Canadian Halal Investor.

NYSE Shariah screener · October 2026

Is McDonald's Corporation (MCD) Halal?

FAIL

McDonald's Corporation · NYSE: MCD · Consumer Discretionary

The short answer

No — McDonald's (MCD) fails this Shariah stock screen at the business-activity gate. McDonald's menus in many markets include pork products — sausage, bacon (Grand Bacon TS, Big Tasty Bacon, the Bacon McDouble, sausage breakfast items) and the McRib, a pork patty — and its locations in more than a dozen countries (France, Germany, Belgium, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Austria and others) serve beer with meals; pork and alcohol are on this screener's haram list. The financial ratios pass comfortably: debt of $39,875M (Q2 2026 10-Q; the FY2025 10-K states $40.0B at December 31, 2025) is about 24.09% of its ~$165.54B market cap ($231.83, October 1, 2026), below the ~33% ceiling, and nonoperating income of $87M is 0.32% of FY2025 revenue ($26,885M), below the 5% ceiling. This is consistent with third-party screens: Zoya flags MCD as not Shariah-compliant and Musaffa classifies MCD as not halal (October 2026). Scholars differ on incidental haram sales — this is a factual screen, not a religious ruling; consult a qualified scholar for personal rulings.

Gate 1 — Business activity: FAIL

McDonald's Corporation (NYSE: MCD) is a global foodservice retailer operating and franchising restaurants worldwide — approximately 95% of its restaurants are franchised (Q1 2026 10-Q, March 31, 2026). Revenues: franchised-restaurant rent and royalties, Company-owned restaurant sales, and other revenues (technology-platform cost recoveries, brand licensing). Segments: U.S., International Operated Markets, International Developmental Licensed Markets & Corporate. FY2025 revenue $26,885M. Business-screen implication (factual): McDonald's menus in many markets include pork products — sausage, bacon (Germany's Grand Bacon TS and Big Tasty Bacon; U.S. Bacon McDouble and sausage breakfast items; the McRib, a pork patty) — and McDonald's locations in more than a dozen countries (France, Germany, Belgium, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Austria and others) serve beer with meals. Pork and alcohol are both on this screener's haram list, and the 10-K does not disclose their revenue share. Gate 1 fails. Facts only.

Gate 2 — Debt and cash: PASS

Per McDonald's Q2 2026 10-Q (filed ~August 2026; SEC CIK 63908), total debt was $39,875M — Long-term debt $39,863M + current portion of long-term debt ~$12M (FY2025 10-K states 'Debt obligations at December 31, 2025 totaled $40.0 billion'). Against a market cap of about $165.54B ($231.83, October 1, 2026, Finnhub), debt ÷ market cap is about 24.09% — below the ~33% ceiling. Cash and equivalents were $774M at December 31, 2025 (FY2025 10-K) — about 0.47% of market cap. The debt gate passes; the screen fails at Gate 1. Facts only.

Gate 3 — Non-compliant income: PASS

McDonald's FY2025 10-K (filed February 2026; SEC CIK 63908) reports 'Nonoperating (income) expense, net' of $(87)M — $87M of net nonoperating income — against FY2025 total revenue of $26,885M, about 0.32% of revenue, below the 5% non-compliant income ceiling. (Zoya's page separately reports interest income of $63M, about 0.23% of the same $26,885M revenue.) The income gate passes; the screen fails at Gate 1 on the pork and alcohol business-screen items. Facts only.

Key figures used

Frequently asked questions

What does McDonald's do?

McDonald's Corporation is a global foodservice retailer that operates and franchises its branded restaurants worldwide. Approximately 95% of McDonald's restaurants worldwide are franchised (per the Q1 2026 10-Q, at March 31, 2026). Its revenues consist of (1) revenues from franchised restaurants — rent and royalties based on a percent of franchisee sales, with minimum rent payments, plus initial fees; (2) sales by Company-owned and operated restaurants; and (3) other revenues — primarily fees paid by franchisees to recover a portion of costs for various technology and digital platforms, plus revenues from brand licensing arrangements to market and sell consumer packaged goods using the McDonald's brand. It reports three segments: U.S., International Operated Markets, and International Developmental Licensed Markets & Corporate. FY2025 total revenue was $26,885M.

Why does McDonald's fail this Shariah stock screen?

McDonald's fails this screen at the first gate — the business-activity gate. McDonald's menus in many markets include pork products (sausage, bacon — e.g., Germany's Grand Bacon TS and Big Tasty Bacon; the U.S. Bacon McDouble and sausage breakfast items; the McRib, a pork patty sandwich), and McDonald's locations in more than a dozen countries (including France, Germany, Belgium, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands and Austria) serve beer with meals. Pork and alcohol are both on this screener's haram list. The financial ratios pass comfortably (debt 24.09% of market cap; non-compliant income 0.32% of revenue), so this is a business-screen failure, not a numbers failure. This is consistent with third-party screens: Zoya flags MCD as not Shariah-compliant and Musaffa classifies MCD as not halal (October 2026). Scholars differ on incidental haram sales, and this is a factual screen, not a religious ruling — consult a qualified scholar for personal rulings.

What is McDonald's interest-bearing debt ratio?

Per McDonald's Q2 2026 10-Q (filed ~August 2026; SEC CIK 63908), total debt was $39,875M — Long-term debt $39,863M + current portion of long-term debt ~$12M (the FY2025 10-K separately states 'Debt obligations at December 31, 2025 totaled $40.0 billion'). Against a market cap of about $165.54B (price $231.83, October 1, 2026, Finnhub), debt ÷ market cap is about 24.09% — below the ~33% ceiling. Cash and equivalents were $774M at December 31, 2025 (FY2025 10-K; $1,170M at March 31, 2026 per the Q1 2026 10-Q) — about 0.47% of market cap. The debt gate passes; the screen fails at Gate 1. Note: including lease liabilities ($690M current + $14,039M long-term at June 30, 2026), the broader obligation ratio would be about 33.0% of market cap.

What is McDonald's non-compliant income ratio?

McDonald's FY2025 10-K (filed February 2026; SEC CIK 63908) reports 'Nonoperating (income) expense, net' of $(87)M — $87M of net nonoperating income — against FY2025 total revenue of $26,885M, about 0.32% of revenue, below the 5% non-compliant income ceiling. This is the broadest verifiable non-operating investment/income figure disclosed in the 10-K. (Zoya's page separately reports interest income of $63M, about 0.23% of the same $26,885M revenue — corroborating that interest/investment income is small.) The income gate passes; the screen fails at Gate 1 on the pork and alcohol business-screen items. Facts only.

Do Zoya, Musaffa, or ShariaPortfolio cover McDonald's?

Zoya covers MCD and flags it as not Shariah-compliant ('not considered halal to invest in' per its public page), though the page's auto-generated FAQ text contains contradictory template sentences, so the public-page detail is reported as-is and inconclusive in places — honestly reported, not invented. Musaffa covers MCD at musaffa.com/stock/mcd and classifies McDonald's Corp as 'not halal' as of October 2026 under its AAOIFI methodology. ShariaPortfolio: no individual MCD entry found (their Halal Stock Screener is a third-party-powered tool with no retrievable MCD rating). All honestly reported as found, not invented. This page applies the screen directly from McDonald's own filings.

Sources

Screened 2026-10-01 from published company figures and market data. Figures change; this page is educational, not financial advice and not a religious ruling.

Screened with our two-gate Shariah screening methodology (business-activity gate, then AAOIFI-style financial ratios).