McDonald's is one of the biggest and most well-known fast-food chains in the world. It was started in 1954 by Ray Kroc, not a clown named Ronald. It has more than 36,000 restaurants in over 100 countries and serves all kinds of hungry people, including iPhone users. Does McDonald's take Apple Pay? It may serve apple pie, but does it?

We'll answer that question, explain how the different ways to buy food work, and look at what other forms of payment the fast-food giant accepts.

Does Apple Pay work at McDonald's?

All US McDonald's locations accept Apple Pay as a form of payment. The company was one of the first to use the service. You can order the famous Big Mac and anything else on the menu with your Apple Watch, iPhone, or iPad.

Visa, MasterCard, American Express, and Discover cards that were given by a US bank can all be registered to Apple Pay and used to pay at McDonald's.

You can use Apple Pay in the restaurant, at the drive-thru, or when you order through the McDonald's app. We will show you how each one works.

How to Pay at McDonald's with Apple Pay

It's easy and clear to use Apple Pay at McDonald's.

Here are the steps you must take:

Make sure your iPhone or Apple Watch can use Apple Pay and that the feature is turned on.

Follow the steps on your device to add your credit card or bank card to Apple Pay.

Hold your device near the cashless reader at the counter or drive-thru window when you're ready to pay at McDonald's.

Just do what your device tells you to do to finish the deal.

All done! Apple Pay is a quick and easy way to pay for your food at McDonald's.

How to use Apple Pay at the drive-thru at McDonald's

Even though the way you buy might be different, using Apple Pay at the drive-thru at McDonald's is pretty much the same as in the restaurant. Every drive-thru at McDonald's has the same kind of NFC card reader as inside the restaurant, so follow the steps above.

The only change is that the card reader might be inside the drive-thru window. In this case, you'll need to turn on Apple Pay so you're ready to pay, then hand the staff member your iPhone or Apple Watch so they can make the contactless payment.

How to use Apple Pay with your Apple Watch at a McDonald's drive-thru

Follow these steps to pay for your drive-thru food with your Apple Watch and Apple Pay.

Tell the cashier you'll be using Apple Pay and ask for the card reader.

Press the side button of your watch twice.

Choose the payment card you want to use.

Keep your watch close to the payment reader until you hear a beep and feel a tingle.

What other ways can you pay at McDonald's?

Inside a McDonald's, you can pay with cash, a credit card, a debit card, or any other common method. You can also use Google Pay, Samsung Pay, and other NFC payment apps in addition to Apple Pay.

How to Use Apple Pay at a Self-Service Kiosk at McDonald's

If you want to order from a McDonald's self-service kiosk, you'll need to learn how to use Apple Pay on your iPhone.

To open the Apple Wallet app on your iPhone, double-press the right button.

If you use Face ID, you can either type in your password or look at the screen of your iPhone. Put your finger on the home button to use Touch ID.

Place your iPhone over the contactless point-of-sale reader that is usually used to read credit cards at the Kiosk.

Hold it there until you hear a ping, see a green checkmark on the payment reader, or see the word "Done" on the screen of your iPhone.