McDonaldland was the fictional advertising world created for McDonald's characters such as Grimace.
The campaign presented McDonald's as a colorful fantasy setting populated by branded characters, including Ronald McDonald, Mayor McCheese, the Hamburglar, and Grimace. It appeared across television commercials, packaging, restaurant displays, and promotional merchandise, giving the chain a shared setting rather than relying only on individual mascots.
McDonaldland is often remembered as a single television program, but it was primarily an advertising universe. Its characters and locations were used in many separate commercials and promotions. The campaign helped McDonald's connect menu items and restaurant visits with an imaginative world aimed especially at children.
The fictional setting also generated legal controversy because of similarities alleged between some characters and those from another advertising campaign. McDonald's continued using selected characters after the broader McDonaldland concept became less prominent, so the names of the characters and the name of the world are not interchangeable.