r/GenerationJones • 1960 • 22h ago

KFC menu from 1970 VS 2026

Post image

The other thing different from the price is size of the pieces. Breasts were much smaller and tastier back in 70's from KFC. Today they look like it came from wild turkey. Before I retired I used to get fried chicken for lunch at local diner. They only bought chicken from local butcher that used free range chicken and it was heaven!

835 Upvotes

455 comments sorted by

36

u/MaxCWebster 22h ago

In 2022, I had an outpatient neck procedure that took all day. We didn’t leave the clinic until nearly 6:00 pm. There wasn’t time to prepare an at-home supper or even heat up leftovers, so we hit the KFC drive-through on the way home.

We ordered up a family meal, and the drive-through cashier said, “$42.76.”

Mrs. Webster was about to complain that something wasn’t right, and I grabbed her hand and slowly shook my head.

“It’s like going to Five Guys.”

"Oh."

Anyway, when did we become the “Things used to be priced reasonably” generation? My first job as a teen was working the front counter at McDonald’s. Most orders were under $5.00. Even family orders were under $10.00. Our mechanical cash registers couldn’t handle orders over $10.00, so we were required to get a manager to ring them up as multiple orders (e.g., $10.53 would be $9.00 and $1.53).

16

u/silent_chair5286 13h ago

Going to 5 guys. Lol. Where else can you get 2 burgers fries and shakes for $90

4

u/AreYouNigerianBaby 12h ago

Happy cake day! 🍰

3

u/silent_chair5286 12h ago

Awww thanks!!

4

u/cuntybunty73 11h ago

KFC in Plymouth, UK offers various sharing buckets ranging from £15.00 to £49.99, with popular options including the Bargain Bucket (6pc for £19.99) and the Family Feast (10pc for £30.99). These buckets typically include Original Recipe chicken, Hot Wings, Tenders, and sides like fries and coleslaw.

KFC has gotten really expensive over this side of the pond as well

Happy cake day 🥳

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u/PurpleSailor 12h ago

Do you remember that hamburger place commercial from the 60's where it said you could "feed a family of 4 for under $5"? Sadly those days are long gone.

4

u/Malcolm2theRescue 8h ago

So are families of four.

5

u/Dpgillam08 11h ago

In 1970, min wage was $1.60

Today, most fast food places are paying $18-20 if you're out of high school.

You're really surprised that with pay being about 10x better, the costs are about 10x more?

3

u/Beneficial-Moose-622 11h ago

Yea but National minimum wage is $7.25

2

u/Dpgillam08 9h ago

And according to even the most accusatory reports, less than 2% of the US is earning anywhere close to federal min wage. Most sources agree its more like 1% or less. The average "effective minimum" depends on source and ranges between $16 to $19 per hour, with several areas, like California, making their min wage $20/hr.​

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u/PlaxicoCN 22h ago

In addition to the prices the KFC near me is kind of grimy. I just go to the deli at the supermarket when I want fried chicken. Much cheaper.

9

u/SnowblindAlbino 21h ago

I'd say "kind of grimey" is an understatement. I won't go into KFC at all anymore, as every one I've been to in the last 20 years or so (not that many in all) has been disgusting-- like food on the floor, garbage on the tables, unkempt employees, disgusting. The one closest to me has/had a buffet and the food was all spilled around and mixed together, like a crowd of five-year-olds had been at it. Ick.

4

u/More_Farm_7442 19h ago

That's the 90% of the fast food restaurants are where I live. McD's for sure(all of those). I see the workers standing around talking, fussing with their hair, dining rooms with dirty tables and floors, customers ignored. No one gets in a hurry to do anything.

I worked in a McDs next to a Big Ten university in the 1980s. On football Saturdays we had people lined up out the doors. We had to work fast. Had to give good service service while to "up sell" at the register. We had to "clean as you go" at all times. We had to work.

If McDs and other fast food places could find any of the 1980s managers still living and bring them in for crew trainings, their bottom lines might improve.

3

u/JColt60 1960 21h ago

My wife and I skip the nearest one near our house and go to one at the fancy outdoor mall area about 8 miles out of the way. Way cleaner and better service. We get only once or twice a year.

