The Best Fast Food Breakfast Sandwiches Ranked

In today's busy world, hitting a drive-thru for a quick breakfast is a weekday must for many working Americans. However, not all breakfast sandwiches are created equally. Perhaps you are a bacon connoisseur and expect a certain quality from even the drive-thru, or maybe particular kinds of cheeses are a hard no when it comes to what you can eat to start your day. There are many different types of breakfast sandwiches to enjoy, but one thing is for certain — warm bread with breakfast filling is a comforting way to start your day.

Sometimes, the best breakfast sandwich isn't just about taste, but also about your ethics — many of today's fast food restaurants focus on sustainability, animal welfare, and plant-based options, while others...don't.  Whatever your standards, here's a list of the ultimate breakfast sandwiches ranked from "meh, it'll get you through the day" to "don't start your day without one."

Sonic is known for its lengthy roster of slushies and here on the West Coast, we cherish our occasional Sonic Drive-In restaurants. And the best part is that the breakfast menu is available all day long. In 1953, Sonic became the first drive-thru restaurant to offer car-side service by allowing customers to place orders using curbside speakers. Still popular today, the fast food chain brings an old-school American diner vibe to every customer in line.

One of the stars of their breakfast menu is the Sonic Bacon Breakfast Toaster. You can't go wrong with Texas toast in general, and when it's holding egg, bacon, and melted cheese you know that you're in for a comforting morning treat, no matter the time of day. You can even customize your breakfast sandwich by adding diced onions, jalapenos, tomatoes, or sausage if you want an extra serving of meat.

Dunkin' turkey sausage, egg, and cheese sandwich — this little sandwich with a long name is part of Dunkin's DDSMART menu, which presents healthier options for customers. While it won't hit the spot in quite the same comforting way that some of the fattening, salty indulgences on this list do, it's still a delicious way to start your day. 

The Dunkin' turkey sausage, egg, and cheese sandwich comes in at under 400 calories and was introduced as a permanent menu item in 2013. Having been on the menu for almost a decade now, it's a good sign this sandwich is still a tasty and popular item despite some healthier cheats. It is rare to find a fast food breakfast item that uses turkey sausage instead of the cheaper mystery meat option, and it is especially amusing that this low-cal sandwich is coming from a restaurant known for its donuts and sugary coffees, but let's just go with it. Dunkin' even lets you select the type of bread you want for this sandwich that features everything in its name. 

Burger King's Bacon and Sausage, Egg & Cheese Croissan'wich takes various entrees that other fast food restaurants separate, and puts them all together in one single sandwich. And nobody's upset about it. This sandwich contains an impressively fluffy egg, slightly melted cheese, bacon, and sausage. It's held together with a croissant that doesn't flake all over the place. We're looking at you, people who have mastered eating while driving.

Not in the mood for so much meat? You can also order this sandwich with only bacon or sausage, or substitute for ham. One of the things we love about Burger King is that while the breakfast menu is limited to the morning, you can order the lunch menu all day. In our humble opinion, the Croissan'wich actually goes better with french fries than hash browns. It'll take a little longer in the drive-thru, but if you have the extra time in the morning, give this perfect union a try. 

In all the years it's been around, Chick-Fil-A has never strayed away from chicken. Sure, the burger temptation has likely been there, but the company has stayed loyal to what it's always known while finding creative ways to reinvent itself. Enter the Chick-n-Minis, one of its most popular breakfast items.

The star of this entrée is the chicken nugget chilling out inside its little bread house. Outside of the chicken goodness, Chick-Fil-A doesn't mess around with this breakfast item — the bread is a mini yeast roll, which isn't found at any other fast food restaurant. The tiny sandwich also includes a honey butter sauce that ties it all together. Each order comes with four sandwiches, and the meal includes hash browns and coffee. Again, speaking from the perspective of a lunch-for-breakfast lover, the Chick-n-Minis hits the right combination of being lunch-adjacent while being socially acceptable as a breakfast item.

Most of Jack in the Box's menu item names are simple descriptions of what you're about to get — a sausage croissant, for example. On the other hand, the Breakfast Jack gets a signature name, which is appropriate for what's arguably the menu's most famous item. The sandwich itself is quite simple — meat, cheese, and egg on a sort of burger bun-style type of bread. But sometimes simple gets the job done, and this one is a favorite for many. 

