Which McDonald’s character is portrayed as a hamburger-stealing thief?

The Hamburglar is McDonald’s character portrayed as a hamburger-stealing thief.

The Hamburglar was one of the best-known characters in McDonaldland, the fictional advertising world introduced in 1971. His defining role was to try to steal hamburgers, giving commercials a simple comic conflict that children could immediately understand.

The character’s appearance changed over time. Early versions looked more like a small, mischievous adult thief, while later advertising presented the Hamburglar as a younger character in a cape and mask. Despite those visual changes, the hamburger-stealing theme remained his central identity.

The Hamburglar is often confused with Grimace, whose role was not that of a thief, or with Mayor McCheese, a civic-style character. The character’s name is also a wordplay combination of “hamburger” and “burglar,” making his branding function especially direct and memorable.