I stuck to a $10 budget at McDonald's and Burger King, and I was able to get more food from the larger chain

In my bid to see how much food I could get from each chain for $10 and compare its value, it seemed fairest to buy similar items: one filling burger, at least one side, and a drink.

The total cost of the meal from McDonald's came to $9.96, before taxes and fees. Most of the official meal combos at McDonald's ran over my $10 budget, so I found that ordering individual items got me the most food for my money.

I decided to order the triple cheeseburger — for only $3.89, the burger seemed like a really good deal. It comes with three beef patties, two slices of American cheese, chopped onions, pickles, ketchup, and mustard.

I enjoyed the fluffy bun, and although the burger came with three servings of meat, I found all of the flavors to be well-balanced.

I was impressed with how much food I was able to receive for such a small amount of money.

Excluding taxes and fees, the nuggets came to just $1.59.

When I later ordered from Burger King, I wasn't able to fit the same item into my budget. Of course, they do sell nuggets — and I could have gotten a 10-piece instead of a four-piece — but I would have gone over my $10 budget by about a dollar.

They were perfectly crispy and the meat inside was juicy.

The dipping sauce was free with the meal.

For only $2.69, I thought this was a pretty good deal. The fries were well-seasoned and crispy, just like the many other times I've had McDonald's fries.

I wanted to buy another ample burger, like I had from McDonald's, and I ended up choosing the bacon double stack cheeseburger. I also bought a medium order of french fries and a medium drink — neither was available in a smaller size, so I ended up having to cap my order there due to the budget. At McDonald's, I was able to get a small in both of these items, allowing me to add some chicken nuggets too.

The three items at Burger King came to $9.02, so I wasn't able to order chicken nuggets as I did with the other chain.

The Burger King bacon double cheeseburger came to $3.09, not including taxes and fees, so it was a little less than the burger I went for at McDonald's.

The flame-grilled taste really came through, setting it apart from the McDonald's burger. However, while I did enjoy the toppings and smokier flavor of the Burger King sandwich, I thought the beef patties were slightly dry.

The medium fries cost $3.19. Despite the generous serving, I did find them to be a touch bland on their own. They could have used a sprinkling of salt or a sauce on the side to make this item worth ordering again, in my opinion.

It came with more meat and I felt it was overall a better eating experience compared to the slightly dry burger patties of the Burger King cheeseburger.

I preferred the crispier, well-salted fries to the more potato-like ones from Burger King, but I thought both items were an excellent deal for the portion size.

The fries from McDonald's were also 50 cents cheaper. Plus, even though the McDonald's fries were a size small, I received a generous portion that ended up being the same amount of food as the Burger King fries. However, I did find that the Burger King fries were more filling because they were thicker.

Not only did I get a filling burger, fries, and a drink, but I was also able to add another side of chicken nuggets. In terms of value and taste, the meal simply couldn't be topped.