3 matched items
Burger King vs Five Guys
Price & calories · 2026
Fast-casual pricing and by far the largest portions
Burger King wins on
Dramatically cheaper, and a normal-sized portion
Five Guys wins on
Larger portions and made-to-order build quality
Burger King and Five Guys compared across 3 matched items: Burger King is cheaper on 2 of the 2 rows where both chains have a tracked price, and carries fewer calories on 3 of 3. On the headline comparison the Whopper is 670–710 cal at $6.19–$8.04, against Cheeseburger at 980 cal and $9.20. In short: Dramatically cheaper, and a normal-sized portion, while Five Guys wins on larger portions and made-to-order build quality.
Both chains are overwhelmingly franchised, so prices are ranges rather than fixed figures, and rows our sources do not cover are marked not tracked rather than estimated - Five Guys price coverage is 3 of 15 tracked items. Competitor figures come from the same sources and the same checks as our Burger King data, so this comparison is like for like.
Product images are illustrations of the food type, generated for this site or openly licensed. They are not photographs of Burger King products, and the item you are served may look different.
The signature burgers side by side
Burger King Whopper670–710 cal · $6.19–$8.04
Five Guys Cheeseburger980 cal · $9.20No licensed photo of this product, symbol shown
The Whopper carries 270 fewer calories than the Cheeseburger. Calories use the upper bound where our two nutrition sources disagree.
Five Guys is not a Burger King competitor in the ordinary sense, it is a fast-casual chain at roughly double the price point, and the portions are the largest of any chain on this site. Comparing them is useful precisely because the gap is so wide.
The headline is portion size and price. A Five Guys cheeseburger is a two-patty sandwich as standard, its regular fries order is larger than most chains' large, and both facts show up immediately in the calorie column below.
Burger King vs Five Guys at a glance
| Fact | Burger King | Five Guys |
|---|---|---|
| US restaurants | 6,581 | 1,516 |
| Founded | 1954 | 1986 |
| Headquarters | Miami, Florida | Lorton, Virginia |
| Menu focus | Flame-grilled burgers | Fast-casual, made-to-order burgers |
| Items we track here | 210 | 15 (3 priced) |
Burger King has the wider reach, roughly 4.3 times as many US restaurants as Five Guys on these counts. Across the 2 items both chains price, Burger King comes out cheaper on 2. For where Burger King prices actually land in real restaurants, see our prices by location studies.
US restaurant counts from ScrapeHero (Burger King as of July 14, 2026, Five Guys as of July 21, 2026); counts move as stores open and close. Founding year and headquarters are public record.
How do Burger King and Five Guys compare on price and calories?
3 matched items
Fries are one of the roles compared on both sides. Every figure below uses the same price trackers and nutrition database for Burger King and for Five Guys, so the comparison is like for like.
| Item role | Burger King | Five Guys | Price diff | Calorie diff |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Signature burger | Whopper $6.19–$8.04 · 670–710 cal | Cheeseburger $9.20 · 980 cal | BK cheaper by $1.16+ | BK -270 |
| Basic cheeseburger | Cheeseburger $1.89 · 300 cal | not tracked | - | - |
| Fries (largest tracked) | French Fries - Large price not tracked · 440 cal | Large Five Guys Style Fries $9.59 · 1314 cal | - | BK -874 |
| Crispy chicken sandwich | Royal Crispy Chicken $5.99–$7.79 · 600 cal | not tracked | - | - |
| Chocolate shake | Chocolate Shake $3.39–$5.29 · 590 cal | Vanilla Shake Base $5.79 · 670 cal | BK cheaper by $0.50+ | BK -80 |
Price comparisons use the tracked RANGES, not their midpoints. Where two ranges overlap the table says so rather than naming a winner, because at some pairs of restaurants either chain can be the cheaper one. A direction is claimed only where the ranges do not overlap at all, and the figure shown is then the gap between the nearest bounds, which is a minimum rather than an estimate. Calories use the upper bound where our sources disagree, so nothing is understated. See how we source prices and calories.
Who wins at what?
Burger King is better for
- Dramatically cheaper across every comparable item
- Portion sizes that suit an ordinary meal rather than a shared one
- Far faster service and drive-thru availability
Five Guys is better for
- Made-to-order burgers with unlimited free toppings
- Fresh-cut fries served in famously oversized portions
- Free peanuts while you wait, which no burger chain offers
The portion gap is the whole story
Five Guys publishes calorie figures that are not rounded the way most chains round theirs, and the numbers are large enough that the precision is beside the point. Its regular fries order alone carries more calories than many complete meals at Burger King.
