{"surveyDate":"2026-08-13","runTimestamp":"2026-08-13T08:06:12.386Z","methodologyVersion":"3.1","instrument":{"model":"gpt-5.5-2026-04-23","promptHash":"5ece85439feecb41","reasoningEffort":"xhigh"},"metros":[{"metro":"New York, NY","status":"verified","price":4.05,"reportedPrice":4.05,"sourceUrl":"https://menupricetracker.com/mcdonalds/new-york/new-york","sourceType":"pinned_aggregator","priceType":"standard_menu","pageUpdated":"August 2026","asOf":"2026-08-13","carriedFromDate":null,"citationCheck":{"fetched":true,"priceFound":true,"httpStatus":200,"error":null},"notes":"Pinned page reports McChicken city-wide average across tracked app-sourced locations; not delivery, meal, bundle, or coupon."},{"metro":"Philadelphia, PA","status":"verified","price":2.98,"reportedPrice":2.98,"sourceUrl":"https://menupricetracker.com/mcdonalds/pennsylvania/philadelphia","sourceType":"pinned_aggregator","priceType":"standard_menu","pageUpdated":"August 2026","asOf":"2026-08-13","carriedFromDate":null,"citationCheck":{"fetched":true,"priceFound":true,"httpStatus":200,"error":null},"notes":"Pinned page reports McChicken city-wide average across tracked app-sourced locations; no fallback source used."},{"metro":"Atlanta, GA","status":"verified","price":2.65,"reportedPrice":2.65,"sourceUrl":"https://menupricetracker.com/mcdonalds/georgia/atlanta","sourceType":"pinned_aggregator","priceType":"standard_menu","pageUpdated":"August 2026","asOf":"2026-08-13","carriedFromDate":null,"citationCheck":{"fetched":true,"priceFound":true,"httpStatus":200,"error":null},"notes":"Pinned page reports McChicken city-wide average across tracked app-sourced locations; standard sandwich alone."},{"metro":"Miami, FL","status":"verified","price":2.83,"reportedPrice":2.83,"sourceUrl":"https://menupricetracker.com/mcdonalds/florida/miami","sourceType":"pinned_aggregator","priceType":"standard_menu","pageUpdated":"August 2026","asOf":"2026-08-13","carriedFromDate":null,"citationCheck":{"fetched":true,"priceFound":true,"httpStatus":200,"error":null},"notes":"Pinned page reports McChicken city-wide average across tracked app-sourced locations; not a delivery-platform price."},{"metro":"Dallas, TX","status":"verified","price":2.1,"reportedPrice":2.1,"sourceUrl":"https://menupricetracker.com/mcdonalds/texas/dallas","sourceType":"pinned_aggregator","priceType":"standard_menu","pageUpdated":"August 2026","asOf":"2026-08-13","carriedFromDate":null,"citationCheck":{"fetched":true,"priceFound":true,"httpStatus":200,"error":null},"notes":"Pinned page reports McChicken city-wide average across tracked app-sourced locations; low but within stated plausibility band."},{"metro":"Chicago, IL","status":"verified","price":2.87,"reportedPrice":2.87,"sourceUrl":"https://menupricetracker.com/mcdonalds/illinois/chicago","sourceType":"pinned_aggregator","priceType":"standard_menu","pageUpdated":"August 2026","asOf":"2026-08-13","carriedFromDate":null,"citationCheck":{"fetched":true,"priceFound":true,"httpStatus":200,"error":null},"notes":"Pinned page reports McChicken city-wide average across tracked app-sourced locations; no delivery/menu farm used."},{"metro":"Kansas City, MO","status":"verified","price":2.29,"reportedPrice":2.29,"sourceUrl":"https://menupricetracker.com/mcdonalds/missouri/kansas-city","sourceType":"pinned_aggregator","priceType":"standard_menu","pageUpdated":"August 2026","asOf":"2026-08-13","carriedFromDate":null,"citationCheck":{"fetched":true,"priceFound":true,"httpStatus":200,"error":null},"notes":"Pinned page reports McChicken city-wide average across tracked app-sourced locations; standard sandwich alone."},{"metro":"Columbus, OH","status":"verified","price":2.48,"reportedPrice":2.48,"sourceUrl":"https://menupricetracker.com/mcdonalds/ohio/columbus","sourceType":"pinned_aggregator","priceType":"standard_menu","pageUpdated":"August 2026","asOf":"2026-08-13","carriedFromDate":null,"citationCheck":{"fetched":true,"priceFound":true,"httpStatus":200,"error":null},"notes":"Pinned page reports McChicken city-wide average across tracked app-sourced locations; no fallback source used."