cream, you're not totally wrong. But the high-speed mixer warms it just enough to get it the perfect, straw-friendly consistency. With so many different shake modifications available, it was hard to identify a clear favorite, but a number of Reddit users seem to like the Oreo/cookies and cream flavor, thanks to the cocoa-rich cookie chunks suspended throughout.

When it comes to cult fast-food followings, few communities are as vehemently supportive as the fans of In-N-Out Burger. The West Coast chain has gained its followers through a commitment to quality food and fair prices. None of the locations have microwaves or store food in freezers, and while rising costs have affected nearly every corner of the national economy, In-N-Out has managed to keep its prices from swelling, thanks to a tight menu and efficient processes.

Besides burgers and fries, the third component of the In-N-Out menu is milkshakes. Since the restaurants have no freezers, In-N-Out uses a sweetened dairy base made from milk, cream, sugar, and a few other ingredients to stabilize and flavor the mixture. The base is then fed into a soft-serve machine, where it is churned and aerated until frozen.

In-N-Out is known for its not-so-secret menu, where you can order double, triple, or quad patties on your burger. And one would think that, based on its popularity, the famous Neapolitan Milkshake would be on there. It's not, but you can still order it by name. And despite being somewhat hidden, it's still the chain's most beloved shake, according to the In-N-Out Reddit community, with one user calling it, "The best shake on the planet." Not only does it look beautiful when served (until everything melds together), but the flavor combination tastes like a trifecta of your favorite cafeteria milks in one frosty cup.

The menu at Del Taco looks as if someone took every quintessential fast food item and wrapped it in tortillas. Yes, they have your typical fillings — ground beef, refried beans, carnitas — but dive a little deeper, and you'll find chicken strips, bacon, egg, and cheese, and something Del Taco is calling an All-American Burgertaco — essentially a full cheeseburger wrapped in a tortilla.

Now, the real curveball is that Del Taco sells milkshakes, too. And good ones at that. Are tacos and milkshakes a classic combination? Honestly, who's to say? In general, any salty, savory food can benefit from a touch of cool, creamy sweetness. The Del Taco milkshake formula is pretty similar to that of other major fast-food chains, using a sugary ice cream base that's then turned into soft serve.

However, Del Taco stands out from its competition with its strawberry milkshake, which is also a customer favorite, especially on Reddit, TikTok, and Instagram. Why? In a world where everyone is using artificial this and synthetic that, Del Taco's strawberry milkshake uses real fruit. Customers simply gush over the chunks of strawberry that every so often slip into the straw.

Five Guys specializes in burgers and fries, but the chain operates a bit differently from other major fast-food restaurants. First, Five Guys doesn't season its beef, arguing that the inherent savoriness of its meat is flavorful enough as-is without the need for salt and pepper. Second, it uses a special mayonnaise on its burgers, a custom Heinz blend that's rich, acidic, and slightly sweet. Third, it has an unlimited toppings bar, which allows customers to add everything from grilled mushrooms to relish to fresh jalapeños to their burgers, free of charge.

And then, of course, are the milkshakes. Each one starts with a rich vanilla soft-serve base that's then hand-spun in an old-fashioned mixer — the same style you'd imagine at a classic soda fountain — until the shake is creamy and smooth. Like its burgers, Five Guys lets customers combine different toppings, and you can get pretty creative here if you have some eccentric tastes (bacon, chocolate, Oreo, anyone?) But the best flavor combination, according to the Reddit threads, seems to be the peanut butter banana. The blend of salty peanut butter, sweet vanilla, and subtle banana is like milkshake Nirvana. Pair it with a big juicy burger and get ready for a nap.

To come up with this list, I first looked at various roundups highlighting the fast-food chains with the best milkshakes. This excluded some of the bigger chains, whose shakes didn't make the cut. Then I searched different Reddit threads and online forums to find the most popular flavors. Despite taste being subjective, there was a surprising level of consensus amongst customers. When there wasn't an obvious favorite, I went with the shake flavor most unique to that particular restaurant chain.