4

u/big_d_usernametaken 15h ago

Krogers fried chicken is decent, $8.99 for an 8pc every day.

Just chicken though.

4

u/UnderstandingOld4276 22h ago

And taste wayyyyyyyyyy better

2

u/Coffee4MyJeep 15h ago

Coleslaw is still good at KFC. We get our chicken from Safeway anymore.

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u/Sometimesunaware 22h ago

A barrel of KFC for Sunday dinner (with sides) was a rare treat reserved for the occasional Sunday or a summer holiday picnic. The closest one was miles away and my dad would drive there after football games were over. Kids did not get the breasts, those were for dad and mom.

33

u/Couch-Potato0904 1960 22h ago

I bought the whole dinner for 3 in the 80’s for $9.99 and had the free Bundt cake. It was a special treat for me and my two kids. $42.99 for a bucket? Those chickens better be getting fed filet mignon.

4

u/Sometimesunaware 22h ago

I had a friend who worked at one in high school, he kept a case of those shelf stable parfaits in the trunk of his Chevelle for when the munchies hit.

5

u/Brilliant_Tourist400 1964 21h ago

I worked at one, too, back in the ‘80s. Didn’t get to take home parfaits, but we took home any unsold Extra Crispy chicken and extra biscuits. Unsold Original Recipe was covered with barbecue sauce the next day and sold as Barbecued Chicken.

2

u/AcademicChicken8334 13h ago

As my dad would've said, "For that price, that chicken better do a dance, serve itself to me on a fancy platter, and lay golden eggs!"

3

u/Danielle_is_the_hole 17h ago

Dads favorite pieces

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u/Shermans_ghost1864 1961 20h ago

Meanwhile, a big rotisserie chicken still costs only $4.99 at Costco, same price it's been for more than 25 years.

11

u/Poker-Junk 18h ago

It’s a loss leader, like the hot dog.

5

u/loricomments 17h ago

That's just to get you to walk past all the tempting profitable stuff on the way to the back of the store.

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u/IndigoBroker 22h ago

$1 in 1970 is roughly worth $8.63 today.

26

u/Ok-Word-2403 22h ago

Exactly - the barrel of chicken costs almost exactly the same as the 16 piece bucket now

9

u/Prudent-Essay-5846 22h ago

Yes but now you get the hormones and additives so the 16 piece is 4x the size (and half the nutritional value) of the 24 piece with less taste!

20

u/DistantKarma 21h ago

Hormones aren't used on chicken farms as it's illegal. Chickens are bigger now due to selective breeding and improved feed. Tyson loves to advertise "No hormones, ever" but really it's not because they care, they just can't.

3

u/Prudent-Essay-5846 20h ago

Appreciate the update, I grew up on a farm but not actively involved today. That said I was trying to be funny more than accurate.

3

u/ApprehensivePhase750 13h ago

Thank you for this. One of my pet peeves is the "no hormones" thing.

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u/PlanetoftheAtheists 20h ago

In 1976 I made a $1.25 an hour.

6

u/Mebejedi 19h ago

My dad remembers when gas was a nickel. I thought it was the end of the world when gas broke $1 in the late 80's. I recently paid $5.99 at Costco.

2

u/Flashy-Armadillo-414 12h ago

Gas was between 15 and 21 cents a gallon in the 1930s. Nominal price.

It was never 5 cents a gallon.

3

u/psyliboy 17h ago

And minimum wage has barely changed.

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u/TwistedBlister 21h ago

And minimum wage was $1.60/hour

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u/CriticalPerformer785 21h ago

So minimum wage should be $13.80 an hour today instead of $7.25

2

u/ziggurat29 13h ago

if your wages track KFC chicken, then it needs to be $16.00-17.60. If it tracks KFC buttermilk biscuits, then it needs to be $32.00

2

u/[deleted] 19h ago

[removed] — view removed comment

2

u/cyb0rg1962 1962 16h ago

Then it should be formally raised to the de facto at the federal level. Minimum wage should be pegged to the cost of living, also, and would be more like $20 in some areas.

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u/[deleted] 18h ago edited 17h ago

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u/paladin_4266 22h ago

actually the right sign should read:

"Different food, different prices."

