McDonald's App Down? Users Report Ordering Failures as Pokémon Happy Meal Rush and Veterans Day Deals Collide

CHICAGO — Customers across the United States reported problems with McDonald's mobile app on Wednesday morning, saying they were unable to place orders or connect with restaurants. The disruption came on Veterans Day, a day after the fast-food giant launched a heavily promoted Pokémon Happy Meal.

Outage-tracking site Downdetector said user reports pointed to problems with the McDonald's app beginning at 6:41 a.m. Eastern time. "User reports indicate problems with McDonald's App since 6:41 AM EST. How is it affecting you?" Downdetector posted on X shortly before 9 a.m., using the hashtag #McdonaldSAppDown.

According to a breakdown of the reports, about 51% of complaints involved ordering, 44% involved the app itself and about 2% involved logging in. Several users said the app opened normally but failed when they tried to send an order to a restaurant. They described the link between the app and individual stores as broken.

The scale of the disruption was unclear. As of Wednesday morning, McDonald's had not publicly confirmed an outage or said what caused the reported problems. Other third-party monitoring services showed the app as working normally at their most recent checks. IsDown listed the McDonald's mobile app as operational at 8:51 a.m. Eastern, with 16 user reports in the previous 24 hours. Outage.Report said report volume was within the normal range for the time of day.

Outage trackers rely on reports submitted by users. A spike in complaints can reflect problems at certain restaurants or in certain regions rather than a nationwide failure.

Pokémon Happy Meal drives demand

The reported problems came a day after McDonald's launched a new Pokémon Happy Meal at participating U.S. restaurants on Tuesday, Nov. 10. The promotion marks the 30th anniversary of the Pokémon franchise.

"3 boxes. 15 toys. 2 cards with every collectible. Pokémon Happy Meal coming 11.10.26," McDonald's posted on X on Oct. 29 when it announced the collaboration.

Each Happy Meal includes one of 15 collectible toys shaped like miniature Happy Meal boxes, which can be turned into keychains or bag charms. Each also comes with two Pokémon Trading Card Game cards. According to The Pokémon Company, there are 15 cards to collect, including seven foil cards.

Previous Pokémon promotions at McDonald's have drawn huge crowds of collectors and resellers. During the 2021 promotion for the franchise's 25th anniversary, high demand led to shortages, and some restaurants limited purchases.

Collectors who use the app to order ahead or find participating locations said the latest problems added to their frustration. Some reported that they were unable to complete mobile orders and had to wait in drive-thru or counter lines instead.

Veterans Day adds to the traffic

The reports also came on Veterans Day, when many McDonald's restaurants honor service members. McDonald's does not have a national military discount, but many franchise owners offer free meals or breakfasts to veterans and active-duty service members on Nov. 11. These offers usually require a valid military ID or other proof of service.

Because about 95% of McDonald's roughly 13,500 U.S. restaurants are owned and operated by independent franchisees, Veterans Day offers vary widely by location. Some franchise groups have said in past years that their Veterans Day deals were available only for dine-in or drive-thru orders and could not be redeemed through the app. Veterans hoping to claim a free meal can still do so in person at participating restaurants, even if the app is not working.

McDonald's increasingly relies on its app

The McDonald's app has become a central part of the company's business. It powers mobile ordering, curbside pickup and the MyMcDonald's Rewards loyalty program, and it offers app-only deals that have become a key way for the chain to attract value-seeking customers.

That reliance means even brief app disruptions can cause widespread frustration, especially during major promotions, when customers often depend on app-only deals and mobile ordering to avoid long lines.

The company has faced larger technology failures before. In March 2024, a global outage shut down ordering at McDonald's restaurants in several countries, including the United States, Japan, Australia and Britain. McDonald's later said the outage was caused by a third-party provider during a configuration change and was not related to a cybersecurity event.

"We thank customers for their patience and apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused," the company said at the time.

What to do if the McDonald's app is not working

Customers having trouble with the app can try several steps:

• Check your connection. Switch between Wi-Fi and mobile data to rule out a local network problem.
• Restart the app. Fully close the McDonald's app and reopen it.
• Check location permissions. The app needs location access to find nearby restaurants and send orders to the correct store.
• Update or reinstall. Make sure the latest version is installed from the App Store or Google Play, or delete and reinstall the app.
• Order in person. If the app still will not work, customers can order at the counter, at a self-service kiosk or at the drive-thru. App-only deals may not be available.
• Check outage trackers. Sites such as Downdetector and IsDown show whether other users are reporting problems at the same time.

Customers who were charged for an order that did not go through should contact McDonald's customer support through the app or the company's website.

The Pokémon Happy Meal promotion is expected to run for several weeks at participating restaurants, while supplies last.