The McDonald's Happy Meal Toy From The 1990s That's Unexpectedly Valuable Today

Before Pokémon cards took over lunchboxes, McNugget Buddies ruled the Happy Meal. First introduced in 1988, these nugget-shaped toys came with plastic snap-on outfits and molded faces that gave each one a distinct personality. Out of all the McDonald's characters, these little Buddies might've been the strangest. There was a dragon, a rock star, and even a scuba diver. Plus, while they were only a few inches tall, the Buddies packed more character than most full-sized dolls. They didn't just exist to promote the McNuggets, which debuted nationwide in 1983 — they were the brand's weirdest, most theatrical mascots.

Fast forward a few decades and now they're a hot-ticket item on resale sites. One Etsy listing offers 22 Buddies from the 1988–1996 run (some missing parts, some with extras) for $148.75. That's down from the original $175 asking price, but still a far cry from their free-with-fries origins. Demand remains high despite incomplete sets, partly because keeping track of the tiny accessories was never easy. The hats got lost, the costumes snapped in half, and unless you were the kind of kid who alphabetized their Legos, odds are your set didn't survive fully intact.

Collectors today aren't just chasing nostalgia; they're hunting scarcity. Not every toy from the '90s came with this much variation, personality, and chaos packed into such a small package. It's no wonder they continue to hold a place in people's memories — and collections — long after their last Happy Meal appearance.

You don't have to squint too hard to see the cultural grip McNugget Buddies still have today. One Reddit user swore they could feel a "cold rainy autumn Friday evening from 1990" just by looking at them. Another said their mom saved the toys and now their kids play with them decades later. There's even someone out there on Facebook with a Witchie tattoo — a haunted nugget, immortalized in ink.

McNugget Buddies might even be the most beloved McDonaldland characters — which is saying something, considering they were shaped like fried food. But they had personalities, outfits, and (most importantly) airtime. The 1989 TV commercial didn't just show off the toys; it turned them into characters with voices, jokes, and storylines. They weren't merely plastic. Even now, collectors are chasing down every version ever made, including Halloween sets and country exclusives most people never knew existed. And while McNuggets themselves came with a surprise back in the late '80s — a fortune cookie, chopsticks, and a chance to win a vacation to Shanghai, China — it's the Buddies that people remember most.

That nostalgia got a boost in 2023 when McDonald's brought the Buddies back through a collaboration with artist Kerwin Frost— six new characters, mix-and-match outfits, trading cards — all updated but still unmistakably weird. For longtime fans, it wasn't only a reboot. It was proof that McDonald's knew exactly who was watching.