MONOPOLY at McDonald's returned on October 6, 2026, with peel-off game pieces on packaging and all gameplay in the McDonald's app. Four separate deadlines apply, all of them stated in McDonald's own rules: game pieces are available with purchase until November 1, mail-in requests must be received by November 2, Chance Card Game play ends November 8, and the prize claim deadline is November 22.
- Status
- Limited timeConfirmed by the company
- Brand
- McDonald's
- Launch
- October 6, 2026 (Oct 6, 2026)
- Last day
- November 1, 2026 — last day for game pieces (Chance Card play to Nov 8, claims to Nov 22) (Nov 1, 2026)
- Where
- 50 U.S. states and Washington, D.C.
- Run
- Limited time
- The game started at 12:00 a.m. local time on October 6, 2026 and McDonald's announced it on September 22
- Game pieces are available with an eligible purchase, while supplies last, until 11:59:59 p.m. local time on November 1, 2026
- A game piece can be requested free by mail — no purchase necessary — with requests received no later than November 2, 2026
- Chance Card Game play ends 11:59:59 p.m. local time on November 8, 2026
- The prize claim deadline is 11:59:59 p.m. local time on November 22, 2026
- McDonald's states the overall odds as 1 in 5 to win, "mostly food prizes"
- Pieces are peeled from packaging and then scanned in the McDonald's app — the paper game board is not part of it
- Open to residents of the 50 U.S. states and D.C., 18 or over, opted in to Rewards and registered for the game in the app
- The $1 million cash prize is payable as $50,000 a year for 20 years, with no interest
- Limits: a maximum of 8 game piece code entries and 8 Chance Card Game plays per day, and one app account and one game registration per person
What’s coming back
MONOPOLY at McDonald's, the chain's peel-and-collect promotion, returned to U.S. restaurants on October 6, 2026. McDonald's describes the 2026 edition as going "all in on the classic peel", with game pieces appearing as stickers on packaging and every piece scanned in the McDonald's app rather than placed on a paper board. Four prize routes sit behind the peel: instant-win food, instant-win loyalty points, Collect to Win property sets, and the Chance Card Game, which carries the largest prizes including the $1 million cash prize paid as $50,000 a year for 20 years.
When it was last around
McDonald's presents the 2026 game as a return, and that framing is the company's own — the announcement is titled "MONOPOLY Returns to McDonald's". What the announcement does not do is date the previous run: there is no statement anywhere in it of when the game last appeared in U.S. restaurants, or for how long. Published accounts of the earlier U.S. editions do not agree with each other on the year, so this page prints no year for the previous run rather than picking one. What the company does commit to is that this year's version keeps the physical peel-off pieces while moving all gameplay into the app, which it frames as a simplification of how the game has been run.
How long: Game pieces available with purchase October 6 to November 1, 2026, while supplies last — Chance Card Game play runs to November 8 and prize claims close November 22
Why people care
The recurring question on this promotion is not what the prizes are but when it stops, and McDonald's answers that in four places rather than one. The announcement's body says only "for a limited time"; the dates live in the legal footnote, where game pieces end November 1, mail-in requests close November 2, Chance Card play runs to November 8, and prize claims close November 22. A player who reads "ends November 1" and throws away an unscanned piece has acted on a date that is true for one part of the game and wrong for the rest. Collecting the four together, with the odds and prize counts the company actually published, is the useful version of this story.
What McDonald's announced
McDonald's USA announced the 2026 MONOPOLY promotion from Chicago on September 22, 2026, and the game went live on October 6.
The company's framing is that the classic peel is the centre of it this year. "This year, we're going all in on the classic peel – what first made MONOPOLY at McDonald's so iconic," the announcement says. "With all the pieces in your hands, fans will now have just one way to peel, with all gameplay done in the app."
Alyssa Buetikofer, Senior Vice President, Chief Marketing and Customer Experience Officer of McDonald's USA, is quoted saying the company is "giving fans even more reasons to play with bigger prizes, more rewards, and a simpler digital game experience that includes the classic peel."
Hasbro, which owns MONOPOLY, is named as the brand partner. McDonald's directs players to playatmcd.com for the full prize list and official rules.
The four deadlines, all from McDonald's own rules
This is the part worth writing down, because the announcement's headline text says only "for a limited time" while its legal footnote sets four distinct dates. All times are local time.
Game pieces with purchase: from 12:00:00 a.m. on October 6, 2026 until 11:59:59 p.m. on November 1, 2026, while supplies last.
Bonus Chance Card: buy an eligible item through the McDonald's app or using a Rewards code until 11:59:59 p.m. on November 1, 2026, and receive a bonus Chance Card in the app — but only if you registered for the game before ordering.
Mail-in request, no purchase: requests can be made from September 22, 2026 and must be received no later than November 2, 2026.
Chance Card Game play: ends 11:59:59 p.m. on November 8, 2026 — a week after pieces stop being handed out.
Prize claim deadline: 11:59:59 p.m. on November 22, 2026.
So a player holding an unscanned piece after November 1 still has a window, and a Chance Card player has longer still. Those are three different answers to "when does it end", which is why this page lists all of them rather than one.
How the game works this year
McDonald's sets out three steps.
Register: download the McDonald's app, opt in to Rewards, and pre-register for the game.
Order and peel: from October 6, order eligible menu items and peel the game piece sticker on the packaging. The announcement says every piece is on McDonald's packaging.