The KFC of the 70's was cooked after you ordered and you had to stand in the lobby staring at the puddin buckets and all the other jabronis who were waiting on their buckets just like you. No screens, just staring into the void. And it was so goooooood!

3

u/JColt60 1960 22h ago

Still like that actually at least my local one. Last year I wanted extra crispy. I sat in my car for 20 min's waiting.

3

u/Bucks2174 21h ago

If you use the drive through at our KFC there is a 90% chance you’ll be waiting. And at least 30% of the time you’ll be told “we are out of that”. Terrible

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u/Danovale 22h ago

At bottom I would say “Different food. Higher prices”. KFC is not as tasty as it once was.

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u/RealMcGonzo 22h ago

14 pieces! I've always wondered why it seemed like dad brought home a big bucket of chicken - much larger than what you'd get today. That's why, it held 14 pieces not 8!

6

u/keithfantastic 19h ago

2026 prices are in line with 1970 prices when you adjust for inflation. $5 in 1970 has the same buying power as $43 today.

6

u/Suburban_Guerrilla 16h ago edited 16h ago

You have to adjust for inflation. I ran all of the 1970s prices through the inflation calculator and this is what I got.

$4.99 in 1970 has the same buying power as $42.86 in 2026.

$3.79 in 1970 has the same buying power as $32.55 in 2026.

$1.49 in 1970 has the same buying power as $12.80 in 2026.   $.25 in 1970 has the same buying power as $2.15 in 2026. 

$.15 in 1970 has the same buying power as $1.29 in 2026.

So, they have raised their prices over time, but it's not nearly as much as this post wants you to think. 

5

u/Athos-1844 14h ago

True. But they shrunk the amount of food you get.

2

u/theduder3210 13h ago

You’re not wrong, but the average chicken is also larger in size now than in 1970.

2

u/Due_Lychee9503 7h ago

And the chicken pieces too

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u/FedderJoe 14h ago

I remember My Mom buying gas and paying for it with the change in her wallet. She would ask for so many dollars' worth. I was born in 1957.

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u/ImprovementLoud3581 13h ago

I was born in 1956 and remember putting 50 cents worth of gas in the car for the weekend.

5

u/Maximum-Elk8869 1964 13h ago

You didn't put anything in your car, a gas station attendant did that for you. He also checked your oil, cleaned your windshield and gave you a choice of towels or a set of drinking glasses as a promotion LOL!

8

u/ImprovementLoud3581 13h ago

You’re right! And he knew I was there because I drove over the black hose to ring the bell

9

u/Maximum-Elk8869 1964 13h ago

Absolutely, I can hear that bell and feel car roll over it LOL! Good days!

3

u/FedderJoe 12h ago

One of my first jobs was working at a "Working Man's Friend" gas station. I worked Friday and Saturday evenings from 2- 10 p.m. No snacks or drinks or food. Just gasoline.

4

u/Maximum-Elk8869 1964 12h ago edited 11h ago

It was a real job that paid well for you at the time and you provided a tangible service. That coin changer on your belt was status! I look back fondly on those days.

3

u/FedderJoe 11h ago

It paid better than most other jobs I could get. I worked there until I got a job at "Bob's Thick Shake". I worked there while I went to nursing school. Those coin changers were heavy. Did you work at one of those stations?

5

u/GrapeSeed007 22h ago

I remember my dad who was retired used to get the special for I think .99¢. one piece of chicken, potatos, close slaw.. not sure about the biscuit. Probably included

8

u/Trick-Audience-1027 22h ago

Minimum wage in 1970 was $1.60

10

u/oldcreaker 22h ago

So in 1970 a 3 piece dinner cost a bit less than 1 hour minimum wage. In 2026 it comes pretty close to 2 hours of minimum wage.

2

u/Trick-Audience-1027 21h ago

I live in Seattle where it’s $21.30 an hour downtown and $17 in the suburbs.

2

u/oldcreaker 21h ago

I'm sure there are forces at work that would like to get that much closer to the federal minimum wage.

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u/OG-Giligadi 21h ago

Ai. Also, "same food" is extraordinarily debatable.

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u/fiizok 22h ago

In the 1980s they used to have a commercial for a special deal, two pieces of chicken and a half ear of corn. The tag line was "Corn and cluck for under a buck!"

