McDonald's Cheeseburger vs. McDouble vs. Double Cheeseburger

The McDonald's cheeseburger, double cheeseburger, and McDouble.

This past Monday was the first time I ever bought a cheeseburger at McDonald's. And probably my last.

But I did it for you. With McDonald's recent release of the McDouble, they now have three basic cheeseburgers: the cheeseburger, McDouble (two patties with one slice of cheese), and double cheeseburger (two patties with two slices of cheese). Since it's AHT's job to document such a momentous occasion in McDonald's cheeseburger history, I went to the McDonald's a block away, got one of each burger, and took photos of and tasted each one.

Is it worth coughing up the extra cash for another slice of cheese? Yes. More details after the jump.

Cheeseburger

A McDonald's cheeseburger.

McDonald's cheeseburger is one of the saddest burgers I have ever touched in my life, perhaps only second to their hamburger. It felt so...dead. And I don't mean to imply that most burgers feel alive—I'm quite aware that they're inanimate objects—but something about this burger made me think "dead," "limp," and "sad."

A McDonald's cheeseburger cut in half.

It looked and tasted like sadness. Dry sadness. Let's move on.

McDouble

A McDonald's McDouble cheeseburger.

The McDouble is less sad. Two patties instead of one makes a big difference.

A McDouble cheeseburger cut in half, showing two patties and one slice of cheese.

But it's still missing something...

Double Cheeseburger

A McDonald's double cheeseburger.

It's missing the extra slice of cheese found in the double cheeseburger.

A McDonald's double cheeseburger showing two patties and two slices of cheese.

This was the clear winner in our panel of testers. Not that we'd necessarily recommend it, just that if you were wondering if it was worth getting over the single cheese sliced McDouble, we'd say yes. The semi-melted processed cheese helps balance out the dry patties. The McDouble doesn't seem to have much reason to exist except in places where it appears on the Dollar Menu.

If I ever go back to McDonald's though, I'll probably get a Filet-O-Fish.