12 Fast Food Chicken Nuggets Ranked Worst To First

Chicken nuggets tend to win over even the most picky eaters — particularly little ones with especially fussy appetites. That makes the fried dish also rather popular with adults who have the responsibility of providing some vittles, are also rather hungry themselves, and perhaps a bit exhausted after a long day and not especially thrilled about engaging in long-winded bargaining tactics to get the kids to eat dinner. Winner, winner, chicken dinner for all involved.

While there are frozen chicken nuggets one can buy from the grocery store, once they're thrown in the oven and baked, they don't deliver the intense dopamine hit that comes with a batch that's fresh from the fryer. We've sampled a ton of fast food chicken nuggets and have some thoughts on how they rank in terms of crunchiness, texture, seasoning, taste, and general mouthfeel. We've also encountered some options that are a tad strange in terms of presentation. In a crowded field, we suppose that any effort to stand out from the competition is worth a try, but we're not entirely sure that the gimmicky entries, while they're interesting, are necessarily better. Here's a list of our favorite fast food chicken nuggets going from worst to first.

When it comes to fast food, it's go big or go home. Dairy Queen's rotisserie chicken nuggets just aren't on par with the competition — they aren't breaded or fried in a vat of oil, which is sort of the name of the game when you're going out for fast food. For that reason alone, Dairy Queen's nuggets rank the lowest on our fast food chicken nuggets list.

Deep-frying is a standard preparation method for fast food restaurants, after all, and those industrial kitchens should be able to churn out nuggets, fries, and any other deep-fried foods day in and day out. Home deep-frying can be a major chore for amateur cooks, which is why we look to fast food joints to deliver the goods. We can absolutely award some credit to Dairy Queen for offering a chicken nugget that isn't coated in a thick layer of fried bread and not quite as loaded with saturated fat as some of the competition. But it would also be almost as easy to just buy a rotisserie chicken from the local grocery store and carve it up for a gathering at the family dinner table if you're looking for a weeknight chicken option that's healthier, less hassle, and probably tastier than what Dairy Queen is serving.

Carl's Jr. and Hardee's, which joined forces in 1997 when Carl's Jr. acquired the other, exist in different regions of the country, but for the most part, they have the same menu — that includes their star-shaped chicken nuggets. The nuggets offered by both are also served up as tenders, but you can find the stars in a six- or nine-piece combo along with fries, a beverage, and your choice of dipping sauce.

These aren't our favorite fast food chicken nuggets, though — that cute star might be tempting, but they taste more like crispy carbs than a protein-packed portion of chicken. To achieve that unique shape, they're filled with processed ground chicken, chicken fat, and beef fat rather than a simple tender cutlet. The seasoning on the breading leaves much to be desired as well, coming off as mostly salt and not much more. All of that keeps these star nuggets below most of their competition.

Burger King knows its way around beef, and we're not talking about its famous charbroiled Whopper burger — it actually got into a legal feud with the band Slipknot, which sued Burger King over the marketing launch of its Chicken Fries.

But how does this fast food fried chicken fare when you have other options out there? While we do appreciate the convenience of having a slender stick of fried chicken, especially when you're on the road and getting drive-thru, we aren't ranking them quite as high because they straddle between being nuggets and tenders. You might be fooled into thinking this is a tender based on its shape, but when you bite into one of these fries, you realize this is definitely poultry that's been through quite a process to get from farm to table.

If you're a fan of these, so be it — as the ad jingle goes, "Have it your way." For variety, Burger King has added some limited-time flavors to its Chicken Fries in the past, which have included crispy pretzel, jalapeño, and Cheetos, all helping to set its fries apart from the flock of competitors.

White Castle is a fast food chain primarily known for its bite-sized beefy sliders going all the way back to 1921, as well as a stoner comedy starring John Cho and Kal Penn. But White Castle's Chicken Rings have earned their own level of infamy.