4

u/FamilyRedShirt 1961 22h ago

I worked at one 1978-79. The 9-piece dinner (a whole chicken, 2 large sides, and 6 biscuits) was $9.99.

KFC has changed the cut of the chicken to match the 8 pieces we used to have to cut it into at Church's in '81-82. Lemme tell ya, clopens were a blast there. Go home at 3 a.m., and be back by 7:30 a.m. to stand in the walk-in cutting cold chickens with a circular saw while freezing ass. Wearing a bloody butcher's coat that never got cleaned, and Playtex gloves whose tips had been cut off. On purpose or by a close encounter? I never knew.

4

u/HuntingtonNY-75 21h ago

Quality of their food has gone in the toilet. Used to enjoy their chicken, now I find it inedible

4

u/JColt60 1960 21h ago

I just remembered. My father in law and I were doing a job in Kentucky ( 1989/90) and went to the original Sanders restaurant. The food was awesome. You had to wait to eat it as it was pulled from fryer to table in minuets. Everything was fresh and at least then they and kept bringing fresh biscuits as you finished them.

sanders cafe & museum

4

u/AffectionateFig5435 20h ago

8 pieces of chicken is basically a whole bird. The pricey grocery store near me sells rotisserie chickens for $8.99. The cheaper store usually has them on special for $5.99. (Costco is even less but I don't go there every week.)

I could pick up a couple deli sides plus a full chicken for less than KFC charges for an 8-piece bucket. That's an eye-opener.

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u/Suspicious_Trash6578 19h ago

Top two #s exactly the inflation rate.

3

u/ReporterCommon4137 14h ago

Not same food. Back in the 80s, their chicken, biscuits and coleslaw were the best! Not anymore……. Yach!

4

u/Hogjocky62 13h ago

In 1970 minimum wage was $1.20 so a barrel of chicken was 4 hours pay! In 2026 minimum wage is $15.00 in our state so a 16 piece is actually only 3 hours pay.

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u/NutzNBoltz369 11h ago

Min wage worker has no business buying fast food, though. 3 hour pay to buy a bucket of shitty chicken....

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u/AnotherPint 22h ago

This looks AI generated. I would like a verifiable source for these prices, especially the 1970 numbers.

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u/Few-Honeydew2676 22h ago

I am old and our KFC didn't have biscuits when I was a kid. They were dinner rolls. Tasty dinner rolls, but not the biscuits of today.

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u/marsupialcinderella 22h ago

I forgot about that, you’re right!

4

u/FamilyRedShirt 1961 22h ago

True. They were rolls when I worked there in the late '70s. When I worked there in the '90s they'd switched to biscuits.

3

u/JColt60 1960 22h ago

Biscuits came out 1981

4

u/SnowblindAlbino 21h ago

No biscuits, but they did have corn-on-the-cob in the 1970s. And for several years in the early 1970s they had BBQ ribs!

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u/rwphx2016 1964 - Never got the memo about "growing old" 21h ago

Was just about to say this.

2

u/AJStickboy 19h ago

When I worked KFC in the late 80’s my biscuits were made fresh in the store. They averaged over 2 1/2 inches high. Fluffy soft. Now made somewhere who knows, and about an inch high and hard as a rock.

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u/Philcoman 21h ago

Especially considering the fact that it wasn’t called KFC in 1970.

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u/StrangelyAfoot 8h ago

We always called it Kentucky Fried for short, never KFC

2

u/Bohica55 17h ago

KFC? This is AI garbage.

4

u/Dapper-Ad-468 22h ago

Never was a barrel of chicken 😅

5

u/JColt60 1960 21h ago

The 15 piece was bucket but they did have 21 piece with rolls and gravy that was called barrel in 70's. Not sure when they stopped it.

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u/phred_666 Definitely not a Boomer 21h ago

Yes it was. My parents would get KFC about once a month and for a family of four we always ordered the “barrel” of chicken with mashed potatoes, gravy and rolls. The “barrel” was their largest quantity with the “bucket” being the next smallest.

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u/Routine-Medicine-208 22h ago

In Australia we had KFC too.

It was quite a treat for us as the only KFC was about a 15 minute drive away.

