With the price of fast food skyrocketing, it all feels like a rip-off. But there’s one item in particular at every chain drive-thru that provokes the most price-related anger: soda.
Fountain drinks used to be cheap add-ons, but that’s no longer the case, with most fast-food chains charging $3 or more for a large Coke or Pepsi. It feels like the ultimate scam considering how little those drinks cost multibillion dollar fast-food companies, and people are sick of it.
“I’m going to keep stealing my drinks, thank you,” is what one Redditor titled their widely seen thread about the insane cost of soda at Taco Bell. “I encourage everyone to join me in my revolution against $3-5 soft drinks.”
‘As a Taco Bell Employee, I 100% Respect This’
How do they steal their drinks from Taco Bell? The Redditor explains that they use the in-store kiosk to place their order — but leave out a drink. “Now that there is no more cashier to take my order, when I say ‘can I get a large cup?’ [when picking up my order], they don’t second guess it for a second. Not even a look. Here’s your cup.”
“A soft drink of any size should not be more than $1.99,” they continue. “I will die on this hill.” While we agree with the sentiment, we’re not so convinced of their solution. But as it turns out, this Redditor has a ton of supporters — including Taco Bell employees.
“As a Taco Bell employee I 100% respect this and approve,” responded one Redditor, and they weren’t alone.
“As an employee [I don’t care],” said another. “Feel free to reuse an old soda cup,” they added, meaning they don’t care if you bring in a Taco Bell cup you bought on a previous visit to refill.
Clearly, Taco Bell’s hourly employees don’t make nearly enough money at their jobs to care whether someone is stealing soda, and it’s hard to blame them. (The one thing they do care about, though, is when people steal entire food orders. “Just don’t steal the mobile orders pls,” one employee added, since it makes their jobs much more difficult.)
Other Redditors were not on board with stealing your soda. “If you losers keep doing this you are going to make it so the soda machines get put behind the counter and they start charging for refills,” said one commenter. “It sucks, it’s expensive. But the reality is, if you can’t afford it, don’t go there. Stealing doesn’t send the message you think it does. Not going there in the first place will.”
Taco Bell may already be making changes to its restaurant design due to customers stealing soda. Another Taco Bell fan posted pictures of a newly renovated location — and there’s no self-serve soda fountain in sight. “My local taco bell in Beaverton Oregon just had a remodel and they removed the self serve drinks!” they explained.
Massive Markups
So what is the deal with fast-food soda prices, anyway? At one Taco Bell location in the Midwest — that we know has generally lower prices than other locations in the same city — large sodas are $3, while smalls are still $2.69. You can get two Spicy Potato Soft Tacos for less than that, and still have change to spare.
Soda prices at the grocery stores are astronomical as well. The price of a 12-pack of name brand soda cans has almost doubled since 2020 to about $10. It’s an 89% increase, far outpacing the inflation rate for the same period of 25%.
With prices that high at the grocery store, it’s no surprise that fast-food chains reportedly have markups of 900% to 1,500% on sodas. That’s a jaw-dropping stat. Sure, it’s a business with a goal to make money, but it almost feels like giant corporations are stealing from you with markups of 1,000% or more.
How to Save on Fast-Food Soda
There are ways to save on sodas at the drive-thru that don’t involve outright stealing. The easiest way? Plan ahead and don’t buy soda with your fast food at all.
“I haven’t bought a drink at Taco Bell in months,” explained one Redditor. “$3 for a drink is criminal when I can go to the gas station next door and get an even larger drink for $1.29.”
Another commenter had the same idea. The “gas station right across the street from me is 89 cents for L and a few blocks away XXL $1.69,” they said. “I don’t get drinks at fast food anymore.”
You can also stop at the grocery store instead, like one Redditor suggests. “You can get a 2 liter bottle of Coca Cola at Walmart for $2.28. It’s on rollback, but regular price is $2.74. So yes I agree, Taco Bell and others have lost their marbles.”
Someone else has an idea we also like: take care of the workers at the fast-food locations you visit often, and they’ll take care of you, too. “I tip my Taco Bell homies a $20 bill every few months because they always hook me up and always hand me a free drink cup,” explains one Redditor. “It’s such a good system.”
More From Cheapism
- 17 Vintage Photos of Soda Fountains From the 1890s to the 1950s — Let’s take a trip down memory lane with these vintage soda fountain photos.
- The Classic ‘80s Soda Slice Is Finally Back On Shelves at Costco and Target — Slice has been revived by a new company, and it’s available in tons of grocery stores nationwide already.
- 16 Discontinued Sodas We Can’t Believe Are Gone — Curious about some of the wackiest, strangest sodas that have been discontinued over the years? Here are 16 of them, featuring flavors from sour grape to bubblegum.
