US Trends

which mcdonalds monopoly pieces are rare

Most years, the rare McDonald’s Monopoly pieces are the “last” property in each color set (and a few special locations), with one ultra-rare top-prize piece.

Key idea: how rarity works

  • Each color set has one hard-to-get piece and 1–2 very common ones.
  • The common ones are printed in huge numbers to make you feel “close” to winning; the rare piece is printed only a handful of times.
  • There are different sets for different regions (UK, US, Canada), and the exact names change slightly each year.

Examples of rare pieces (by region)

UK-style sets (recent years)

Typical UK-style promotions use London Monopoly streets:

  • Mayfair – Dark Blue: the rarest piece in the game, usually tied to the top cash prize (e.g., £100,000). Park Lane is common; Mayfair is the “golden ticket.”
  • Bond Street – Green: rare piece for a high-value cash prize (e.g., £5,000). Oxford Street and Regent Street are common.
  • Coventry Street – Yellow: rare piece for a holiday / travel prize. Piccadilly and Leicester Square are common.
  • Strand – Red: rare piece for prizes like tech or passes (e.g., consoles, Merlin passes). Fleet Street and Trafalgar Square are common.
  • Marlborough Street – Orange: rare piece where Bow Street and Vine Street are easy to find.
  • Euston Road – Light Blue: rarer than Pentonville Road and The Angel Islington.
  • Old Kent Road – Brown: sometimes the “rare” Brown, with Whitechapel Road common, even though the prize is smaller.

US-style sets (classic names)

In US versions, the property names use the standard American Monopoly board:

  • Boardwalk – Dark Blue: the classic ultra-rare piece, paired with common Park Place for the top cash prize (often advertised around $1,000,000).
  • Pennsylvania Avenue – Green: rare, with North Carolina Avenue and Pacific Avenue common, for mid–high cash (e.g., $50,000).
  • Ventnor Avenue – Yellow: rare, with Atlantic Avenue and Marvin Gardens common, for smaller but still big cash (e.g., $5,000).
  • Short Line – Railroad: the rare railroad needed along with the other three lines for a cash prize (e.g., $500).

Canada-style sets (scenic locations)

Canadian games often use Canadian landmarks with one rare piece per color:

  • Tunnels of Moose Jaw (#711) – Orange: extremely rare; completing its set can win around $25,000.
  • Mackenzie River (#704) – Light Blue: rare piece tied to a big prize like a vehicle.
  • Confederation Bridge (#712) – Red: rare piece for mid–high cash prizes (e.g., prepaid cards).
  • Portage & Memorial (#720) – Green: rare piece linked to big experiential prizes (e.g., FIFA tickets).

How to spot if your piece is rare

Use this quick checklist:

  1. Check the set: If you already see the other 1–2 properties from the same color multiple times, the one you don’t have yet is likely the rare one.
  1. Check official game list: Each year, McDonald’s or promo-tracking sites publish a list of the rare pieces and how many exist.
  1. Be skeptical of trades: Trading/buying supposed “rare” pieces is often warned against because of scams and the extremely low odds that someone sells a genuinely winning piece.

Important notes before you get excited

  • Rarity is per year and per country : a rare piece in a 2025 UK promo is not necessarily identical to a 2016 US or 2025 Canada promo.
  • Odds are massive: pieces like Boardwalk or Mayfair can have odds in the hundreds of millions to one.
  • Always double-check the current year’s rules on the official McDonald’s site for your country, since that is what legally defines which pieces win which prizes and how many exist.

TL;DR:

  • The rarest piece is usually the top dark-blue property (like Mayfair in the UK or Boardwalk in the US), with only a tiny number printed for the grand prize.
  • Each color group and some special locations (like railroads or Canadian landmarks) also have one rare piece, while their partners are printed in huge quantities.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.