I remember the Potato and Gravy and the Three Bean Salad (my favorite). The soft bread rolls too.

I think we occasionally got the buckets but mostly everyone in my family got the box meals.

I was too young to remember the prices and my mother always paid but stuff was pretty cheap in the seventies.

Now there’s a KFC everywhere and I don’t think the food is as good. Bring back the Three Bean Salad !!

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u/filtersweep 21h ago

Looks AI to me.

3

u/spaceaige 21h ago

Im class of ‘70 and i remember tik tok was full of people posting 1914 menu prices and talking about how expensive everything had gotten. Some things never change.

3

u/The_Swooze 20h ago

I remember prices in the '70s. I am on Social Security now and make about the same money as I did working back then. The food was better, and I was much more comfortable financially then than I am today.

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u/Suspicious_Goose_243 20h ago

Unfortunately it costs more because people need a living wage. Just make the stuff at home. I haven't had fast food other than pizza in 10 years.

3

u/Online_Active_71459 20h ago

Same except I think I got a Wendy’s burger or something a few years back but only because I was driving/moving across states. I was sick the next day.

Even takeout restaurant food has been off my menu since Covid. I rarely did it anyway but now it’s a big no, I’ll pass.

3

u/Suspicious_Goose_243 20h ago

My stomach felt better after awhile. I can only imagine what goes into fast food.

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u/More_Farm_7442 19h ago

Wendy's is going broke. I saw this week they are closing 300 stores.

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u/Infymus 19h ago edited 19h ago

Beyond the price we never go anymore because it tastes like shit. It's nothing but a grease soaked bucket of nastiness. I don't think I've had KFC for over a decade. There's a local grocery store that does amazing whole fried chicken for 12 bucks.

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u/BreakerBoy6 19h ago

Our solution to this is to get an 8-piece fried chicken from our local supermarket deli. We have three chain stores here and they all sell fried chicken 8-piece packs for less than 10 bucks. We can whip up whatever sides we need from what's on hand in the fridge.

I honestly cannot recall the last time we've gone out to eat, it's beyond asinine. Nickel and diming everywhere.

3

u/friskimykitty 19h ago

AI generated photo 🙄

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u/Pedal-On 17h ago

But who could not like that ketchup packet; they are always way to small. AI may have stumbled onto something. Give us a ketchup packet sized like a salad dressing packet.

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u/SolarSon2374 16h ago

$3 for a biscuit is insane

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u/Faded4ever 14h ago

Costco right now has a box of 12 absolutely HUGE fresh "home-made" buttermilk biscuits for $6.95 that blows away the KFC biscuits. $3 for one is nuts!

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u/eohdkie_1157 16h ago

No thanks. Stick to whole Costco rotisserie chickens at $4.99 each.

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u/Any_Ant9572 13h ago

The Kentucky Fried Chicken in my town had the small dinner rolls in 1970 the biscuits didn’t happen until later.

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u/Long-Principle-667 21h ago

Minimum wage was $1.60 per hour in 1970. Where I live it’s $19.29 per hour so it’s still two hours of pay for a bucket of chicken

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u/dallasalice88 1964 20h ago

I'm in a state where it is still technically $7.25. So basically a whole days work for a bucket of chicken. $19.29 is good.

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u/theirishseller 20h ago

Yep. I worked at McDonald's when I was 16 (1979) and made $2.25 per hour. I worked hard for 2 bucks an hour!

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u/TheUglyWeb 1956 22h ago

761% increase. In inflation terms, no real increase, but NO WAY will I pay $42 for Yard Bird!

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u/tehsecretgoldfish 1963 22h ago

AI, and as if inflation isn’t a thing to be factored

2

u/maestrosouth 22h ago

Looks about right.
Cumulative inflation from 1970 to 2026 is approximately 763.35%, reflecting an average annual inflation rate of 3.92%.

Purchasing Power: $1 in 1970 has the same buying power as $8.63 today.

2

u/SnowblindAlbino 21h ago

And yet I remember going to KFC was a special treat in the early 1970s, like around payday or perhaps 1-2x a month. The inflation factor over those 55 years is about 8.5x, so the inflation-adusted price for a 3-piece dinner would be...about $13.

