Data study
These are the 10 best and worst McDonald's in New Zealand, according to Google reviews
The McDonald's in the international departures area at Auckland Airport is the worst-rated in New Zealand, averaging 1.67 stars from 338 Google reviews, and 77% of its reviews give a single star.
Data collected
Source: SEO Backlinks, https://seobacklinks.com/
Key findings
At the other end, the McDonald's on Swanston Street in Tokoroa is the best-rated in the country at 4.03 from 2,537 reviews, just ahead of the one on Maniapoto Street in Ōtorohanga at 4.00 from 2,571 reviews. They are the only two McDonald's restaurants in New Zealand averaging four stars or more.
The average restaurant in the ranking scores 3.52. Nine of the 10 lowest-rated are in Auckland. The one on Goldwater Drive in Silverdale is second-worst at 2.69, the one on Main Road in Huapai, Kumeū, is third at 2.78 and the one on Manukau Road in Pukekohe is fourth at 2.87. The others are in Lynfield, the Albany food court, Clendon Park, Belmont and Westgate. The only restaurant outside Auckland in the bottom 10 is the one in the Goldfields Shopping Centre in Thames, fifth-worst at 2.93.
Waikato has three restaurants in the top 10, in Tokoroa, Ōtorohanga and Taupō, where customers can eat inside a DC-3 plane parked beside the restaurant (ninth, 3.88). Auckland has two, on Great South Road in Takanini (third, 3.95) and in Karaka (eighth, 3.88), and Nelson Tasman has two, in Tāhunanui (fifth, 3.93) and Richmond (sixth, 3.91). Restaurants in Merivale, Christchurch (fourth, 3.93), Kaitaia (seventh, 3.89) and Fairy Springs, Rotorua (10th, 3.86) complete the list. Of the eight regions with at least five restaurants in the ranking, Northland's are the best-rated on average at 3.68, followed by Bay of Plenty (3.67), while Auckland's are the lowest-rated at 3.38, followed by Wellington (3.55).
Chart
Worst and best 10 at a glance
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Method
How we did it
We used the DataForSEO Business Listings database to pull the Google Maps listings for every McDonald's restaurant in New Zealand in October 2026, then checked for gaps with Google Maps searches around 114 towns.
We kept the 168 restaurants that were open and had at least 100 Google reviews, 310,815 reviews in all. Closed restaurants and the listing for McDonald's head office were left out, while restaurants at airports, in food courts and shopping centres and at motorway service centres were included. Every restaurant's figures were taken from its live Google listing on October 7, 2026.
Each restaurant was ranked by its exact average rating, worked out from its count of one, two, three, four and five-star reviews rather than the rounded score Google displays, so restaurants that show the same rating on Google are still put in order. Where two restaurants have exactly the same average, the one with the larger share of one-star reviews ranks lower.
Regional averages give every restaurant equal weight (the mean of the restaurant averages) and cover the eight regions with at least five restaurants in the ranking. Nelson and Tasman are counted together as Nelson Tasman.
National rankings
The worst and best 10 in New Zealand
The 10 worst-rated McDonald's restaurants in New Zealand
| Rank | Restaurant | Average | Reviews |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | McDonald's Auckland Airport International Departuresairside, Māngere, Auckland338 reviews | 1.67 | 338 |
| 2 | McDonald's Silverdale65 Goldwater Drive, Silverdale452 reviews | 2.69 | 452 |
| 3 | McDonald's Kumeū332 Main Road, Huapai, Kumeū339 reviews | 2.78 | 339 |
| 4 | McDonald's Pukekohe117 Manukau Road, Pukekohe246 reviews | 2.87 | 246 |
| 5 | McDonald's ThamesGoldfields Shopping Centre, Thames1,462 reviews | 2.93 | 1,462 |
| 6 | McDonald's Lynfield516 Hillsborough Road, Mount Roskill, Auckland194 reviews | 2.94 | 194 |
| 7 | McDonald's Albany Foodcourt219 Don McKinnon Drive, Albany, Auckland243 reviews | 2.98 | 243 |
| 8 | McDonald's Clendon Park443 Roscommon Road, Clendon Park, Auckland1,503 reviews | 3.02 | 1,503 |
| 9 | McDonald's Belmont127 Lake Road, Belmont, Auckland1,173 reviews | 3.04 | 1,173 |
| 10 | McDonald's Westgate North9 Kakano Road, Westgate, Auckland165 reviews | 3.08 | 165 |
The 10 best-rated McDonald's restaurants in New Zealand
| Rank | Restaurant | Average | Reviews |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | McDonald's Tokoroa1 Swanston Street, Tokoroa2,537 reviews | 4.03 | 2,537 |
| 2 | McDonald's Ōtorohanga117 Maniapoto Street, Ōtorohanga2,571 reviews | 4.00 | 2,571 |
| 3 | McDonald's Takanini226 Great South Road, Takanini, Auckland1,964 reviews | 3.95 | 1,964 |
| 4 | McDonald's Merivale217 Papanui Road, Merivale, Christchurch3,451 reviews | 3.93 | 3,451 |
| 5 | McDonald's Tāhunanui32 Tahunanui Drive, Tāhunanui, Nelson876 reviews | 3.93 | 876 |
| 6 | McDonald's Richmond321 Lower Queen Street, Richmond774 reviews | 3.91 | 774 |
| 7 | McDonald's Kaitaia87 North Road, Kaitaia1,258 reviews | 3.89 | 1,258 |
| 8 | McDonald's Karaka47 Harbourside Drive, Karaka1,017 reviews | 3.88 | 1,017 |
| 9 | McDonald's Taupō48 Roberts Street, Taupō6,461 reviews | 3.88 | 6,461 |
| 10 | McDonald's Rotorua Fairy Springs70 Fairy Springs Road, Fairy Springs, Rotorua2,271 reviews | 3.86 | 2,271 |
Averages are rounded to two decimal places. Where two restaurants show the same figure, the order comes from the unrounded average.
