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Utilities · head to head

McDonalds vs WinDirStat

McDonalds logo

McDonalds

Utilities

McDonald's mobile ordering and MyMcDonald's Rewards app used to drive app-exclusive deals and first party data

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
WinDirStat logo

WinDirStat

Utilities

Windows disk usage analyser that shows where space went as a colour-coded treemap

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: McDonalds many of the best prices are app-exclusive, so customers who avoid the app or its data collection systematically pay more than app users for the same items.; WinDirStat it walks the directory tree rather than reading the NTFS master file table, so a full scan takes minutes where WizTree takes seconds on the same drive.
  • They diverge on capability: McDonalds covers Mobile order and pay, WinDirStat covers Treemap visualisation.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which McDonalds and WinDirStat actually diverge.

Attributes where McDonalds and WinDirStat differ
AttributeMcDonaldsWinDirStat
Pricing modelFree app, revenue from purchasesOpen source, no licence fee
PlatformsiOS, AndroidWindows

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Utilities).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in McDonalds

  • Mobile order and pay
  • MyMcDonald's Rewards
  • App-exclusive deals
  • Geofenced drive-thru timing
  • Delivery ordering
  • Order customisation and favourites

Only in WinDirStat

  • Treemap visualisation
  • Three linked views
  • Multithreaded scanning
  • Cleanup actions
  • Any filesystem
  • GPL licensed

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

McDonalds

  • A customer wanting the best available deal price, since many discounts are app exclusivenot WinDirStat
  • Skipping the counter or drive-thru queue by ordering aheadnot WinDirStat
  • Accumulating Rewards points toward free menu items through regular visitsnot WinDirStat
  • Ordering delivery through an integrated third party partner from inside the appnot WinDirStat

WinDirStat

  • Finding what filled a Windows system drive when the usual suspects are not responsiblenot McDonalds
  • Auditing a shared or network drive where files are spread across thousands of foldersnot McDonalds
  • Environments where licence terms forbid personal-use-only freeware on company machinesnot McDonalds
  • Explaining disk usage visually to someone who will not read a list of folder sizesnot McDonalds

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

McDonalds

  • Many of the best prices are app-exclusive, so customers who avoid the app or its data collection systematically pay more than app users for the same items.
  • It uses location tracking to time drive-thru food preparation, which means granting fairly precise location access for the feature to work as intended.
  • Points values and redemption thresholds are set by McDonald's and its franchisees and can change without the transparency of a fixed loyalty currency.
  • App-exclusive promotions are often only available at participating locations, which is not obvious until checkout, since franchise ownership varies by store.
  • Delivery ordered through the app still routes through third party delivery partners, so delivery fees and reliability issues are unchanged from ordering those platforms directly.

WinDirStat

  • It walks the directory tree rather than reading the NTFS master file table, so a full scan takes minutes where WizTree takes seconds on the same drive.
  • The version most users have installed is the 2007 build, and because it was dormant for so long, search results and download mirrors still point at it.
  • It is Windows only, so a mixed estate needs a different tool for macOS and Linux machines.
  • There is no scheduling, reporting or export for fleet use, so it answers a question on one machine at a time rather than monitoring storage across an organisation.
  • Hard links, junctions and deduplicated volumes can be counted in ways that make the totals disagree with what Windows reports, which causes confusion on servers.

Pricing, plan by plan

McDonalds

Free
  • MyMcDonald's RewardsFree
    • Free to join
    • 100 points per dollar spent
    • No cost beyond items ordered

WinDirStat

Free
  • WinDirStatFree
    • GPL licensed
    • Commercial use permitted
    • No paid edition or feature gating

Which should you pick?

Choose McDonalds if

  • You need mobile order and pay.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on iOS, Android.
  • You also want mymcdonald's rewards.
McDonalds review

Choose WinDirStat if

  • You need treemap visualisation.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows.
  • You also want three linked views.
WinDirStat review

Questions people ask

Is McDonalds or WinDirStat better?
Neither clearly leads. McDonalds starts at Free and WinDirStat at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, McDonalds or WinDirStat?
McDonalds starts at Free and WinDirStat at Free.
Does McDonalds or WinDirStat run on more platforms?
McDonalds runs on iOS, Android. WinDirStat runs on Windows.
Can I use McDonalds for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is McDonalds best used for?
McDonalds is most often used for a customer wanting the best available deal price, since many discounts are app exclusive, skipping the counter or drive-thru queue by ordering ahead, accumulating rewards points toward free menu items through regular visits, ordering delivery through an integrated third party partner from inside the app. Of those, a customer wanting the best available deal price, since many discounts are app exclusive and skipping the counter or drive-thru queue by ordering ahead are not what WinDirStat is typically brought in for.
What can McDonalds do that WinDirStat cannot?
McDonalds covers Mobile order and pay, MyMcDonald's Rewards, App-exclusive deals, Geofenced drive-thru timing. WinDirStat covers Treemap visualisation, Three linked views, Multithreaded scanning, Cleanup actions.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

McDonalds: Is the McDonald's app free?

Yes, joining and using it costs nothing beyond what is ordered.

WinDirStat: Is WinDirStat still maintained?

Yes. It was dormant from around 2007 until new maintainers resumed development and released the 2.x line with multithreaded scanning and current Windows support.

McDonalds: Do I need the app to get the best prices?

Often yes; a significant share of current discounted and free-item offers are app exclusive and unavailable at the counter.

WinDirStat: Can I use it at work?

Yes. It is GPL licensed with no personal-use restriction, which is the practical advantage over free-for-personal-use alternatives in this category.

McDonalds: Does the app track my location?

Yes, for drive-thru order timing and store locating; this can be limited in phone settings at the cost of that feature.

WinDirStat: Why is it slower than WizTree?

Different method. WizTree reads the NTFS master file table directly; WinDirStat traverses directories, which is slower but works on any filesystem, including network shares.

WinDirStat: Does it run on macOS or Linux?

No. Separate projects exist with similar treemap interfaces, but WinDirStat itself is Windows only.

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