Share the methodology
How we print the BPI — weighted Fast Food 20% / Casual 40% / Premium 40%. 10 US cities on the tape. Bloomberg Terminal rigor, Wendy's frostiness. Not financial advice. Read the methodology: https://burgerprice.com/about
The Burger Price Index (BPI) is a weekly index that tracks the average cost of a burger across US cities. Think of it as the Consumer Price Index, but exclusively for the most important food group: burgers.
We currently track 10 cities: Austin, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Nashville, New Orleans, New York, Portland, San Francisco, and Seattle. Don't see yours? Request it on the cities page— cities with 25+ requests get added to the index.
Each week, we survey burger prices from 10-15 restaurants per city across three segments:
The BPI is a weighted average of these segments. We weight casual and premium more heavily because they reflect the local dining economy, while fast-food prices are largely set nationally.
Prices are collected from restaurant menus, delivery platforms (DoorDash, UberEats), and restaurant websites. We use AI-assisted research to compile and verify prices weekly, with human review for accuracy.
Outlier filtering removes any prices below $1 or above $50 to prevent data quality issues.
The burger is America's economic barometer. Every city has them, every price point is represented, and they're sensitive to beef costs, labor markets, real estate, and consumer sentiment. Plus, tracking burger prices is objectively more fun than tracking treasury yields.
The Burger Price Index is for entertainment and informational purposes only. It is not financial advice, investment guidance, or a substitute for actually going out and eating a burger. Past burger performance is not indicative of future burger results. Eat responsibly.
Weekly. After each collection run clears, we reprint city scores, week-over-week changes, and the national average. The health endpoint’s latest_week is the Monday that labels the print.
A weighted average of burger prices from about 10–15 restaurants per city: Fast Food 20%, Casual/Diner 40%, Premium/Gourmet 40%. Same recipe every week so city ranks stay comparable.
National chains often set menu prices from HQ. Local diners and gourmet spots move with rent, labor, and beef — so we lean the index toward the local dining economy.
Restaurant menus, delivery platforms (DoorDash, Uber Eats), and restaurant websites. AI-assisted research compiles the week’s sample; humans review for accuracy before it hits the tape.
Outliers below $1 or above $50. That keeps kids’-menu oddities and tasting-menu curiosities from warping the index.
Simple average of each city’s BPI for that week — equal weight per city with data, not population-weighted. City count can vary if a market is still collecting.
A standard single burger entrée as listed on the menu (or the closest equivalent). Combos, sides, and tax/delivery fees stay out of the score so cities stay apples-to-apples.
No. BPI is entertainment and information — not investment guidance. Past burger performance is not indicative of future burger results. Eat responsibly.
Prefer the tape? Weekly rankings · All cities.