Region ranking
McDonald's by region, best to worst
The average Google score of each region's ranked McDonald's restaurants, with every restaurant given equal weight. Only the eight regions with at least five ranked restaurants are included.
| Rank | Region | Restaurants | Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Northland6 restaurants | 6 | 3.68 |
| 2 | Bay of Plenty10 restaurants | 10 | 3.67 |
| 3 | Canterbury20 restaurants | 20 | 3.63 |
| 4 | Manawatū-Whanganui11 restaurants | 11 | 3.62 |
| 5 | Otago7 restaurants | 7 | 3.61 |
| 6 | Waikato19 restaurants | 19 | 3.58 |
| 7 | Wellington15 restaurants | 15 | 3.55 |
| 8 | Auckland63 restaurants | 63 | 3.38 |
Region by region
The best and worst rated McDonald's in each region
The highest and lowest scoring McDonald's in each of the 15 regions with a ranked restaurant, including regions with fewer than five. Gisborne, Marlborough and the West Coast have one ranked restaurant each, so it appears in both columns. Restaurants outside the national lists are named as on their Google listings.
| Region | Best rated | Worst rated |
|---|---|---|
| Auckland63 restaurants ranked | McDonald's TakaniniAuckland, 1,964 reviews 3.95 | McDonald's Auckland Airport International DeparturesAuckland, 338 reviews 1.67 |
| Bay of Plenty10 restaurants ranked | McDonald's Rotorua Fairy SpringsRotorua, 2,271 reviews 3.86 | McDonald's BayfairTauranga, 450 reviews 3.50 |
| Canterbury20 restaurants ranked | McDonald's MerivaleChristchurch, 3,451 reviews 3.93 | McDonald's Marshland RoadChristchurch, 1,841 reviews 3.15 |
| Gisborne1 restaurants ranked | McDonald's GisborneGisborne, 1,810 reviews 3.57 | McDonald's GisborneGisborne, 1,810 reviews 3.57 |
| Hawke's Bay4 restaurants ranked | McDonald's TaradaleNapier, 1,504 reviews 3.49 | McDonald's Havelock NorthHavelock North, 1,198 reviews 3.25 |
| Manawatū-Whanganui11 restaurants ranked | McDonald's TaumarunuiTaumarunui, 1,185 reviews 3.85 | McDonald's DannevirkeDannevirke, 1,775 reviews 3.37 |
| Marlborough1 restaurants ranked | McDonald's BlenheimBlenheim, 1,810 reviews 3.55 | McDonald's BlenheimBlenheim, 1,810 reviews 3.55 |
| Nelson Tasman4 restaurants ranked | McDonald's TāhunanuiNelson, 876 reviews 3.93 | McDonald's MotuekaMotueka, 902 reviews 3.73 |
| Northland6 restaurants ranked | McDonald's KaitaiaKaitaia, 1,258 reviews 3.89 | McDonald's KaikoheKaikohe, 727 reviews 3.39 |
| Otago7 restaurants ranked | McDonald's OamaruOamaru, 1,697 reviews 3.82 | McDonald's Green IslandDunedin, 223 reviews 3.22 |
| Southland3 restaurants ranked | McDonald's Invercargill Elles RoadInvercargill, 1,274 reviews 3.84 | McDonald's GoreGore, 1,245 reviews 3.51 |
| Taranaki3 restaurants ranked | McDonald's New PlymouthNew Plymouth, 2,118 reviews 3.69 | McDonald's Bell BockNew Plymouth, 749 reviews 3.47 |
| Waikato19 restaurants ranked | McDonald's TokoroaTokoroa, 2,537 reviews 4.03 | McDonald's ThamesThames, 1,462 reviews 2.93 |
| Wellington15 restaurants ranked | McDonald's PoriruaPorirua, 2,590 reviews 3.82 | McDonald's ParaparaumuParaparaumu, 511 reviews 3.13 |
| West Coast1 restaurants ranked | McDonald's GreymouthGreymouth, 1,670 reviews 3.45 | McDonald's GreymouthGreymouth, 1,670 reviews 3.45 |
Scores are the exact average of every star rating on the restaurant's Google listing, rounded to two decimal places.
Using this research
Citing these figures
You're welcome to quote or republish any figure on this page. Please credit SEO Backlinks and link to this page so readers can see the full method and rankings.
How to cite
SEO Backlinks, "The best and worst McDonald's in New Zealand", data collected October 7, 2026: https://seobacklinks.com/
This study comes from SEO Backlinks, which runs data-led digital PR campaigns built on public data like Google reviews.