You can customize a Breakfast Jack, too. The default comes with ham, but you can sub out for bacon or sausage. There is also a Sourdough Breakfast Jack, which swaps out the bun for the Sourdough Jack bread and adds in two kinds of cheese instead of only one. If you are keto or gluten-free, you can also ask for your Breakfast Jack breadless in a bowl. 

Just as there are numerous burger and chicken chains, there are also a plethora of sandwich chains. However, many don't serve breakfast, which provides Subway with an instant win. Beyond this fact, the Black Forest ham breakfast sandwich is pretty creative. Instead of a bun or typical sandwich bread, it comes on flatbread. As with the chain's subs, you can add in whatever veggies you like to truly customize your breakfast sandwich. This makes for a healthier, more unique option than what you'll find in the basic fast food drive-thrus. 

As confirmed by Insider, it still includes a problematic egg patty that isn't necessarily the most appetizing, but if you can get over that mass-produced protein vibe, the black forest ham and its accompaniments definitely make up for it. Since most (any?) Subways lack drive-thrus, be sure to mobile order this sandwich if you are in a hurry in the morning.

The fast food industry has been competing fiercely for the best chicken sandwich lately. Since Popeye's crowned itself king after causing fever-pitch demand for their chicken sandwich, literally every other quick-service restaurant has rolled out their response. However, Wendy's is one of the few that has included chicken on its breakfast menu. Overall, Wendy's has some pretty awesome breakfast offerings that set them apart, including potato wedges instead of hashbrowns, and warm blueberry muffins. 

The Honey Butter Chicken Biscuit is one of the latest additions to the menu and nobody seems to be mad at it. The biscuit is soft and flaky, unlike some of its competitors, and the overall experience is a great combination of sweet and savory. If you aren't a fan of honey or sweet breakfast foods in general, then this might not be for you, but for the rest of us who love a little sweetness in the morning, it's a worthy option.

Let's go ahead and admit that a large percentage of America already has the Starbucks drive-thru or mobile order app worked into their morning routine. Starbucks is tightly woven into our culture and keeps us awake and alert as a bonus. The chain's Double Smoked Bacon Gouda Sandwich is a delicious choice if you're looking for something hearty to go with your coffee. 

Starbucks only uses cage-free eggs, which is an ethical choice without compromising on quality or flavor. The company doesn't cheap out on the bacon or cheese either, with thick-cut, expertly-smoked bacon slices between ciabatta bread, along with high-end gouda cheese. There's another variation to this sandwich — the Double Smoked Bacon, Egg & Cheese Sandwich — it's the same goodness as the original, but has sharp cheddar cheese instead of gouda, and comes on a croissant bun instead of ciabatta. Some Starbucks only carry one of the two breakfast sandwich options, but they are both great morning pick-me-ups. 

Heading back to Burger King again we have the Fully Loaded Croissan'wich, which is one heck of a sandwich that includes, well, everything. A buttery croissant is loaded up with fluffy eggs, cheese, crispy bacon, savory sausage, and ham. This is a great choice if you're indecisive — why not just have it all in one sandwich? What's more, the breakfast sandwich has a whopping 31 grams of protein. 

This sandwich isn't small — it's substantial enough for even a ravenous teenage boy, and you'll feel as if you've gotten your money's worth. The sandwich can be purchased alone or as part of a meal with hash browns and a drink.

Don't live near a Burger King? Jack in the Box's Loaded Breakfast Sandwich and Carl's Jr's Monster Biscuits are similar in price and concept, but there's just something about the added joy of a croissant bun.

While all other fast food restaurants have worked hard to create affordable, unique breakfast menus, McDonald's continues to stand atop its mountain and laugh. This fast food icon never seems to quit and its Egg McMuffin is arguably the most beloved breakfast sandwich out there. The notable breakfast item first rolled out in 1971, making it one of the oldest breakfast sandwiches around. And it's just straight-up delicious in its simplicity — egg, Canadian bacon, and cheese on an English muffin. Pair it with a hashbrown and some orange juice, and your day will be okay. Best of all, Egg McMuffins aren't as unhealthy as you might think — it clocks in at just under 300 calories. 

Did you know that you can transfer the famous Egg McMuffin egg onto other menu items? Ask for a "round egg" on their biscuit sandwiches or McGriddles, and they will give you this far superior cracked egg instead of the default folded egg. Level up!