The fast food giant will enable customers to build their own burgers from touch screens in selected restaurants across the US, where the service is being trialled.
“Create Your Taste” will expand the service to 2,000 restaurants next year in the US and restaurants nationwide in Australia, according to reports.
It is a departure from its model of offering a fixed selection of affordable items on its menu, at speed.
It forms part of its plans to ramp up its use of technology and compete with fast food brands that focus messaging around fresh food and customisation.
The business made the announcement as it posted a global sales fall for November. Like-for-like sales dropped 2.2% globally, 4.6% in the US and 2% across Europe, though UK sales were strong but offset by sales decline in other markets.
McDonald’s had not confirmed whether it plans to roll out the initiative across Europe at the time of writing.
Last month, McDonald’s Europe held its first hackathon in London in a bid to explore ways to tap into millennials and improve the customer experience through technology.