What slogan did McDonald's launch in 1971 with the opening line “You deserve a break today”?

McDonald’s launched the slogan “You Deserve a Break Today” in 1971. The line presented a McDonald’s visit as a pleasant pause from everyday work and responsibilities, making an emotional promise rather than naming a particular menu item.

The campaign became one of the company’s best-known advertising themes during the 1970s. Its wording connected the restaurant with convenience and personal reward, while the accompanying commercials and music helped make the phrase memorable. It also demonstrated how McDonald’s branding increasingly sold an experience and mood, not only hamburgers and fries.

The slogan is sometimes confused with later McDonald’s lines such as “I’m Lovin’ It,” which began in the 2000s. It is also different from slogans used by other restaurant chains, including Burger King’s “Have It Your Way.” McDonald’s changed advertising lines repeatedly over the years, but “You Deserve a Break Today” remains a defining example of its early national brand language.