Scan: scan the game piece in the app to redeem prizes, properties, or Chance Card Game instant win plays.
The registration order matters for one specific benefit: the bonus Chance Card for app and Rewards purchases is awarded only if the player registered for the game before ordering.
The four prize routes, and what McDonald's says each holds
McDonald's describes four prize opportunities behind the peel.
Instant-Win Food: free McDonald's items, with the announcement naming the McChicken, Snack Wrap, McGriddles, shakes and smoothies, and small fries among them. Stated approximate retail values run $1.49 to $5.19.
Instant-Win Loyalty Points: 1,500 to 7,000 MyMcDonald's Reward Points, with stated values from up to $2.50 to up to $10.00 depending on how the winner uses the points.
Collect to Win: collect a winning combination of property pieces. McDonald's lists 50 Carnival Cruise Line vacation package prizes at a stated $10,000 value each, 5 new 2027 Jeep Cherokee prizes at $45,990 each, 23 VIP tour and trip experiences for four at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex at $8,716, and 8 Polaris pick-one-of-three vehicle prizes valued $24,599 to $26,999.
Chance Card Game: McDonald's lists 8,572 $35 Grubhub e-gift codes, 10 further 2027 Jeep Cherokees, 25 "McDonald's For A Year" prizes awarded as a $1,040 gift card (the company equates this to $20 a week for 52 weeks), 3 prizes of $50,000 towards college debt paydown, 3 of $50,000 towards a home down payment, 15,000 $20 Uber Eats e-gift codes, 50 $100 Ulta Beauty eRewards codes and 14,750 $20 Ulta Beauty eRewards codes. Cash prizes carry stated values from $25 to $1,000,000.
The $1 million is not a lump sum. McDonald's states it is payable at $50,000 a year for 20 years, with no interest.
Odds, eligibility and the daily caps
McDonald's states the overall odds as 1 in 5 to win, and says the prizes are mostly food. Chance Card Game odds, it says, are determined by the time of in-app play, and prizes diminish and odds change as prizes are won.
Eligibility: open to residents of the 50 U.S. states and Washington, D.C., aged 18 or over, who have opted in to Rewards and registered for the game in the McDonald's app.
Caps: a maximum of 8 game piece code entries and 8 Chance Card Game plays per day, counted on Eastern Time. One McDonald's app account and one game registration per person. Void where prohibited.
No purchase is necessary, and McDonald's says a purchase will not improve the chance of winning — the mail-in route exists for exactly that reason.
Which menu items carry pieces
McDonald's says eligible MONOPOLY menu items span breakfast, lunch and dinner, and names the Quarter Pounder with Cheese, the Egg McMuffin, large fries, and large hot and cold drinks, followed by "and beyond".
That last phrase is doing real work: the announcement gives examples rather than a list, and points to playatmcd.com for the full rules. So the set of qualifying items is wider than the five named, and this page does not claim to have it complete.
What McDonald's has not said
No complete eligible-item list in the announcement itself — only examples, with the rules hosted separately.
No statement of when the game last ran. McDonald's presents this as a return and does not date the previous U.S. edition anywhere in the announcement, so this page does not print a year for it.
No per-restaurant availability detail. Pieces are described as available while supplies last, which is a real constraint near the end of a run, and the company does not say more than that.
Those are the gaps. The dates, odds, prize counts and values on this page all come from McDonald's own announcement and its rules footnote, and will be re-checked as the deadlines pass.
Common questions
- When does McDonald's Monopoly end in 2026?
- There are several dates. Game pieces are available with purchase until 11:59:59 p.m. local time on November 1, 2026. Chance Card Game play ends November 8, 2026. The deadline to claim a prize is November 22, 2026. Mail-in piece requests must be received by November 2, 2026.
- When did McDonald's Monopoly start?
- October 6, 2026, from 12:00 a.m. local time. McDonald's announced it on September 22, 2026.
- What are the odds of winning McDonald's Monopoly?
- McDonald's states the overall odds as 1 in 5, and says prizes are mostly food. It adds that Chance Card Game odds depend on the time of in-app play, and that prizes diminish and odds change as prizes are won.
- How do you play McDonald's Monopoly in 2026?
- Download the McDonald's app, opt in to Rewards and register for the game. Then order an eligible item, peel the game piece sticker from the packaging, and scan it in the app to redeem prizes, properties or Chance Card plays. All gameplay is in the app.
- Can you play without buying anything?
- Yes. McDonald's says no purchase is necessary and that purchasing will not improve the chance of winning. A game piece can be requested by mail from September 22, 2026, with requests received no later than November 2, 2026, by sending a self-addressed stamped envelope to the address in the official rules. Each request gets one game piece with one Chance Card Game play.
- Which menu items have Monopoly pieces?
- McDonald's says eligible items span breakfast, lunch and dinner and names the Quarter Pounder with Cheese, Egg McMuffin, large fries and large hot and cold drinks, "and beyond". It does not publish the full list in the announcement and points to playatmcd.com for the official rules.
- How is the $1 million prize paid?
- McDonald's states the $1 million is payable at $50,000 a year for 20 years, with no interest.
- How many times a day can you play?
- McDonald's sets a maximum of 8 game piece code entries and 8 Chance Card Game plays per day, counted on Eastern Time, with one app account and one game registration per person.
Sources
McDonald's USA · Press release · checked Oct 8, 2026