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Side-by-side financial comparison of McDonald's (MCD) and PayPal (PYPL). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
PayPal is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($8.7B vs $7.0B, roughly 1.2× McDonald's). McDonald's runs the higher net margin — 30.9% vs 16.6%, a 14.3% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, McDonald's posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (9.7% vs 3.7%). PayPal produced more free cash flow last quarter ($2.2B vs $1.6B). Over the past eight quarters, McDonald's's revenue compounded faster (6.6% CAGR vs 6.2%).
McDonald's Corporation, doing business as McDonald's, is an American multinational fast food restaurant chain. As of 2024, it is the second-largest by number of locations in the world, behind the Chinese chain Mixue Ice Cream & Tea.
PayPalPYPLEarnings & Financial Report
PayPal Holdings, Inc. is an American multinational financial technology company operating an online payments system in the majority of countries that support online money transfers; it serves as an electronic alternative to traditional paper methods such as checks and money orders. The company operates as a payment processor for online vendors, auction sites and many other commercial and company users.
MCD vs PYPL — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q4 FY2025 vs Q4 FY2025
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $7.0B | $8.7B |
| Net Profit | $2.2B | $1.4B |
| Gross Margin | — | — |
| Operating Margin | 45.0% | 17.4% |
| Net Margin | 30.9% | 16.6% |
| Revenue YoY | 9.7% | 3.7% |
| Net Profit YoY | 7.3% | 28.2% |
| EPS (diluted) | $3.03 | $1.53 |
Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.
8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend
Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.
| Q4 25 | $7.0B | $8.7B | ||
| Q3 25 | $7.1B | $8.4B | ||
| Q2 25 | $6.8B | $8.3B | ||
| Q1 25 | $6.0B | $7.8B | ||
| Q4 24 | $6.4B | $8.4B | ||
| Q3 24 | $6.9B | $7.8B | ||
| Q2 24 | $6.5B | $7.9B | ||
| Q1 24 | $6.2B | $7.7B |
| Q4 25 | $2.2B | $1.4B | ||
| Q3 25 | $2.3B | $1.2B | ||
| Q2 25 | $2.3B | $1.3B | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.9B | $1.3B | ||
| Q4 24 | $2.0B | $1.1B | ||
| Q3 24 | $2.3B | $1.0B | ||
| Q2 24 | $2.0B | $1.1B | ||
| Q1 24 | $1.9B | $888.0M |
| Q4 25 | — | — | ||
| Q3 25 | 90.6% | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 90.4% | — | ||
| Q1 25 | 89.6% | — | ||
| Q4 24 | — | — | ||
| Q3 24 | 90.6% | — | ||
| Q2 24 | 90.3% | — | ||
| Q1 24 | 89.8% | — |
| Q4 25 | 45.0% | 17.4% | ||
| Q3 25 | 47.4% | 18.1% | ||
| Q2 25 | 47.2% | 18.1% | ||
| Q1 25 | 44.5% | 19.6% | ||
| Q4 24 | 44.9% | 17.2% | ||
| Q3 24 | 46.4% | 17.7% | ||
| Q2 24 | 45.0% | 16.8% | ||
| Q1 24 | 44.4% | 15.2% |
| Q4 25 | 30.9% | 16.6% | ||
| Q3 25 | 32.2% | 14.8% | ||
| Q2 25 | 32.9% | 15.2% | ||
| Q1 25 | 31.4% | 16.5% | ||
| Q4 24 | 31.6% | 13.4% | ||
| Q3 24 | 32.8% | 12.9% | ||
| Q2 24 | 31.2% | 14.3% | ||
| Q1 24 | 31.3% | 11.5% |
| Q4 25 | $3.03 | $1.53 | ||
| Q3 25 | $3.18 | $1.30 | ||
| Q2 25 | $3.14 | $1.29 | ||
| Q1 25 | $2.60 | $1.29 | ||
| Q4 24 | $2.80 | $1.09 | ||
| Q3 24 | $3.13 | $0.99 | ||
| Q2 24 | $2.80 | $1.08 | ||
| Q1 24 | $2.66 | $0.83 |
Balance Sheet & Financial Strength
Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand | $774.0M | $10.4B |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | $40.0B | — |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $-1.8B | $20.3B |