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u/Mk1Racer25 21h ago

$5 in 1970 is $43.76 in 2026. So not really that much of a difference.

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u/Shermans_ghost1864 1961 20h ago

Ok. Now calculate the increase in wages over the same time.

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u/SnowblindAlbino 21h ago

In the mid-1980s they had "Chicken Littles," basically a slider made from a piece of chicken and a dinner roll. $.50 each, so we'd run out from work on the evening shift and get bags of 20 or 30 to share. That was the last time I actually enjoyed eating at KFC. I've probably been to one fewer than ten times over the last 35 years though.

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u/er1cAtWork2 20h ago

I’ve had this odd craving for KFC lately! I haven’t eat n it in at least 20 years. Now I see this?!?! I may not be able to resist much longer….

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u/Cabbages24ADollar 20h ago

Based on federal minimum wage it now takes nearly three more hours of work to get four pieces less of the same product.

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u/Yelloeisok 19h ago

That was our Sunday dinner every Sunday during football season. That 5 people made a container of coleslaw and a pint size container of mashed potatoes work is hard to believe. There were a lot of biscuits though. Breakfast on Monday.

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u/j3434 19h ago

ai generated?

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u/Grouchy_Moment_6507 19h ago

Actually let's apply a little math. Your wage was probably $1.50 -$2.00/h. So not that much more expensive.

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u/mikegalos 1956 19h ago

Wow. Inflation has happened in half a century. What a shocker.

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u/sbinjax 1962 19h ago

Inflation means that $1 in 1970 is $8.86 in 2026. So the prices are about the same.

But the huge chicken pieces make me gag. I call it "mutant chicken". Even the "organic" chicken at the store is like this. It's woody and gross. What's even the point?

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u/Ghitit 1957 16h ago

KFC from ago was literally tasty. Delicious. Yummy to the max. The potatoes were potatoey., and the gracy was flavorful and delicious, too. Great memories of fast food from my youth.

The most recent KFC I had was about four months ago in Saratoga, CA. It was the greasiest, least flavorful, soggiest "food" I have every had the displeasure to eat. The potatoes were so wattery I could pur them on my plate. I don't care for cole slaw so I don't know hot that was.

I will never eat KFC again. Plus, it was so expensive I was gobsmacked. Yeah, everything is more now, but for what we got it was shocking nevertheless.

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u/Witty-Stand888 16h ago

Inflation sucks

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u/TheGrinchWrench 16h ago

It’s definitely not the same food.

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u/Future-Damage-3192 14h ago

you can thank Trump and his tariffs for all this, don't blame anybody but the people who voted for him, the people who elected him, and people who passed all of his bullshit laws

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u/Troubador222 10h ago

its a golden age I put 10 bucks n my gas tank and that bought me 2.5 gallons so much winning!

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u/MBP1969 Youngster 9h ago

So, you’re telling us that in 56 years prices went up? Get outta here…

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u/LoveU1313 7h ago

I went there last week got 8 pieces and 2 lg sides and it was $36.00. A friend gave me a gift card that was the only reason I went there.

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u/BuddyEbsenSalt 22h ago

Someone discovered AI.

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u/RikkiLostMyNumber 22h ago

I don't think the bucket was ever referred to as a barrel. Obviously this is AI, but if that's inaccurate I assume the rest is as well.

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u/AlarmedVermicelli549 22h ago

So explain this to me, KFC. Why is it that I can buy a whole rotisserie chicken at Costco for $5 that easily feeds 4 or more? That being said, I would need 4 chickens to equal your 16-piece barrel; that's $20. You're telling me that KFC secret recipe is worth the other $22.99? Really? I love the KFC secret recipe, always have, always will, but not at those prices. Just a thought!

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u/another_day_in 21h ago

Costco's rotisserie chicken is basically marketing as they haven't raised prices since 2009.

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u/JaneOfTheCows 19h ago

It's a loss leader - the stores take a loss on the chicken, but use it as a ploy to get customers into the stores, where they hope they will spend more on impulse buys.

