Headwater

McDonald’s

Accelerating the Arches, December 2023 to 2027

We have a clear trajectory for future growth as we continue to build on the brand strength, global footprint and digital ecosystem that have resulted in unparalleled competitive advantages
Chris Kempczinski, chief executive, December 2023

Accelerating the Arches

Accelerating the Arches is McDonald’s growth plan. On 6 December 2023 McDonald’s gave it targets for 2027: 50,000 restaurants, 250 million loyalty members active in any 90 days, and $45 billion a year of sales to those members.

Growth pillarsTargets for 2027
  • MMaximize our Marketing
  • CCommit to the Core
  • DDouble Down on the 4Ds
    • Digital250m members, $45bn of sales to them
    • Delivery
    • Drive Thru
    • Development50,000 restaurants

250 million members by 2027

Loyalty members active in the last 90 days.

Nearly 220m

MembersEach stamp: 10 million
Sales to members over a yearTarget: $45bn by 2027

$40bn in the year to June 2026

50,000 restaurants by 2027

0

Restaurants open at the end of 2025

A brick for every thousand restaurants. The dotted bricks are the rest of the target.

  1. Each target is one of the pillars, counted.

    50,000 restaurants measures Development, and 250 million loyalty members and $45 billion of sales to them measure Digital. We recommend giving each pillar at least one number, so the pillars and the targets are the same plan.

  2. The targets count people, not only money.

    Loyalty members active in the last 90 days is a measure of how many people use the app, not how much they spend. We recommend pairing a money target with a count of the people behind it, as McDonald’s does with members and sales to members.

  3. The same measures come back every quarter.

    Every set of results reports active loyalty members and sales to them. We recommend reporting the measures behind a long-term target every time, so the gap to the target is never a surprise.

Sources

  1. 1. McDonald’s Corporation (2023). McDonald’s announces new targets for development, loyalty membership, and cloud technology. Press release, 6 December 2023. prnewswire.com
  2. 2. McDonald’s Corporation (2025). McDonald’s reports fourth quarter and full year 2024 results. Press release, 10 February 2025. mcdonalds.mediaroom.com
  3. 3. McDonald’s Corporation (2026). McDonald’s reports fourth quarter and full year 2025 results. Form 8-K, 11 February 2026. sec.gov
  4. 4. McDonald’s Corporation (2026). McDonald’s reports second quarter 2026 results. Form 8-K, 4 August 2026. sec.gov
  5. 5. McDonald’s Corporation (2026). Restaurants by market, 2025. McDonald’s investor relations. corporate.mcdonalds.com

FLOW is not connected with McDonald’s Corporation. McDonald’s and Accelerating the Arches are trade marks of their owner. Updated 28 September 2026.

Book a demo and we’ll show you how Headwater would run your week, from the vision down to Monday morning.