| Total Assets | $59.5B | $80.2B |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | — | — |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | $774.0M | $10.4B | ||
| Q3 25 | $2.4B | $10.8B | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.9B | $10.0B | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.2B | $11.2B | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.1B | $10.8B | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.2B | $11.9B | ||
| Q2 24 | $792.0M | $13.6B | ||
| Q1 24 | $838.0M | $14.3B |
| Q4 25 | $40.0B | — | ||
| Q3 25 | — | — | ||
| Q2 25 | — | — | ||
| Q1 25 | — | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $38.4B | — | ||
| Q3 24 | — | — | ||
| Q2 24 | — | — | ||
| Q1 24 | — | — |
| Q4 25 | $-1.8B | $20.3B | ||
| Q3 25 | $-2.2B | $20.2B | ||
| Q2 25 | $-2.8B | $20.2B | ||
| Q1 25 | $-3.5B | $20.3B | ||
| Q4 24 | $-3.8B | $20.4B | ||
| Q3 24 | $-5.2B | $20.2B | ||
| Q2 24 | $-4.8B | $20.6B | ||
| Q1 24 | $-4.8B | $20.7B |
| Q4 25 | $59.5B | $80.2B | ||
| Q3 25 | $60.6B | $79.8B | ||
| Q2 25 | $59.6B | $79.8B | ||
| Q1 25 | $56.3B | $81.3B | ||
| Q4 24 | $55.2B | $81.6B | ||
| Q3 24 | $56.2B | $83.5B | ||
| Q2 24 | $53.8B | $84.0B | ||
| Q1 24 | $53.5B | $83.3B |
Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency
How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Operating Cash FlowLast quarter | $2.7B | $2.4B |
| Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex | $1.6B | $2.2B |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | 23.4% | 25.2% |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | 15.1% | 2.2% |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | 1.25× | 1.66× |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | $7.2B | $5.6B |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | $2.7B | $2.4B | ||
| Q3 25 | $3.4B | $2.0B | ||
| Q2 25 | $2.0B | $898.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $2.4B | $1.2B | ||
| Q4 24 | $2.6B | $2.4B | ||
| Q3 24 | $2.7B | $1.6B | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.7B | $1.5B | ||
| Q1 24 | $2.4B | $1.9B |
| Q4 25 | $1.6B | $2.2B | ||
| Q3 25 | $2.4B | $1.7B | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.3B | $692.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.9B | $964.0M | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.8B | $2.2B | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.9B | $1.4B | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.1B | $1.4B | ||
| Q1 24 | $1.8B | $1.8B |
| Q4 25 | 23.4% | 25.2% | ||
| Q3 25 | 34.1% | 20.4% | ||
| Q2 25 | 18.3% | 8.3% | ||
| Q1 25 | 31.5% | 12.4% | ||
| Q4 24 | 28.6% | 26.2% | ||
| Q3 24 | 28.3% | 18.4% | ||
| Q2 24 | 16.3% | 17.3% | ||
| Q1 24 | 29.9% | 22.9% |
| Q4 25 | 15.1% | 2.2% | ||
| Q3 25 | 14.3% | 3.0% | ||
| Q2 25 | 10.9% | 2.5% | ||
| Q1 25 | 9.3% | 2.5% | ||
| Q4 24 | 12.6% | 2.4% | ||
| Q3 24 | 11.6% | 2.2% | ||
| Q2 24 | 9.7% | 2.0% | ||
| Q1 24 | 8.9% | 2.0% |
| Q4 25 | 1.25× | 1.66× | ||
| Q3 25 | 1.50× | 1.58× | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.89× | 0.71× | ||
| Q1 25 | 1.30× | 0.90× | ||
| Q4 24 | 1.30× | 2.14× | ||
| Q3 24 | 1.21× | 1.60× | ||
| Q2 24 | 0.84× | 1.35× | ||
| Q1 24 | 1.24× | 2.16× |
Financial Flow Comparison
Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
MCD
| International Operated Markets | $3.6B | 51% |
| Other | $2.8B | 40% |
| International Developmental Licensed Marketsand Corporate | $633.0M | 9% |
PYPL
| US | $4.9B | 57% |
| Non Us | $3.7B | 43% |