},{"metro":"Los Angeles, CA","status":"verified","price":3.56,"reportedPrice":3.56,"sourceUrl":"https://menupricetracker.com/mcdonalds/california/los-angeles","sourceType":"pinned_aggregator","priceType":"standard_menu","pageUpdated":"August 2026","asOf":"2026-08-13","carriedFromDate":null,"citationCheck":{"fetched":true,"priceFound":true,"httpStatus":200,"error":null},"notes":"Pinned page reports McChicken city-wide average across tracked app-sourced locations; within plausibility band."},{"metro":"Seattle, WA","status":"verified","price":4.28,"reportedPrice":4.28,"sourceUrl":"https://menupricetracker.com/mcdonalds/washington/seattle","sourceType":"pinned_aggregator","priceType":"standard_menu","pageUpdated":"August 2026","asOf":"2026-08-13","carriedFromDate":null,"citationCheck":{"fetched":true,"priceFound":true,"httpStatus":200,"error":null},"notes":"Pinned page reports McChicken city-wide average across tracked app-sourced locations; high-cost metro but within plausibility band."},{"metro":"Denver, CO","status":"verified","price":2.6,"reportedPrice":2.6,"sourceUrl":"https://menupricetracker.com/mcdonalds/colorado/denver","sourceType":"pinned_aggregator","priceType":"standard_menu","pageUpdated":"August 2026","asOf":"2026-08-13","carriedFromDate":null,"citationCheck":{"fetched":true,"priceFound":true,"httpStatus":200,"error":null},"notes":"Pinned page reports McChicken city-wide average across tracked app-sourced locations; standard sandwich alone."},{"metro":"Phoenix, AZ","status":"verified","price":3.04,"reportedPrice":3.04,"sourceUrl":"https://menupricetracker.com/mcdonalds/arizona/phoenix","sourceType":"pinned_aggregator","priceType":"standard_menu","pageUpdated":"August 2026","asOf":"2026-08-13","carriedFromDate":null,"citationCheck":{"fetched":true,"priceFound":true,"httpStatus":200,"error":null},"notes":"Pinned page reports McChicken city-wide average across tracked app-sourced locations; no fallback source used."}],"spec":{"reading":null,"status":"carried","appliedGrams":139.46,"rawExcerpt":null},"wage":{"usdPerHour":32.4,"month":"2026-07","fetchedAt":"2026-08-13T08:03:24.343Z","source":"FRED AHETPI (api)"},"nationalEstimates":[{"estimate":2.86,"source_url":"https://menupricetracker.com/mcdonalds-menu/mcchicken","as_of":"2026-08-04","description":"MenuPriceTracker national average McChicken price, based on prices across 13,575 U.S. McDonald's locations; not used as a metro substitute."},{"estimate":5.91,"source_url":"https://menupricetracker.com/mcdonalds-menu","as_of":"2026-08-06","description":"MenuPriceTracker national average Big Mac benchmark encountered on pinned metro pages and national menu page; incidental benchmark, not a McChicken estimate."}],"regimeEvents":[{"date":"2026-08-04","event":"AP reported McDonald's Q2 commentary: management said fewer digital offers hurt sales, more national digital offers would start the following week, and base menu pricing had run higher than competitors in many places; flagged as corporate pricing/value context only.","source_url":"https://apnews.com/article/mcdonalds-profit-economy-9b9ef2da69dc72451928176f17051126"},{"date":"2026-08-08","event":"Anecdotal r/McDonalds thread reported smaller or inconsistent McCrispy/chicken patties, with several comparisons to McChicken size; not verified as a McChicken reformulation, flagged for portion-change review only.","source_url":"https://www.reddit.com/r/McDonalds/comments/1vimiay/been_a_minute_since_i_had_a_mccrispy_when_did_the/"}],"qualityNotes":"All 12 observations used the pinned MenuPriceTracker primary pages, each marked app-sourced and updated/verified August 2026; fetch date is 2026-08-13. These are aggregator city-wide averages rather than same-day kiosk screenshots, so the main reliability issue is store-level franchise dispersion, especially metros with airports or high-cost submarkets. All reported metro prices fall within the $2.00-$4.50 plausibility band; no fallback, delivery platform, or prohibited content-farm source was used.","outcome":{"status":"published","mciMinutes":5.3,"panelPriceUsd":2.85},"usage":{"inputTokens":113906,"outputTokens":8812}}