Thought Concert Tickets Were Bad? This Fast Food Chain Is About to Roll Out Menu Surge-Pricing

Wendy's is following in the footsteps of ridesharing apps like Uber and Lyft by introducing surge pricing (also known as dynamic pricing, like Ticketmaster uses) in 2025.

This means that menu prices for iconic Wendy's items like the Frosty, Baconator, or the spicy chicken nuggets will change based on location, time, and demand. Factors such as weather, busy lunch hours, and more can affect fluctuating prices.

According to USA Today, Wendy's CEO Kirk Tanner revealed the news earlier this month.

READ MORE: McDonald's to Eliminate Self-Serve Soft Drinks at All Locations

"As we've previously shared, we are making a significant investment in technology to accelerate our digital business," Wendy's told the outlet.

The fast food chain is even working on "AI-enabled menu changes."

"In addition to evolving our loyalty program, one of the other benefits of these investments will be the flexibility to change the menu more easily and to offer discounts and value offers to our customers through innovations such as digital menu boards, which will roll out in some U.S. restaurants," they explained.

"We plan to test a number of features such as AI-enabled menu changes and suggestive selling based on factors such as weather that we think will provide great value and an improved customer and crew experience," they said.

Wendy's Will Start Surge-Pricing in 2025

The drastic new changes to Wendy's pricing are set to begin in 2025.

"Beginning as early as 2025, we will begin testing a variety of enhanced features on these digital menu boards like dynamic pricing, different offerings in certain parts of the day, AI-enabled menu changes and suggestive selling based on factors such as weather," a spokesperson told Fox News Digital.

The move is an effort to "allow Wendy's to be competitive and flexible with pricing [and] motivate customers to visit and provide them with the food they love at a great value."

How Much Have Wendy's Prices Gone Up?

Even without surge pricing, Wendy's is known for being one of the more expensive fast food restaurants.

"Data from consumer transparency platform PriceListo has already determined that Wendy’s is the most expensive fast-food chain in the US after menu costs rose 35% due to inflation between 2022 and 2023," the New York Post reported.

According to Eat This, Not That, the average menu price of an item at Wendy's is $6.63.