We like the Chicken Rings from White Castle because while the shape is not something we would ever associate with chicken, they are admittedly quite dunkable into the sweet and savory sauces on offer from the chain and offer a nice thin crisp akin to a thick potato chip. And if you're getting drive-thru and have your hands behind the wheel and can't manage a saucy dunk without making a mess, you can order these Chicken Rings from White Castle with a coat of seasoning — pick from spicy Buffalo or Hidden Valley Ranch blends. They're also one of the only fast food nuggets you can make at home — White Castle now sells frozen spicy and regular Chicken Rings in grocery stores.

Jack in the Box, a fast food chain that grew its roots in San Diego, is known for having an eclectic assortment of menu items — including burgers on sourdough bread, all-day breakfast, tacos, egg rolls, stuffed jalapeños, and, of course, chicken nuggets. The chicken nuggets at Jack in the Box, however, are not worth a special trip. These are standard, run-of-the-mill fare. They don't stand out as particularly bad but also have no remarkable qualities. There's no toy prize here. They don't arrive in a novelty shape. If you want a subpar chicken nugget with some flair, seek out some of the weirder offerings from other fast food chains on our list.

Bottom line, the nuggets from Jack in the Box are rather comparable to what you could just buy from the frozen section of your grocery store and pop in the oven. We would encourage a visit to Jack in the Box, though, for its chicken tenders, which have plenty of meat to balance out a thick, crunchy fry on the exterior.

If you've only had one fried chicken nugget from a fast food restaurant in your entire life, it was probably a McNugget from McDonald's. The longstanding chain that was a game changer in the industry for adopting efficient Henry Ford-esque assembly lines to churn out as much food as possible is also ubiquitous stateside and abroad. And for hungry kids, the appeal of a Happy Meal and the toy that comes with it are extra incentives to beg for an order of those salty McNuggets.

We rank McNuggets towards the middle of our list for nostalgic reasons. Sometimes you just need comfort food that reminds you of your youth. But we can't really rank them higher because depending on how old you are, they may not taste quite like what you recall from childhood. That's because they used to be a blend of dark and white meat, but in 2003, the corporation decided to make them from only white meat chicken. We also struggle to rank them higher because you really don't want to know the specifics of how McDonald's Chicken McNuggets are made.

A tweeted plea from Chance the Rapper back in 2019 begged for Wendy's to bring back its spicy chicken nuggets. "Positive Affirmations for today: I WILL have a good day, I Will succeed today, Wendy's WILL bring back spicy nuggets at some point please please Lord let it be today," he implored, and we thank him for putting Wendy's on blast.

It makes perfect sense that Wendy's, with its redheaded mascot, should have a fiery hot chicken nugget option. The brand's spicy chicken nuggets get a double dose of pepper seasoning in both the marinade and the breading. It all adds up to an eye-popping snack. You can order a small portion of just four pieces or a quick meal if you go for 10 nuggets. We give these nuggets a boost within our rankings because they definitely deliver on the heat front and have lots of satisfying crispy crunchy texture in the fry. They're not higher on the list for us, though, because they are quite the sodium bomb — 480 milligrams in the four-portion serving, which is roughly a quarter of what's recommended to eat on a daily basis.

Were those nuggets not spicy enough for you? Do you need even more heat? Wendy's has you covered with its ghost pepper ranch dipping sauce. But if you go down that route, we would advise you to add a chilly Frosty to your Wendy's order to cool off your scorched taste buds.

The only thing that could be better than popcorn chicken is if it comes in an extra-large size. Popcorn chicken has a bit of a reputation for being more fried breading than it is protein, which can be a delectable morsel but sometimes leaves you craving a bit more substance to your meal. Our friends at Sonic are happy to accommodate their patrons' appetites for meatier bites with their Jumbo Popcorn Chicken, which is made of 100% all-white meat.

Despite their name, we would argue that due to their size and shape, these qualify as chicken nuggets. They earn a high ranking from us because of that signature crunch that you want and crave when it comes to fried chicken. The only downside with this nugget delicacy might be going through the hassle of trying to find a Sonic near you. If you're in Texas or anywhere in the Southeast, that shouldn't be an issue. But for those west of the Mississippi, you might have to go on a bit of a drive to get to a Sonic Drive-In.

