Wendy’s is well known for its fresh, never frozen hamburgers and sandwiches, but the fast food restaurant also offers an extensive drinks menu to quench your thirst. This article will provide an in-depth look at Wendy’s drinks and the beverage menu, from lemonades and sodas to coffee, Frostys, and more.
Wendy’s Drinks Menu & Prices
Beverage prices at Wendy’s offer value along with variety. As of 2024, small drinks cost around $0.50-1 while medium and large drinks are $2-3 more. Unlimited free refills on fountain drinks enhance the affordability.
Here’s a quick price breakdown of popular Wendy’s drinks:
| Category | Size | Price | Calories |
| Soft Drinks | Small (12 oz) | $1.19 | Varies by drink |
| Medium (16 oz) | $1.59 | Varies by drink | |
| Large (20 oz) | $1.99 | Varies by drink | |
| Sprite | All sizes | 0 kcal | |
| Diet Coke | All sizes | 0 kcal | |
| Coke Zero | All sizes | 0 kcal | |
| Orange Fanta | All sizes | 108 kcal | |
| Coke | All sizes | 252 kcal | |
| Iced Tea | Small (12 oz) | $1.19 | 0 kcal |
| Medium (16 oz) | $1.59 | 0 kcal | |
| Large (20 oz) | $1.99 | 0 kcal | |
| Sweetened | All sizes | 40 kcal | |
| Unsweetened | All sizes | 0 kcal | |
| Hot Coffee | Small (10 oz) | $1.29 | Varies by type |
| Medium (16 oz) | $1.69 | Varies by type | |
| Large (20 oz) | $2.09 | Varies by type | |
| Americano | All sizes | 0 kcal | |
| Espresso | All sizes | 0 kcal | |
| Latte | All sizes | 146 kcal | |
| Cappuccino | All sizes | 93 kcal | |
| Flat White | All sizes | 146 kcal | |
| Mocha | All sizes | 189 kcal | |
| Hot Chocolate | All sizes | 240 kcal | |
| Frosty | Small (16 oz) | $1.79 | 380 kcal |
| Medium (22 oz) | $2.29 | 530 kcal | |
| Large (30 oz) | $2.79 | 680 kcal | |
| Powerade | Small (12 oz) | $2.29 | 140 kcal |
| Medium (20 oz) | $2.79 | 230 kcal | |
| Large (30 oz) | $3.29 | 350 kcal |
Bundled combo meals with an entree, side dish, and a drink start around $6-10 depending on size. Overall, the Wendy’s drinks menu combines broad choice with reasonable pricing.
Wendy’s Beverage Menu
The Wendy’s drinks menu features a variety of cold and hot beverage options. Customers can choose from lemonades, soft drinks, specialty drinks, coffee, Frostys, iced tea, milk, and combo meals that include a drink. Wendy’s aims to have something for every taste.
1. Lemonade
Wendy’s offers several refreshing lemonade flavors. The regular lemonade is sweetened with real sugar and made with freshly squeezed lemons for crisp, tangy flavor. For those wanting something fruitier, there’s also strawberry lemonade made with strawberry puree.
Additionally, Wendy’s sells seasonal flavors like blueberry pomegranate lemonade. These fruit-infused lemonades offer bursts of sweet, juicy flavor perfect for summer.
2. Soft Drinks
What would a fast food restaurant be without sodas? The Wendy’s soft drinks menu features all the classic options:
- Coca-Cola Regular
- Coca-Cola Zero Sugar
- Fanta Orange
- Sprite
- Minute Maid Light Lemonade
Customers can enjoy free refills on fountain drinks and there’s also bottled water available.
3. Branded Drinks
In addition to mainstream sodas, Wendy’s provides branded beverage options:
- Honest Kids Organic Apple Juice
- Honest Tea, assorted flavors
- Gold Peak Teas, assorted flavors
These trendy drinks offer healthier choices for customers looking to avoid soda. Honest Kids juice packs cater to children while organic bottled teas provide antioxidant benefits.
4. Coffee
To appeal to coffee lovers, Wendy’s sells the following coffee and espresso drinks:
- Cold Brew Iced Coffee – smooth, less acidic cold brew coffee
- Vanilla Frosty-ccino – sweet creamy blend of cold brew coffee and vanilla Frosty dessert
- Hot Coffee – Regular or Decaf
Customers can customize hot coffee with flavors like French vanilla or hazelnut. Prices are affordable and refills are free.
5. Frosty
A Wendy’s visit isn’t complete without a Frosty, the beloved soft serve dessert. The chocolate and vanilla Frosty options have been menu staples for decades. Both flavors feature creamy, shake-like texture and sweet flavor.
In addition to enjoying Frostys on their own, customers can sip Frosty-ccinos for a cold and creamy coffeehouse-style drink. The Vanilla Frosty flavor also comes as a milkshake with whipped topping for an indulgent treat.
6. Other Beverage Options
To round out the drinks selection, Wendy’s provides:
- Sweet Iced Tea – freshly brewed black tea sweetened with sugar
- Unsweetened Iced Tea – same freshly brewed tea without added sweetener
- Low-fat Cow’s Milk – cold, refreshing milk
- Chocolate Milk – creamy, chocolatey calcium-rich milk
Iced tea and milk offer lighter options compared to soda for health-conscious diners. Chocolate milk makes an especially nice accompaniment for kids meals.
Wendy’s Fountain Drinks
The centerpiece of Wendy’s drink menu is the self-serve fountain machine which dispenses all the soft drinks and lemonade flavors. Customers can mix and match brands or create their own flavor combinations at no extra cost.
The Coca-Cola Freestyle machines offer over 100 drink choices. Patrons can pour specialized Fanta flavors like grape or fruit punch or experiment with unique creations like Cherry Coke with a splash of Powerade.
