Who owns McDonald's (Latin America and the Caribbean)?
McDonald's (Latin America and the Caribbean) is operated by Arcos Dorados (Uruguay, NYSE: ARCO) under licence, an arrangement in place since 2007; Arcos Dorados does not own the name.[1] The McDonald's name is owned by McDonald's.
Evidence: Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. Annual Report on Form 20-F filed 2026-04-30, SEC EDGAR, 30 April 2026. Verified from filings; last checked .
Key facts
- Licensed to
- Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. verified
- Since
- Headquarters
- 🇺🇾 Uruguay, Montevideo
- Origin
- 🇺🇸 United States
- Category
- Restaurants & foodservice › Quick-service restaurants › Burger & chicken chains
- Parent ticker
- NYSE: ARCO
- Last verified
- · 1 sources
About McDonald's (Latin America and the Caribbean)
These are the McDonald's restaurants of Latin America and the Caribbean — 2,520 of them at the end of 2025, some company-operated and some run by sub-franchisees — managed by Arcos Dorados rather than by McDonald's itself, under master franchise agreements acquired when it bought the business on 3 August 2007. Customers get the same core menu of Big Mac, Quarter Pounder, McNuggets and Happy Meal alongside local value ranges such as Brazil's Economequi and Chile's McXMenos.
Ownership timeline of McDonald's (Latin America and the Caribbean)
Where McDonald's (Latin America and the Caribbean) sits in Arcos Dorados
Controlling ownership as of . Brands grouped under the entity that owns them; large groups are collapsed.
Other brands in burger & chicken chains, and who owns them
The 39 brands in burger & chicken chains on Brandtree belong to 24 owners. The largest is Jollibee Group, with 5.
| Brand | Owner | Owner based in |
|---|---|---|
| Chowking | Jollibee Group | 🇵🇭 Philippines |
| Arby's | Inspire Brands | 🇺🇸 United States |
| KFC | Yum! Brands | 🇺🇸 United States |
| Chester's | CP Foods | 🇹🇭 Thailand |
| Burger King | Restaurant Brands International | 🇨🇦 Canada |
| Papa Murphy's | MTY Group | 🇨🇦 Canada |
| Wimpy (Middle East) | Americana Restaurants | 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates |
| Steak n Shake | Biglari Holdings | 🇺🇸 United States |
About the owner: Arcos Dorados
Arcos Dorados is a publicly listed company headquartered in Montevideo, Uruguay, founded in 2007.
Arcos Dorados is the world's largest independent McDonald's franchisee, holding the exclusive right to own, operate and sub-franchise McDonald's restaurants in twenty-one countries and territories across Latin America and the Caribbean. It operated or franchised 2,520 restaurants at the end of 2025, about 4.4 per cent of McDonald's global sales. Incorporated in the British Virgin Islands and run from Montevideo, it owns none of the names above its doors: its rights come from master franchise agreements that McDonald's can decline to renew, after which it would have to stop using the brand and the intellectual property behind it altogether.
Arcos Dorados: full profile, brands and acquisition history →
🇺🇸 McDonald's (Latin America and the Caribbean) and other American brands
Brandtree records a controlling owner for 2,570 brands that began in the United States. 501 of them (19%) are now controlled by a company headquartered in another country, McDonald's (Latin America and the Caribbean) among them.
- Applebee's — Dine Brands 🇺🇸
- Arby's — Inspire Brands 🇺🇸
- Baja Fresh — MTY Group 🇨🇦
- Bonefish Grill — Bloomin' Brands 🇺🇸
- Burger King — Restaurant Brands International 🇨🇦
- Caribou Coffee — Panera Brands 🇺🇸
Frequently asked questions
Who makes McDonald's (Latin America and the Caribbean)?
Arcos Dorados makes and sells McDonald's (Latin America and the Caribbean) under a licensing agreement that has been in place since 2007.
Does Arcos Dorados own McDonald's (Latin America and the Caribbean)?
No. Arcos Dorados holds a licence to make and sell McDonald's (Latin America and the Caribbean), which is not the same as owning it. The name belongs to McDonald's.
Who owns the McDonald's (Latin America and the Caribbean) name?
McDonald's owns the McDonald's (Latin America and the Caribbean) trademark. Arcos Dorados pays to use it.
Where did McDonald's (Latin America and the Caribbean) come from?
McDonald's (Latin America and the Caribbean) originated in the United States.
Sources (1) & corrections
Last verified . Every ownership fact above is backed by one of these primary documents. Numbers in brackets in the text refer to this list.
- [1] Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. Annual Report on Form 20-F filed 2026-04-30 — SEC EDGAR, SEC Form 20-F, published 30 April 2026; retrieved 21 September 2026.
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