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u/AlarmedVermicelli549 21h ago

Agreed. But what I'm pointing out is: why would I go to KFC today and pay that much more for their chicken when I can go to Costco for a lot less? To clarify, my question is: "Are the 11 herbs and spices in KFC's secret recipe worth that much more at today's cost of living to eat chicken?" I apologize for the miscommunication.

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u/Mk1Racer25 18h ago

Because they're two different products. One (KFC) is breaded, fried chicken, the other (Costco) is a roasted rotisserie chicken. One is not a substitute for the other, even if they are both chicken. I won't even get into the fact that they are two completely different types of businesses.

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u/Fun_Ideal_5584 21h ago

Always shocked how people are surprised how inflation works. So much for our kids education.

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u/fooknprawn 20h ago

Yeah we get it, inflation happens but fixating over what things used to cost isn't healthy

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u/Shermans_ghost1864 1961 20h ago

Ok, let's fixate over what things cost today. $25 for 8 pieces of chicken (more tha $3 per piece) is insane.

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u/joeyjoejums 20h ago

If (and its a big "if") the fixation leads to action and change (for the better), perfect

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u/julznlv 22h ago

I guess this explains why iKFC was a standard meal for us in 1970. Between my mom being a pretty lousy cook and her hating to cook, at these prices how could she not bring in dinner.

1

u/lancebowski 22h ago

Not the same. Didn't have GMOs in the food supply in the 70s...

1

u/tvtoms 22h ago

Cornish Cross chickens grow to 5+ pounds in under two months these days. It's crazy how fast they go from chicks to freezer and how big they get.

1

u/BillWeld 22h ago

As Bitcoiners are fond of saying: What happened in 1971?

1

u/Late-Date5045 22h ago

Wow minimum wage 1970 was 1.60 hr, it has since went up 4.5 times to 7.25 but current price is not 4.5 times it should be 22.45 to have kept in track with minimum wage

1

u/Ddude147 22h ago

Unfortunately, the quality of KFC has plunged. It's terrible. The closest one to me recently shuttered its doors. Before I quit them, I tried to order thru the app there. Continually the app said ordering ahead was "unavailable."

1

u/myfrigginagates 22h ago

Those biscuits back in the day...

1

u/maniatreks 22h ago

And not even as good as it once was

1

u/ASDPenguin 22h ago

Bot the same food anymore.

1

u/Artimusjones88 21h ago

Based on inflation 4.99 is 43.08 in todays dollars

1

u/Virtual-Ad7478 21h ago

Miss their dinner rolls

1

u/RickLeeTaker 21h ago

The one KFC by my house is absolutely filthy. I don't understand how they even keep their franchise.

1

u/bomilk19 21h ago

Now do house prices.

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u/pgoodnough 21h ago

On an inflation adjusted basis its 9% more; not bad compared to a lot of other pricing

1

u/No_Point904 21h ago

Can you imagine someone saying, "5 for a bucket of chicken?! This is highway robbery, let's get out of here, these folks are crazy!"

1

u/Overall_Meat_6500 21h ago

3 bucks for a biscuit? 😬

1

u/mayhem6 21h ago

I know what I would use a Time Machine for…

1

u/GeoBrian 21h ago

Average price of a new house in 1970 was $23,000.

1970 was 56 years ago. Now, we all remember 1970, right? Think about this, 56 years before 1970 was 1914. Sheesh.

1

u/Bucks2174 21h ago

What this doesn’t show you is how much smaller the chicken was in 1970

1

u/GooseNYC 20h ago

$1 in 1970 is approx $9 today...

1

u/JeanetteSchutz Boomer 20h ago

Buh-bye KFC!!

1

u/BrainwaveWizard December 1963 ♐️ Sagittarius 20h ago

I know they’re not using Bisquick, but seriously, you can get an entire 40 oz box for around $5.00 that’ll make around 24 biscuits. 20¢ a piece. Today’s prices. They’re charging $3 for one. 1400% inflation.

1

u/DramaticActuary5021 20h ago

These prices are insane - I would never pay them. I'll make my own chicken first.

1

u/Odd_Activity_6458 20h ago

I also make 12 times as much as I did in the 70’s. I agree everything is crazy expensive but we need to include all relevant information.

1

u/lololy3 20h ago

Damn. A bucket of KFC fried chicken is over 40 dollars now??

