I ranked 12 fast-food double cheeseburgers from worst to best, and my favorite was also a great value

The burger was under $5, but I'm not sure it was worth the price.

It comes with one slice of cheese.

Right away, I tasted the thick beef patties. The burger had traveled a little more than 15 minutes from my local Burger King to my apartment, but the meat was still juicy and the cheese nicely melted.

The pickle slices were thick and crunchy, and I enjoyed the sesame-seed bun, which added a nice textural element. But I thought there was just a little too much ketchup, which will likely vary depending on who's making your burger that day.

It was also a little heavy for my liking. It filled me up a little more than I had anticipated before jumping into the rest of the burger comparison. Still, for a burger that costs just under $4, that might be more of an asset than a hindrance if you want a filling, inexpensive lunch.

It was about the same price as the burgers from McDonald's and Burger King, though it landed squarely in the middle in terms of value.

The toppings looked a little stingy, and they were clustered in the middle of the sandwich. I would have liked to see them more spread out.

But I had to get a few bites in to reach the toppings in the center.

The toppings themselves were amazing. I thought the pickles were the most flavorful out of the burgers I tried, and I liked the use of an onion ring rather than diced onion, although I would've liked more.

It was slightly more expensive than Wendy's version but had more toppings. It came with an extra slice of American cheese plus chopped onions, and I thought it was still relatively affordable.

I was interested to see if the added toppings would amp up the flavor.

The bun held everything together and was a good size, but it was a little too soft and didn't have a lot of flavor on its own. But I enjoyed the amount of condiments and didn't find them overpowering.

The chopped onions added a lot of flavor, and the burger patties were juicy despite being thinner than the Burger King ones. I liked the added cheese but didn't think it was necessary.

It costs $9 at a Whataburger in Austin, excluding tax and fees.

The burger was a decent size and I could see the gooey cheese peeking out from underneath the soft potato bun. 

The ingredients definitely set this burger apart from the others.

The bun was light and fluffy, but I did think the burger patties could have been a little thicker and juicier.

The burger cost only $5, making it one of the cheaper burgers I tried.

I ordered it with pickles, onions, ketchup, mustard, and American cheese.

One of the benefits of ordering from P. Terry's is that you can easily customize your burger and add a number of toppings including grilled onions, the chain's special sauce, tomato, lettuce, and more.

The bun was slightly underwhelming, but I thought it was an excellent, large burger with tons of flavor, especially for the low price. I also thought the mustard really came through and added a lot to the burger.

I paid $12.49 for a double cheeseburger. I could customize my toppings, but I went with pickles, onions, and Shack sauce.

The burger patties were perfectly crispy on the outside and covered in gooey melted cheese. The pickles also looked large and homemade. It was even heavy to pick up.

The cheese was thick and perfectly melted.

The burger was huge, which was both an asset and a hindrance. I struggled to get through more than a few bites.

However, despite being the second most expensive burger, I thought it was worth the price. The burger patties were much thicker than the other burgers I tried, and the toppings took it over the edge in terms of flavor.

Overall, I was impressed ... but stuffed.

The burger has since been replaced with the Big Buford, which has all the same ingredients but a bakery-style bun instead of a sesame-seed bun. The burger costs $7.69 at my local Checkers in Brooklyn.

It was smaller than my hand, though it did include a variety of toppings like tomato, lettuce, and red onion. The burger also comes with American cheese, dill pickles, ketchup, mustard, and mayonnaise on a toasted bun.

I also thought the American cheese was very tangy and flavorful. Overall, I enjoyed the combination of flavors. However, the price prevented this burger from ranking higher. 

White Castle sliders tend to be eaten in pairs, so I ordered two. Each burger cost me $3.55, so I ended up paying $7.10.

The burgers smelled strongly of onions and condiments the second I removed them from the bag.

The pickles were crunchy and flavorful. Though the burgers each had a bun sandwiched in the middle of the burger, it wasn't too bready — instead, it allowed the flavors to really come together while still being filling.

As the cheapest and smallest burgers, I was expecting them to be a little lackluster. However, I found that good things definitely come in small packages. The onions, condiments, and pickles were flavorful, but it was the beef that really impressed me.

The small-but-mighty burger was one of the most flavorful out of the ones I tried, easy to eat, and perfectly priced. 

Five Guys doesn't technically have a "double cheeseburger" — its regular cheeseburgers already come with two slices of cheese and two beef patties.

My burger cost $13.55, excluding taxes and fees, making it the most expensive burger I tried.

Right away, I noticed that the toppings were generous. The pickle slices were large, and none of the toppings cost extra to add.

I thought it was a perfect size. It required two hands to pick up and eat, but it wasn't as heavy as the burger from Shake Shack. Slices of melted American cheese coated each burger, and there wasn't so much sauce that it dripped out from underneath the sesame-seed buns.

I thought the pickle slices were thick, crunchy, and tart. I also really enjoyed the choice of a sesame-seed bun — it added a bit of texture to each and every bite.

The grilled onions also really impressed me. They were soft and almost caramelized, adding a lot of flavor that I didn't get from any other burger.

The SuperSonic double cheeseburger was the only burger I tried that came with lettuce and tomato. Since this was the default option, I decided to try it with these toppings rather than specifically remove them. 

The burger cost me $9.75, excluding taxes and fees.

Unlike Sonic's quarter-pound double cheeseburger, which comes with two junior patties, the full-size burger has a combined half-pound of meat. 

The ingredients tasted fresh and vibrant. The tomato wasn't too watery, the lettuce was crisp, and the burgers tasted well-seasoned and juicy. Plus, the burger was a very generous size. 

However, despite all these accolades, I thought the price was a little steep compared to what I got from Cook Out and In-N-Out.

You can order a "big double" from Cook Out any way you wish, but I ordered mine with cheese, ketchup, mustard, onions, and pickles. It cost me $4.99, not including tax.

It also had thick slices of fresh onion and large pickle spears layered on top of the burger.

The cheese slices were thick and tangy, and the burger was perfectly moist and medium-rare. It was also very large, and, after already eating dinner, I struggled to get through more than a few bites, though I kept wanting to go back for more.

At an amazingly low price, this burger definitely earned the second-to-top spot on my ranking.

It cost me $4.90, which I thought was an excellent deal for the large burger sitting in front of me. One of the first things I noticed was how thick the burger patties were — they were much thicker than other burgers I tried at a similar price point.

To keep my burger similar to the other burgers I tried, I ordered it with onions, pickles, and spread, which I thought tasted similar to Thousand Island dressing.

The cheese slices were perfectly melted and coated each part of the burger, something I couldn't say about any other burger I tried.

The bun was perfectly soft and held everything together perfectly, while the special spread had my mouth watering for another bite.

When it came to a double cheeseburger, the West-Coast chain really nailed it. The burger was beyond flavorful, the perfect size, and, in my opinion, very good value for money.

The next time I'm in a state with an In-N-Out, I know where I'll be filling my burger craving.