How to Play McDonald's Monopoly

Co-authored by Amber Crain

Last Updated: January 21, 2022

McDonald's Monopoly is a fun and easy way to win all kinds of cool prizes! The game happens once a year and runs for a limited time, so be sure to pay attention to announcements about it. To play the game, buy qualifying food items at McDonald's and collect the game pieces that come with them. There are 3 different kinds of game pieces—Instant Win, Play Online, and Property Sets—so follow the instructions printed on them carefully to claim your prizes!

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Getting Game Pieces

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Purchase qualifying menu items at McDonalds to obtain game pieces. The game pieces are basically stickers that you peel off the food's packaging. Most qualifying items are worth 2-3 game pieces apiece. The qualifying items are different in each country and change every year, but you should be able to get a list in-store at McDonald's or on their website.^{[1]
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- Items with 2 stickers are called “Double Labels” and items with 3 stickers are called “Triple Labels.”^{[2]
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- Keep in mind that game pieces are only available during game time. Pieces from previous years are not eligible.
2
Mail in a request to get free game pieces without buying any food. McDonald's offers Monopoly as a "no purchase necessary" game in most countries. Get the mail-in address online or off the game board and copy it onto a large envelope. Write your return address at the top left of the envelope. Then, grab a second envelope and address it to yourself. Put a stamp on this envelope so the postage is paid for. Place this empty, self-addressed stamped envelope (SASE) into the larger envelope addressed to McDonald's. Add a brief handwritten note that states you want free game pieces and mail everything off. McDonald's will use the empty envelope you included to mail you 2 game pieces.^{[3]
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- You aren't allowed to send more than 2 requests per week.
- The return address on your outer envelope must match the recipient's address on your SASE (self-addressed stamped envelope).
- The address can change from year to year and varies by country. To get this year’s address, check McDonald’s website at https://www.mcdonalds.com/.
- Keep in mind that due to the coronavirus, the 2020 game has been cancelled or postponed in most countries.
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3
Get a game board in-store or access the game board online. The game board basically looks like a regular Monopoly board. It shows all of the properties and their names so you can keep track of your property game pieces. The game board also tells the prizes for each corresponding set of property pieces.^{[4]
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- The game board isn't essential—your pieces are still valid if you don't have one—but makes it easier to keep track of your stickers. You might want to keep a physical copy or save it as a digital file for reference.
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Avoid trading or buying game pieces from third parties. The official rules prohibit the buying, selling, and trading of games pieces or stickers through unofficial third parties. Some people still buy and sell rare pieces on sites like eBay, but many of these parties are scam artists selling fakes. It's best to avoid these activities.^{[5]
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- If you are caught buying and trading game pieces, the pieces will be disqualified.^{[6]
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Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Collecting Pieces and Winning Prizes

1
Peel off the sticker on the food you bought and look at the back. The stickers are easy to spot on the front of the food container or packaging. Grab the edge of the sticker label where it says “Peel Here” and pull the label right off the packaging. Flip the sticker over to see what kind of piece(s) you have.^{[7]
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- If you got game pieces through the mail, you won't have to peel them off any food packaging—the pieces will be ready to use.
- Most items are worth 2-3 game pieces. There are perforations between individual stickers so that you can easily separate them.
- There are 3 possible types of game pieces: Instant Win, Online Prizes, and Property Sets.^{[8]
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2
Use Instant Win stickers in-store to get free food at McDonald’s. Instant Win pieces are the most common. They have “Instant Win” or “Winner” printed at the top along with messages like “Free Sundae,” “Free Cheeseburger,” or “Free Apple Pie.”^{[9]
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- Free food is the most common prize, but some Instant Win pieces are for non-food prizes like shopping vouchers, cash, and merchandise. Rare Instant Win pieces could be for large cash prizes, vacation packages, or even a new car.
- If you win a non-food prize, do not take the game piece to a McDonald’s restaurant to redeem it. Visit the website address printed on the sticker and follow the directions to get your prize.^{[10]
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3
Use the special codes on Play Online pieces to win cash and prizes. Online game pieces usually say "Play Online” at the top and have unique game codes printed on them. Go to the website address printed on the sticker and enter your special code to instantly win a wide variety of cash and non-food prizes.^{[11]
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- Double and Triple Labels always have at least 1 “Play Online” piece.
- Codes are valid to use once. McDonald’s system logs each code as it’s entered.
- Online winners are chosen by submitting a valid code at a certain time for that specific day. Try entering codes at odd hours to increase your odds of winning! For example, you could enter your codes at 2 am and see what happens.^{[12]
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- According to McDonald's official rules, you must use the URL printed on your game piece. The URL varies depending on the year and what country you're in. There's no live URL unless the game is active.^{[13]
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4
Collect Monopoly Property Sets to win the biggest prizes. The property pieces look just like tiny property cards from the Monopoly game and will have a property name and color printed at the top. Collect all of the properties on a certain avenue or railroad to win the prize assigned to that property set. Property sets may consist of 2, 3, or 4 pieces.^{[14]
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- See your game board for more information on the current prizes.
- The prizes change from year to year, but the largest prizes are typically associated with the property sets. For example, in 2019, large prizes included a Mini Cooper and $100K in cash.

Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Claiming Your Prizes

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Redeem your prize before the expiration date printed on the sticker. Winning pieces are only valid and redeemable during a certain time period. Once that time passes, the game pieces are invalid and cannot be used to collect prizes. Be sure to check the date on each winning game piece!^{[15]
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Confirm your eligibility before trying to claim some of the larger prizes. There are certain limitations on who can play and win at McDonald's Monopoly. For example, some prizes require you to be at least 13 years old. Vehicle and vacation prizes may require you to be at 18 years old. Be sure to read the fine print on any documents or game pieces.^{[16]
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- If you don’t meet the age requirement, ask a parent or sibling to help you.
- You must also be citizen of the country where you won the prize.
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Redeem Instant Win food prizes at participating restaurants. Take your Instant Win game pieces into any participating McDonald's location to redeem them before the expiration date. You do not have to make a purchase to cash in an Instant Win prize, but keep in mind that these prizes cannot be used with other coupons or discounts.^{[17]
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- Only 1 food prize may be claimed per person per visit.
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Claim many non-food Instant Win prizes directly from third-party prize partners. Don’t bring these winning game pieces to a McDonald’s restaurant to redeem them! Most prizes offered through third party sources are claimed directly from those third-party sources. The winning game piece will include information to guide you, don’t worry!^{[18]
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- For example, Redbox prizes are claimed at Redbox locations, via the Redbox app, or by visiting the Redbox website.
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Pick up Instant Win small cash prizes and some merch prizes in-store. If the winning piece doesn't specify a third-party prize partner, the prize can be claimed at a McDonald's restaurant or through the McDonald’s website printed on the game piece. The rules for cash prizes vary each year, but typically, you can claim any cash prize under a set amount (in past games, the cut-off was $500) at a McDonald’s restaurant.^{[19]
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- Follow the instructions provided on the game piece.
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Follow the emailed instructions to claim any prizes that you win online. If you win a prize through the online game, you'll get an email with specific instructions for how to claim your prize. Your prize could be mailed to your home or you’ll be given other instructions.^{[20]
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- The game website will ask you to create an account to redeem a prize. How you redeem the prize depends on the prize.
- For example, if you win a cash prize through the online game, McDonald's will notify you by email. You will have 7 days to reply and claim the cash prize by following the directions in the email. After you claim the prize, McDonald's will issue the prize money to you via bank transfer or personal check.^{[21]
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Follow the instructions on Property Set pieces to claim high-dollar prizes. Cash prizes over a certain amount and large merchandise prizes (like cars) are claimed via McDonald’s prize-claim website or through the toll-free number on your game pieces. Follow the instructions provided on winning pieces to claim these prizes. You will be asked to provide the code printed on the game piece, your date of birth, email address, phone number, full name, and address when you claim your prizes.^{[22]
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- To complete this process, McDonald’s may mail you "Prize Claim Documents." Fill out the documents and submit them as requested.
- Note that vehicle prizes and travel prizes are included under this prize category.

Community Q&A

Question

I have a ticket that came off my drink said $1,000,000 - what do I do?

Community Answer

If it said "instant win" then you actually won $1,000,000, if it doesn't then it's basically a normal game piece.
Question

Who do I speak to if I haven't received the prize I won?

Community Answer

Go to the website and click on "Official Rules" for the time frame in which you should receive your prize. Sometimes it can take months. If it is late, call or email the company using the information provided in the rules.
Question

Where do I go to check the codes at?

Community Answer

You could check at your local McDonald's or on their website.

Warnings

Be sure to claim your prize before the expiration date printed on the game piece.

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Watch out for scams if you buy game pieces from third parties.

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