Arby's has wrapped itself up in an ad slogan that insists, "We have the meats!" And we can confirm that this is true — there's plenty of meat to be found there, and it includes more than just its famous roast beef. Despite specializing in high-calorie meat stack sandwiches, Arby's also has two chicken tender meals on offer, in three- and five-piece options, as well as nine-piece chicken nuggets. The phrase "all hat and no cattle" could prove to be a mantra if you find yourself in the vicinity of an Arby's and are craving fried chicken, because those nuggets are primo.

Arby's nuggets are satisfyingly crispy, and more importantly, they're not the pulverized mash that you typically find in cheapo nuggets from fast food establishments; these bite-sized strips taste a lot less processed than their rivals. We rank them higher on our list because they're very good compared to the competition, and also because Arby's doesn't deserve a bad rap just because it's primarily a sandwich joint. Don't forget to snap up an order of curly fries to add to your meal.

If KFC can't come through with some top-notch chicken nuggets, there really isn't much hope for the chain. We're happy to report that Colonel Sanders' famous blend of 11 herbs and spices is well incorporated into a pint-sized container of boneless nuggets just as well as it is within a bucket of bone-in pieces — these nuggets are indeed, as the brand likes to brag, "finger-lickin' good," and the seasoning goes beyond just salt and pepper, too. That's just one reason why we rank these nuggets higher than their competitors. We also imagine that the colonel's patented process of frying chicken in a pressure-induced cooker could also be at play here because these nuggets are quite tender and not as dried out as some of the competitors.

KFC only rolled out the new nuggets nationwide in early 2023, but they've easily found their way to the head of the competition. You can order a pack of five, eight, or 12 for yourself — or 36 if it's a party — and dip them into some standard honey mustard, ranch, or perhaps Buffalo sauce if you're looking for some heat. But while you're at KFC, why not ask for its signature sauce? Much like what coats the chicken, the exact recipe is kept secret, but it comes off as a sweet, sour, and umami soupçon packed with many flavors — pretty much anything you could want in a dip for fried chicken.

Don't plan your Sunday around having chicken nuggets from Chick-fil-A because it ain't gonna happen. This chain is completely committed to shuttering its doors and drive-thru windows on Sundays, but otherwise, on the other six days of the week, we adore the nuggets from Chick-fil-A. The fast food chicken brand doesn't go quite as overboard with the breaded coating as many of its competitors in the fast food chicken nugget space, allowing the pronounced, delicious chicken taste Chick-fil-A is known for to shine. The nuggets here aren't covered with a ton of flour, either, and cooking them in peanut oil adds a flavor that is absolutely distinct from the others out there.

What's also so good about Chick-fil-A's chicken in general is that it puts extra care into the marinade, which many food bloggers and aficionados believe incorporates brine from pickle juice. That would not only add salinity, but the vinegar present in this approach would also tenderize the meat so no one is stuck with a dry, bland nugget. For those who like pickles, ask for a cup on the side to complement your feast and bring out the brine.

Sing it along with us: "Love that chicken from Popeyes!" These chicken nuggets with original New Orleans flavor are marinated for 12 hours to ensure you're not getting a blasé bite — if we can invoke some French into a critique and appreciation of this Louisiana-based eatery that serves up fried chicken nuggets that outrank the competition as far as we're concerned. These bites of white meat are battered by hand and given a solid buttermilk bread coating that results in an undeniably top-tier, epic-level crunchy bite after the deep fry.

Nuggets are relatively new at Popeyes — the brand hasn't offered nuggets as a menu mainstay since the 1980s and revamped the recipe and relaunched the item in 2021. Still, they've undoubtedly improved on the original. What we love about Popeyes nuggets as much as their flavor is that if you find yourself in a position to feed a large group of people, they're happy to help you out. Go all-in on a 48-piece order, or several, depending on the crowd size and appetite. Or you can simply get a meal for yourself when you're on the go and need some nuggets.