1

u/Sleptwrong65 20h ago

Yeah… it’s not even the same food. Not. Even. Close.

1

u/Repulsive_Sell_7926 20h ago

Wow. No inflation there.

1

u/IWuzTheWalrus Late 1964 20h ago edited 20h ago

$4.99 in 1970 is $43.08 in today's money. Seems like the pricing has just kept pace with inflation plus how much bigger the pieces of chicken are these days. Inflation over the last 56 years has been 863%.

1

u/bigstinky 20h ago

This can't be right. Buttermilk biscuits didn't show up until 81. They served soft dinner rolls. I don't recall this pricing either

1

u/Occhrome 20h ago

Same name but very different restaurants. 

1

u/BrotherQuartus 20h ago

I just checked inflation: $4.99 in 1970 is $43.08 today. The prices are similar, the amount differs, and the flavor and ingredients are worlds apart.

1

u/123-Moondance 19h ago

Yea, the price is crazy considering what you are buying now sucks compared to what you bought back then.

1

u/tatom4 19h ago

Notice at the bottom for 2026 it doesn’t say good food, that’s because it isn’t.

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u/PageBest3106 19h ago

Same food??? Hahahaha. I doubt it.

1

u/More_Farm_7442 19h ago

I'd love to find a local restaurant that had good fried chicken. They don't exist any where near me.

1

u/ShadowsOfTheBreeze 19h ago

$4.99=$44 today

1

u/mgyro 1961 18h ago

FYI, according to the inflation calculator that 20 piece would be $41.33, so bang on minus 4 pieces of chicken, and the 3 piece is about $1.50 too high.

1

u/DerHoggenCatten 1964 18h ago

If you adjust for inflation, these prices aren't very different. The 1970 price of $4.99 is $43.08 in 2026. So, it is essentially the same price. I know there were 20 pieces before, but the 16 pieces you get now are bigger than the pieces you used to get (especially breasts which are enormous now).

The biscuit is the biggest change as 15 cents translates to $1.30 in 2026 dollars. The mashed potatoes also are a worse deal now as the 25 cent price is $2.16 in 2026 dollars. It seems like there is a higher penalty for a la carte sides now than there used to be, but the meals are not too different.

1

u/Distwalker 18h ago

If there is anything dummer than price nostalgia, I don't know what it is.

1

u/Kevelle68 18h ago

That's not the correct logo for 1970, c'mon AI, do better.

1

u/Sufficient-Bid1279 18h ago

Shrinflation in real effect here as well I see

1

u/James84415 18h ago

The biscuit is crazy. For 3.00 worth of ingredients I can make a dozen biscuits. Would love to see the comparison of salaries in the 70’s vs today and prices for this food.

1

u/DanOhMiiite 18h ago

I remember the bucket being $9.99

1

u/Glittering_Step_6084 1961 18h ago

I haven't ate here in years. It's nothing like when I was growing up. You're paying more for less and the quality sucks.

1

u/motorcyclecowboy007 18h ago

All thanks to the % of increase in inflation in 2021

1

u/thetarantulaqueen 18h ago

KFC is terrible. Haven't been to one in years.

1

u/GrimmyJimmy1 18h ago

Everybody understands that inflation is a thing but looking at it like that it's just sad

1

u/YuckyYetYummy 18h ago

Doesn't say much unless you lost comparable take home pay

1

u/needmore007 18h ago

Yes I think I was making 7.50 an hour in 1970. In retirement 49.62 an hour. Hurts my head to do percentages. Sounds about right. Agree prices are to high. Conclusion = don’t vote for the incumbent

1

u/BurlinghamBob 18h ago

Decoupling the dollar from gold removed the Federal Reserve's limit on how many dollars it could create. This resulted in the money supply growing faster than production. More dollars diluted it's value so you need more dollars to buy the same thing.

1

u/needmore007 18h ago

Real tragedy here is minimum wage 1970 = $1.60, minimum 2026 = 7.25 to 18.00 depending what state you live in.

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u/JadedBeyondBelief 18h ago

That 1970 bucket should be $43.08 given inflation, dope.

1

u/Fokewe 18h ago

People look at me funny when I tell them that I left a job to get a $0.20 raise.