Staying under your daily carb target while eating fast food sounds impossible until you learn a few ordering tricks. Low carb fast food is available at virtually every major chain — you just need to know the right modifications. The standard playbook is simple: ditch the bun, skip the sugary sauces, and load up on protein and fat.
Here are the best low-carb orders at eight chains, plus universal hacks you can use anywhere.
In-N-Out
In-N-Out popularized the lettuce-wrapped burger long before low carb went mainstream. Ask for "protein style" and your burger arrives wrapped in crisp iceberg lettuce instead of a bun.
- Double-Double Protein Style — approximately 11g net carbs (including their spread). Swap the spread for mustard to drop it to around 7g.
- Flying Dutchman — under 1g net carbs. Two beef patties with two slices of melted cheese. Nothing else. The lowest-carb fast food item you'll find anywhere.
Five Guys
Five Guys will lettuce-wrap any burger for free, and all toppings are included at no extra charge.
- Cheeseburger in a lettuce wrap — roughly 2g net carbs. Pile on pickles, grilled mushrooms, jalapenos, and mustard for a loaded burger with almost no carb impact.
- Bacon Cheeseburger in a lettuce wrap — roughly 2g net carbs. Same build, plus bacon.
Skip the fries entirely. Even a "little" order at Five Guys has over 50g of net carbs.
McDonald's
McDonald's doesn't officially list bunless options on the menu, but any location will serve your burger without the bun in a container if you ask.
- Quarter Pounder with Cheese (no bun, no ketchup) — about 3g net carbs.
- McDouble (no bun, no ketchup) — about 2g net carbs. A solid budget option.
- Sausage McMuffin (no muffin) — 1g net carbs. Sausage, egg, and cheese make a nearly zero-carb breakfast.
Watch the sauces. Ketchup adds roughly 4g of sugar per packet, and Big Mac sauce runs about 2g per serving.
Wendy's
Wendy's uses fresh beef and tends to be flexible with customizations.
- Baconator (no bun, no ketchup) — approximately 5g net carbs. Two patties, six bacon strips, cheese, and mayo. Dropping the ketchup brings it closer to 3g.
- Grilled Chicken Sandwich (no bun) — about 3g net carbs.
Avoid the chili (19g carbs from beans) and any Frosty (a small packs 47g of carbs).
Chipotle
Chipotle is one of the most customizable chains for low-carb eaters. The trick is building a bowl without the two biggest carb sources: rice and beans.
- Burrito Bowl (no rice, no beans) — start with a lettuce base, add chicken or steak, cheese, sour cream, and guacamole. With fresh tomato salsa, you're looking at roughly 8-10g net carbs. Switch to corn salsa and it jumps to 15g.
The flour tortilla alone is 46g of carbs. Skip it completely.
Chick-fil-A
Chick-fil-A's menu is heavy on breaded chicken, but the grilled options are genuinely low carb.
- Grilled Nuggets (8-count) — about 2g net carbs. Pair with a side salad for a meal under 6g net carbs.
- Cobb Salad (no corn, no tortilla strips) — roughly 5g net carbs with Avocado Lime Ranch dressing.
The breaded Original Chicken Sandwich has 40g net carbs, and Chick-fil-A sauce packs 7g per packet. Use Ranch for dipping instead.
Subway
Subway offers every sandwich as a chopped salad — same fillings, no bread.
- Any sub as a Chopped Salad — approximately 8-12g net carbs depending on the protein. A Turkey Breast chopped salad with oil and vinegar comes in around 10g net carbs.
Avoid the sweet onion teriyaki sauce and honey mustard — both are loaded with sugar.
Jimmy John's
Jimmy John's calls their lettuce-wrapped sandwiches "Unwiches." Any sandwich on the menu can be ordered this way.
- Any Unwich — roughly 3-5g net carbs depending on fillings. The Beach Club Unwich (turkey, avocado, cucumber) and the Italian Night Club Unwich (salami, capicola, ham) are both strong picks.
The lettuce wrap replaces bread that would otherwise add 40g+ of carbs.
Universal Low-Carb Ordering Hacks
These rules work at any fast food chain:
- Skip the bun. Ask for your burger or sandwich in a lettuce wrap or in a container. This alone saves 25-40g of carbs.
- Choose mustard over ketchup. Yellow mustard has zero carbs. Ketchup has 4g of sugar per packet. Mayo is also nearly zero carb.
- Ask for lettuce wraps. Most chains will wrap any sandwich in lettuce if you request it, even if it's not on the menu.
- Avoid breading. Grilled chicken has 0-2g carbs. Breaded chicken can hit 15-20g just from the coating.
- Skip sugary drinks. A regular soda adds 40-65g of carbs. Stick with water, unsweetened iced tea, or diet options.
Beyond the Drive-Thru
If you want a deeper dive into keto-specific orders at chains, check our keto friendly fast food guide. And for strategies at sit-down restaurants — from steakhouses to sushi bars — see our low carb restaurants guide.
Skip the Mental Math
Counting carbs at the drive-thru gets old fast. DinePick can instantly flag low-carb options on any menu — join the waitlist to try it first.