Some Wendy’s locations also have Coke Zero Sugar machines providing diet soda alongside sugary varieties. Customers appreciate being able to customize drinks precisely to taste.
Healthier Wendy’s Drink Options
While known for indulgent burgers and fries, Wendy’s also provides healthier drink options amidst the usual fast food beverages. Choices like iced tea, low-fat milk, Honest Kids juice, and bottled spring water offer lower calorie hydration.
For calorie-counters, black coffee or unsweetened iced tea contain minimal calories and no sugar. Customers can also ask for diet sodas or smaller drink sizes. Wendy’s lemonades and fruit punch come in “half-sweet” varieties with 50% less sugar.
So people watching carbs and calories need not avoid Wendy’s entirely. The drinks menu offers satisfying lower calorie beverages to accompany meals.
Wendy’s Salad Menu Drink Pairings
To create more balanced fast food meals, patrons can complement entrees from the extensive Wendy’s salad menu with smart drink pairings. The fresh flavors and textures of Wendy’s salads deserve equally bright, crisp beverage accompaniments.
For example, the summery Apple Pecan Chicken Salad would beautifully pair with Wendy’s Strawberry Lemonade. The sweet lemonade contrasts the apples and pecans while echoing the fruits’ flavors.
Alternatively, the vibrant Southwest Avocado Chicken Salad served with a cold bottle of Honest Tea creates tasty tangy, herbal harmony. Iced tea cleanses the palate after the spicy chicken and avocado.
Wendy’s Branded Lemon Kale Salad drizzled with pomegranate vinaigrette drinks well with the Blueberry Pomegranate Lemonade. The lemony, berry flavors mirror the fruits within the healthy salad.
So while fries and a soda hold classic fast food appeal, Wendy’s lighter fare deserves equal beverage representation. The drinks menu thoughtfully complements all entrees.
Read More: Wendy’s Salad Menu
Wendy’s Loyalty Program Drink Rewards
Like many restaurants today, Wendy’s now offers a loyalty program mobile app called Wendy’s Rewards. Customers who join can earn points towards free food and drinks with each purchase.
Specifically for beverages, members will receive:
- A free any size soft drink, tea, or lemonade after spending $5
- A free small hot or iced coffee after reaching 150 points
- A free small Frosty dessert after hitting 300 points
Registered users also get exclusive weekly offers like $2 large lemonades or $1 small cold brew coffees. These Wendy’s drink deals encourage return visits.
Additionally, during special promotions, rewards members may earn points bonuses, freebie coupons, or limited-edition menu items. For example, Wendy’s recently gave app users early access to its new Strawberry Frosty for a limited time.
Seasonal and Limited-Time Wendy’s Drinks
Speaking of limited-run options, Wendy’s also debuts special seasonal drink flavors and combinations around different holidays and events.
Past seasonal sips have included:
- Pumpkin spice Frosty milkshakes for fall
- Peppermint hot chocolate during the winter holidays
- Bright tropical fruit punch drinks in summer
Wendy’s also innovates new lemonade and soda flavors for a short time like black cherry, mango, peach tea, and blue raspberry. Their R&D kitchen is constantly experimenting with fun creations.
These ephemeral drinks menu specials give customers bold, exciting new flavors for a few weeks at a time, building buzz and demand. Wendy’s keeps their menu feeling fresh in this way.
Wendy’s Breakfast Menu Drink Options
We can’t discuss the full Wendy’s drinks selection without mentioning offerings at breakfast time. Wendy’s recently expanded into the breakfast space with new early bird menu items.
To help customers start their day refreshed, Wendy’s breakfast hours feature traditional morning beverages like:
- Fresh-brewed coffee – regular and decaf
- Chilled orange juice – Vitamin C goodness
- Low-fat milk
- Assorted hot tea bags
These familiar breakfast drinks provide comforting and nutritious sips to pair with foods like breakfast burgers, wraps, hash browns and oatmeal. Free coffee refills ensure patrons get their needed caffeine fix.
Read More: Wendy’s Breakfast Menu
Wendy’s Dinner Drink Pairings
We’ve covered salads, now let’s explore perfect drink combinations for Wendy’s best-selling burgers and sandwiches offered at lunch and dinner times.
The classic Baconator burger loaded with beef, bacon, and cheese demands a strong complementary flavor like Barq’s Root Beer to embrace the burger’s hearty profile.
Spicy chicken items like Wendy’s Spicy Sriracha Sandwich ideally match with citrus-forward Sprite or Fanta sodas to soothe the heat. The sparkling lemon-limes tame fiery spice for balance.
As for Wendy’s fan-favorite Pretzel Bacon Pub Cheeseburger with smoky bacon and melted cheddar, its salty, savory profile calls for a Sweet Tea or Dr. Pepper soda in contrast.
When partaking of these Wendy’s signature items, choose drink accents that either align with or offset the flavors involved for maximum satisfaction. The beverage menu offers perfect pairings.
Final Words
From sweet Frosty milkshakes to bright tropical fruit lemonades and everything between, Wendy’s supplies a little bit of everything to drink. Their wide-spanning drinks selection quenches all thirsts from first thing in the morning all the way through late dinner runs.
Loyalty members can earn points and exclusive coupons towards free favorites too. Furthermore, Wendy’s seasonal specialty beverages and holiday drink specials keep their menu intriguingly novel.
No matter what food you order, Wendy’s thoughtfully designed drink offerings enhance the mealtime experience. So next time you’re craving Wendy’s irresistible burgers or nuggets, don’t forget to pair it with the perfect sip. Wendy’s delicious drinks menu completes any meal.
