As a high school student, I am well aware that money doesn’t grow on trees and that every dollar you spend is one dollar less that you have in your pocket. My friends and I enjoy eating out after school or on the weekends and when adding up the cost every weekend seems to catch up with us.

Some people are lucky and have a job to cover some expenses but earning minimum wage can seem too little when you’re trying to pay $9.50 for some Chinese food from time to time. There have also been times where I second-guessed myself when paying a lot of money on a meal where I could have spent that on something cheaper with more quantity. That’s when I started looking into value meals for when my friends and I are eating out. Most of the time they come with two or more items and a drink for under $6 (plus tax), usually containing some sort new entrée item that the restaurant is trying to advertise with a side and a drink.

Here are my top 6 value meals for broke high school students:

6. Burger King’s 2 for $6 Mix or Match

The meal offers the customer the choice of 4 different entrée options: Whopper, Crispy Chicken Sandwich, Spicy Chicken Sandwich, and Crispy Chicken Tenders. You can only pick 2 out of the 4 to be part of the deal which leaves out a drink and a side which has to be bought separately. With the 2 for deal plus a drink (assuming the size is medium)  and a side (French Fries), it changes the price from $6 to $8.68 which isn’t much of a deal compared to other value meal options.

5. 2 for $3 – Steak’n Shake

This menu item offers customers to pick 2 entrée items for $3 (options shown above). At first glance, this looks like a good deal but it lacks a component that would make it a whole meal: a drink. You can choose two entrée items as a meal but you would be lacking a side item and a drink to help wash down your meal. If you decide to chose one of the entrées and fries and would like to have a drink (regular size) added onto the price, it would change from $3 plus tax to $4.79 plus tax which isn’t that good compared to other options that offer more food for the same price.

4. $5 Buck Lunch – Dairy Queen

This item offers 3 different entrées to choose from being: Chili Cheese Dog Lunch,3 pc. Chicken Strip Lunch, and the Deluxe Cheeseburger Lunch. This deal come with 1 entrée as well as a side of fries, a drink, and a dessert for only the price of $5. This meal ensures that the customer has an entrée, 1 side, and a drink for only $5. And it even comes with a sundae!

I think that Dairy Queen did an excellent job diversifying their meal options. You are able to choose from 3 actually different entrées whereas the previous two options were mostly showing different variations of the same item. With the addition of a dessert, this meal really sets its self apart from the other two but the main drawback on this deal is that it’s only available during their lunch hours which is inaccessible for high school students who have closed-campus lunch. Other than that, I believe this a great deal.

3. $5 Triple Double Crunchwrap Box – Taco Bell

This particular value meal comes with; 1 Triple Double Crunchwrap, 2 tacos, and 1 drink all for the low price of $5. Considering the price for the quantity you are given, it seems like a good deal. However, this meal lacks variety. 2 out of the 3 entrées are tacos while the third entrée is just a variation of the other two. In reality, you’re just eating two tacos and a taco with essentially two tacos stuffed into one which seems very repetitive when a value meal should contain some sort of variety. At least the meal offers a drink which is an advantage. Also, the earlier boxes Taco Bell had, consisted of one dessert such as cinnamon twists or Cinnabon delights, instead, this box removed the dessert option and added an extra taco which I believe was not of a smart move. Nevertheless, if you’re the kind of person who loves tacos and are fine eating three tacos for an entire meal, then this value meal is for you.

2. $5 Fill ups – KFC

This special menu item is one of my favorite go-to meals when I want to eat chicken. Each meal contains some sort of chicken entrée ranging from chicken strips to an entire chicken pot pie. Each box has one 1 side (exchangeable), 1 biscuit, 1 cookie, and 1 drink. The amount of variety this meal has is unprecedented compared to the other value meals shown so far on this list. You can almost customize the entire meal to your liking from the entrée which allows customers more freedom when ordering their meal. This almost eliminates all unwanted items that could possibly be included in your box. And the quantity of food that this meal offers is outrageous for the price. If I one of the boxes and bought each item separately it would be roughly $8.82 plus tax. You would be saving around $4 in cash with this deal. I would recommend this meal to anyone who loves chicken and variety in their meals.

1.  $5 All-Star meals – Hardee’s

This deal is by far the most superior value meal choice that I have ever seen or experienced in my life. This menu item comes with 2 entrées, 1 side of fries, 1 cookie, and 1 drink for only $5. At first glance, this menu option seems too large for just one man to eat. I personally was intimidated when I tried this meal for the first time. I barely finished it, I felt sick because of how much food I ate. When considering how much food it has for the price, you would have to be foolish not to see that this a great deal.

Every entrée option is exchangeable for any of the entrées shown above as well as the side of french fries can be exchanged for onion rings if you desire. On top of that, it comes with a dessert and a drink to help keep the palate full of exciting flavors. Overall, I think this is the best option for anyone who has to watch what they spend and who want to enjoy eating a hearty meal.