McDonald's first served Chicken McNuggets nationwide in the United States in 1983.
The bite-sized chicken pieces had been developed and tested before the national launch. Their standardized shapes, breaded coating, and dipping-sauce format gave McDonald's a new branded menu item that was easy to advertise and recognizable across restaurants.
Chicken McNuggets broadened McDonald's identity beyond hamburgers and helped establish chicken as a major fast-food category. The product was marketed as a distinct branded offering rather than simply as a generic chicken dish.
The national launch is sometimes confused with earlier regional tests and development work. Those earlier stages explain why dates can vary in casual accounts, but 1983 marks the nationwide United States introduction. The product's familiar four-piece, six-piece, and larger serving formats developed over subsequent years.