Craving a McFlurry? Interactive map shows status of McDonald's ice cream machines

by: Nicole Cook

Posted: Feb 2, 2023 / 12:57 PM CST

Updated: Feb 2, 2023 / 12:57 PM CST

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WIAT) – Is the ice cream machine broken or not?

McDonald's customers across the globe have been asking that eternal question for years, and in 2020, one man aimed at answering it for good.

Three years ago, self-taught programmer Rashiq Zahid was attempting to order ice cream from a McDonald's in Germany when he was informed that the machine was broken.

Zahid then took it upon himself to create a website that features a map of about 10,000 different McDonald's locations and shows in real-time if their ice cream machines are working or not.

"I just created this as a joke, because it's been common knowledge that the machine breaks all the time," Zahid told CNN in an interview shortly after the site launched. "So initially I just wanted to just know for myself, verify if it's just my impression or if it's really the case?"

Zahid explained in the interview that the site worked by "decompiling the McDonald's Android app and adding an ice cream order to the cart of different restaurants around the country."

If the ice cream machine is down, then the fast-food chain's app will remove the order from the cart, resulting in a red dot showing up next to the location. If the machine is up and running, a green dot will appear.

To check and see if the ice cream machine at your local McDonald's is working, click here.

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