This man nearly ordered Taco Bell’s chip and nacho cheese combo until he realized something was off about the pricing. Combo meals are sold as a bargain, an easy way to grab everything you need in one bundle while saving a little money. But the math doesn’t always add up. In many cases, you’re not saving much at all. And sometimes you’re even paying extra for items you didn’t really want.
Restaurants know this. And they lean on clever pricing, upsells, and limited-time deals to make combos look like the better choice.
One Taco Bell customer caught on and is now sharing what he knows.
Customer Questions Taco Bell Pricing
In a trending video, infrequent Taco Bell customer and actor Jerry Ascione (@jerryascione) said he was skeptical about the chain’s pricing after noticing a price difference between ordering chips and cheese separately versus as a combo.
Ascione explained that ordering chips and nacho cheese as a side on the Taco Bell app costs $2.99. But when you order them separately, the same items add up to less. (This discrepancy has been called out in the past.)
“If you just order the chips by themselves, which is not on the app, you have to go in and ask for it inside or in the drive-thru, it’s a dollar, just chips,” Ascione said.
“If you order the cheese by itself, it’s a dollar. So that’s $2. But if you order them together, it’s $2.99.”
To confirm, the customer called a Taco Bell directly. To many people’s surprise, they actually answered the phone.
After some back and forth, an employee checked the price and said chips alone are $1.07.
Let’s Fact-Check
On Taco Bell’s site listing prices for a New York City location, the chips and nacho cheese sauce combo is listed at $2.59. A side of nacho cheese sauce alone is priced at 99 cents. And there is, in fact, no menu option for chips by themselves.
Assuming the $1.07 chip price from the video is accurate, buying chips and cheese separately would total $2.06, about two quarters cheaper than the $2.59 listed price for the combo on Taco Bell’s site.
Do Fast-Food Combos Really Save You Money?
Combo meals feel like a no-brainer: Your entrée, a side, and a drink all bundled together, usually at a “discounted” price. It’s quick, convenient, and marketed as a deal that saves you both time and money.
But when you break down the numbers, the savings are often smaller than they seem.
Take a typical $8.99 combo with a burger, fries, and a drink. Bought separately, those items might cost $9.67, so yes, the combo saves you money, but only about 68 cents. If you didn’t really want fries or preferred a smaller drink, ordering à la carte would actually be cheaper, Money Digest reported.
Restaurants know this. Combos are designed to make you feel like you’re getting more for less, even if you end up paying for food you don’t need.
That’s not to say combos are always a bad idea. They can be a solid choice if you’re splitting with a friend or want bigger portions. But if you’re eating solo and just want the basics, it might be worth skipping the bundle and ordering exactly what you want.
Commenters React
“I be obsessed with numbers too and noticing things like this all the time. Glad I’m not alone,” a top comment read.
“Pay attention to burger places to. they do this. its cheaper to add items on the burger from a standard burger than to get the picture one from the start. my brother worked at a few joints,” a person pointed out.
“I’m just impressed that a Taco Bell (or any fast food place) would answer the phone,” another said.
“This happens at a lot of places. I’ve seen several occasions where ordering a la carte was cheaper than the same food in a value meal,” a commenter wrote.
BroBible reached out to Ascione via email and TikTok direct message and to Taco Bell via email.