Took me 45 minutes to figure out the Taco Bell app hack for free nacho fries

I was trying to get the free fries reward on the app last Tuesday and kept getting an error that said 'offer not available'. I finally realized you have to add a regular priced item to your cart first, then the free fries show up as an add-on. Has anyone else run into weird app glitches like that at other places?

3 comments

3 Comments

quinnlewis1mo ago

Ugh, that's so shady. Does the app at least let you add the cheapest thing on the menu, like a side of beans, or does it have to be a main item? I'd be mad if I had to buy a whole combo just to unlock a "free" side.

charlie_schmidt1mo ago

That's just their way of making you buy something first.

robinson.jake1mo ago

The real trick is checking if the free item has its own price listed as zero dollars in the app's code. I did that once with a burger place and the "free" shake actually had a hidden one cent cost, which is why it needed a main item to attach to. @quinnlewis has a point about the cheapest item, but sometimes the app is built to only pair with combos, not sides. It feels less like a glitch and more like a dark pattern they hope you won't notice.