This matters for how you read the table below. A "cheeseburger" at Five Guys is a two-patty sandwich by default, so it is not comparable to a Burger King Cheeseburger by name, it is closer to a Whopper in role, which is how it is paired here.
Why our price coverage here is thinner
Five Guys prices vary more than most chains and our tracked sources cover the menu less completely, so fewer rows in the table carry a price. The calorie comparison is the more complete half of this page, and it is also where the interesting difference lies.
Free toppings qualify the price comparison
Five Guys includes its full topping range at no extra cost, which is unusual in either segment. At Burger King, adding cheese or bacon moves both the price and the calorie count. Comparing headline prices therefore understates what a fully-built Five Guys burger already includes.
It does not close the gap (the price difference is far too large for toppings to account for) but it is a real qualification on the table above rather than a marketing point.
Reading the fries row carefully
Five Guys serves its fries in a cup inside a bag, and the bag is filled well beyond the cup. The published figure for a regular order is already very large, and the practical portion is larger still. Treat that row as indicative rather than precise.
It is also the clearest example on this site of why calories per dollar is a value metric and not a health one. Five Guys scores well on food-per-dollar precisely because the portions are enormous.
Burger King vs Five Guys FAQs
Why is Five Guys so much more expensive than Burger King?
Five Guys operates a fast-casual model: made-to-order burgers, fresh-cut fries, unlimited toppings at no extra charge, and substantially larger portions. It is priced against a different market than a quick-service chain like Burger King.
Is a Five Guys burger bigger than a Whopper?
Yes, substantially. A standard Five Guys cheeseburger is a two-patty sandwich, and its calorie figure is well above the Whopper's. Five Guys also serves a smaller "Little" tier that is closer to a conventional single-patty burger.
Are Five Guys toppings really free?
Five Guys includes its standard topping range at no additional charge, which is unusual. At Burger King, adding cheese or bacon changes both the price and the calorie count of the item.
Is Five Guys fast food or fast casual?
Fast casual. Burgers are made to order, service is slower, portions are substantially larger, and prices sit at roughly double a quick-service chain like Burger King. They compete for different occasions.
How much more does Five Guys actually cost?
A Five Guys burger and fries commonly lands at roughly double a comparable Burger King order, and the gap widens once drinks are added. We do not publish tracked prices for other chains, so we will not put a false precision on that figure. What we can show is the Burger King side in full: the whole tracked range is on our <a href="/burger-king-prices-by-location">prices by location page</a>.
Are Five Guys fries really that much bigger?
Yes, and the overfilled cup is deliberate rather than incidental — the extra scoop into the bag on top of the filled cup is part of the presentation. A regular order is widely treated as enough for two people. Burger King portions are conventional quick-service sizes; our <a href="/burger-king-sides-menu">sides page</a> lists each size with its own calorie figure.
How do the calorie counts compare?
Five Guys items run substantially heavier, which follows directly from portion size rather than from anything unusual in the ingredients. A Five Guys burger with a full topping load and a regular fries is a very large meal by quick-service standards. Our <a href="/burger-king-calories">calories page</a> ranks every tracked Burger King item so you have a firm baseline on one side of that comparison.
Which is better value?
That depends entirely on whether you want the extra food. Five Guys delivers more weight per dollar than the price gap alone suggests, because the portions are genuinely larger and the toppings are included. If you want a normal-sized meal quickly and cheaply, Burger King wins without argument. Value and price are different questions, and this comparison is the clearest case of that on the site.
Why is the Five Guys menu so small?
It is a deliberate constraint: burgers, dogs, sandwiches, fries and shakes, with no nuggets, no breakfast and no value tier. Depth comes from the topping combinations rather than from menu length. Burger King runs the opposite strategy — our <a href="/">full menu list</a> shows the tracked items spread across every category.
What is with the free peanuts?
Most Five Guys locations put out boxes of in-shell peanuts to eat while you wait, since burgers are cooked to order and the wait is real. It is also a serious allergen consideration that Burger King does not present. If anyone in your group has a peanut allergy, that is a genuine reason to choose otherwise, independent of anything else on this page.
How do the milkshakes compare?
Five Guys lets you combine mix-ins at no extra charge, which produces a far larger effective range than a fixed flavour list. Burger King’s shakes come in a set lineup, listed with calories on our <a href="/burger-king-desserts-menu">desserts page</a>. A fixed lineup against free combination is the same breadth-versus-customisation split that runs through the rest of this comparison.
Sources
- Five Guys calories - FatSecret (60% of values are multiples of ten, our label-value check)
- Five Guys prices, thirstybear.com
- Five Guys prices, menupricetoday.com
- Five Guys corporate site (corporate information
- Burger King figures come from the same sources and the same checks, so this comparison is like for like) see our sourcing and editorial policy.