When it comes to fast food spending, Georgia is far from being the nation’s biggest spender.
According to a recent analysis by personal finance site WalletHub, Georgia ranks No. 33 out of all 50 states in terms of fast food spending as a share of median monthly household income.
WalletHub’s study analyzed the cost of three popular fast food items across all states:
These prices were then combined and adjusted based on each state’s median household income to calculate the relative spending burden.
How much do Georgians spend on fast food?
At least 49 people in 10 states became sick from E. coli food poisoning linked to McDonald’s Quarter Pounder hamburgers.
In Georgia, the cost of these fast food staples accounts for just 0.36% of the median monthly household income, placing it in the lower half of the national ranking.
The report highlights that while Georgians enjoy their fast food, they are not spending as high a portion of their income on it as residents in other states.
Here’s a look at other rankings.
Top 10 states where people spend the most on fast food
Top 10 states where people spend the least on fast food
WalletHub Methodology
“We summed up the individual costs of the components [pizza, hamburger, and a chicken sandwich] and adjusted the resulting figure to the median monthly income in each state, then used these results to rank-order our sample,” WalletHub wrote. “For simplicity, we considered the acquisition of only one unit of each component included in our calculation.”
All of the data used were collected as of May 14, 2025.
How to save money on fast food?
Use coupons to save money. Even though fast food prices have gone up, you can still pay close to what you used to by using coupons. The simplest way to find them is through the restaurant’s mobile app, but you might also come across deals online or in your mailbox.
For more information, visit WalletHub.
Vanessa Countryman is the Trending Topics Reporter for the the Deep South Connect Team Georgia. Email her at Vcountryman@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: How much do Georgians spend on fast food? See WalletHub study