There's A Quick & Easy Way You Can Get FREE McDonald's French Fries This Month

There are a lot of reasons to love McDonalds. In the 60 or so years since its inception, the massive international fast food has become nothing less than an American cultural icon. Few if any logos are as recognizable as the restaurant's golden arches. There is something so comforting about the fact that you can go almost anywhere and you will never be too far from some McNuggets. But, the newest reason to love Mickey D's involves its french fries — more specifically, that you can easily learn a hack for how to get free McDonald's french fries every Friday for the remainder of April.

Now, you're probably thinking there has to be a catch, right? Well, it's not so much of a caveat as it is one simple extra step you have to take to access the crispy, golden goodness; you need to download the McDonald’s smartphone app. After you order your food through the app, you can pay with Apple Pay, and in return you will be gifted a complimentary medium order of fries — but only if you do it on a Friday. While you may be hesitant to clutter up your screen with yet another icon, trust that the free fries are worth it. Plus, since the offer is only good during the month of April, you only have a two more Fridays to cash in on the deal! What are you waiting for?

It is no secret people have strong opinions about fast food fries. The opinions people hold about the starchy side are perhaps even stronger than those they hold about burgers. Californians swear by animal style In-N-Out fries, and East Coasters love Shake Shack and Five Guys. But McDonalds has mastered their craft in such a way their fries need not be topped with anything extra. They are a classic, and their value withstands the test of time — just ask the writer at Thrillist who ranked french fries from 16 big name fast food chains last year.

And there are other reasons to support McDonald's that are wholly unrelated to its menu. Just last month the chain announced new steps being taken to reduce the amount of greenhouse gas emissions produced. The company is exploring options to adjust the way the beef in its Big Macs and Quarter Pounders is produced. It hopes to, per the Associated Press, "prevent 150 million metric tons (165 million tons) of greenhouse gas emissions from being released into the atmosphere by 2030."

The company says three separate areas — beef production, energy used by its restaurants, and packaging— make up more than sixty percent of its greenhouse gas emissions. McDonalds' beef suppliers are reportedly testing a new way to feed cattle that may reduce emissions by moving animals from pen to pen. This technique would allow the soil cows stand on while eating grass to recover before being stood on again. As healthier soil can better absorb carbon, less of it will end up in the air.

The company is reportedly working with restaurants to switch out existing light bulbs and kitchen appliances with more environmentally-friendly options. It is also in the process of shifting to using more sustainable materials for soda cups, Happy Meal boxes, and food wrappers. Steve Easterbrook, president and CEO of McDonald’s explained the company's efforts in a press release last month, saying, “To create a better future for our planet, we must all get involved. McDonald’s is doing its part by setting this ambitious goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to address the challenge of global climate change.”

Though at the end of the day, if you just want to snag some free fries because they are tasty, that's chill, too.