Franchise Costs 2026: How Much It Costs to Open a Franchise

Summary

Complete breakdown of franchise costs in 2026 by industry. Learn about Item 7, hidden costs, working capital needs, and financing options before you invest.

Contents

Key facts


Quick answer The median franchise costs $204,046 to $494,000 to open, based on Item 7 of the 2,185 Franchise Disclosure Documents in VetMyFranchise's library that disclose a complete initial investment range. The median initial franchise fee (Item 5) is $40,000. At the low end, 246 brands start under $50,000; at the high end, 545 brands run past $1 million.

The short answer, from 2,185 real Item 7 filings

The median franchise costs $204,046 to $494,000 to open. That is the median of the low estimate and the median of the high estimate across every brand in VetMyFranchise’s library with a complete Item 7 estimated initial investment range, drawn from 2,373 Franchise Disclosure Documents filed with state regulators. The midpoint of the median brand’s range is $362,381.

Most cost articles stop at a range like “$50,000 to $500,000.” That is technically true and practically useless, because it describes a market where the 10th percentile brand opens for a $83,790 midpoint and the 90th percentile brand opens for $1,681,773. Here is the actual distribution.

Where the brand sits Item 7 midpoint
10th percentile (cheapest tenth) $83,790
25th percentile $159,950
Median (50th percentile) $362,381
75th percentile $716,550
90th percentile (priciest tenth) $1,681,773

Midpoint of each brand’s own Item 7 low-to-high range, across 2,185 FDDs. 92% of the library is a 2025 or 2026 filing.

Two counts put edges on that: 557 brands have an Item 7 low estimate under $100,000, 246 of them under $50,000, and 545 brands have a high estimate above $1 million. So roughly a quarter of the franchise market is a seven-figure commitment and roughly a quarter is under six figures at the entry point. Nothing in the middle of those two facts is “typical.”

How much is the average initial franchise fee?

This is the number buyers fixate on, and it is the smallest one. Across the 2,239 brands that disclose a non-zero initial fee in Item 5, the median is $40,000 and the mean is $48,882. The gap between those two is the tell: a handful of brands charging six figures drag the average above what a normal buyer will actually pay.

Percentile Initial franchise fee (Item 5)
10th $17,750
25th $30,000
Median $40,000
75th $50,000
90th $60,000

2,239 brands with a disclosed non-zero initial franchise fee.

The distribution is remarkably compressed. 1,749 brands (78%) charge $50,000 or less, 448 (20%) charge $25,000 or less, and only 56 charge $100,000 or more. A further 23 brands disclose no separate initial fee at all. If a franchise fee quote lands far outside $30,000 to $60,000, that is the anomaly worth asking about, in either direction.

Now the part that reframes the whole question: across 2,095 brands, the initial franchise fee is a median of just 10.4% of the Item 7 midpoint. For 68% of brands it is under a fifth of the total. You are not buying a franchise fee. You are buying a build-out. Our franchise fee benchmark ranks every brand’s fee against its category.

Franchise cost by industry

Category is the single best predictor of what a franchise costs, because it determines whether you need a building. The table below is the median low estimate, median high estimate and median Item 5 fee for every brand in each industry with a complete Item 7.

Industry Brands with a full Item 7 Median Item 7 low Median Item 7 high Median franchise fee
Hospitality & Travel 81 $1,349,901 $10,776,122 $38,000
Food & Beverage 745 $358,500 $822,250 $35,000
Health & Beauty 89 $320,891 $599,500 $49,500
Fitness & Wellness 155 $309,249 $710,900 $49,500
Pet Services 51 $194,750 $470,450 $49,500
Automotive 59 $188,350 $622,500 $35,000
Retail 118 $181,550 $387,757 $35,000
Home Services 253 $128,368 $227,409 $49,975
Cleaning & Maintenance 134 $127,440 $269,885 $45,000
Child Services & Education 138 $124,025 $316,824 $49,000
Senior Care 114 $118,030 $242,840 $50,000
Staffing & HR 18 $100,050 $177,950 $49,000
Technology 11 $93,762 $147,450 $40,000
Business Services 89 $77,500 $152,100 $49,500
Financial Services 29 $55,700 $111,500 $30,000
Real Estate 79 $50,000 $207,000 $25,000

Hospitality & Travel is dominated by hotel brands, which is why its median high estimate is an order of magnitude above every other category. Treat that row as a separate market.

Three things stand out. First, the cheapest categories cost roughly one seventh of the most expensive non-hotel category at the low end, and the reason is real estate, not brand strength. Real Estate, Financial Services and Business Services all sit under $80,000 at the median low estimate because none of them require a customer-facing build-out. Second, the median franchise fee barely moves across the table. It sits between $25,000 and $50,000 in every single category, including the ones where total investment differs by a factor of ten. Third, Senior Care carries the highest median fee in the table ($50,000) while sitting near the bottom on total investment, which is exactly the kind of inversion the fee-as-proxy assumption gets wrong.

If you would rather slice by budget than by category, see the franchise cost breakdown by investment tier, the best low-cost franchises under $100K, or the live list of franchises under $100,000 sorted by real Item 7 data.

Cost to open a restaurant franchise, by format

“Food & Beverage” is too coarse to budget against, so the library tags restaurant brands by format. This is where the range inside a single industry becomes obvious.

Restaurant format Brands Median Item 7 low Median Item 7 high Median fee Median Item 19 revenue
Chicken 42 $580,250 $1,869,550 $35,000 $1,838,301
Burgers 39 $517,300 $1,375,750 $35,000 $1,379,766
Bakery & breakfast 60 $409,450 $829,000 $39,500 $1,100,988
Sandwiches & subs 40 $366,220 $830,850 $30,000 $871,099
Mexican & Latin 36 $351,000 $856,900 $35,000 $1,157,173
Pizza 62 $346,720 $855,433 $30,000 $969,285
Coffee & beverage 116 $281,530 $637,129 $35,000 $793,853
Ice cream & dessert 42 $228,590 $638,000 $35,000 $543,599

The revenue column is the median of the brand-level Item 19 median revenue figures, across the brands in each format that publish one (14 to 37 brands per row). It is gross revenue, not profit, and not every brand in the format reports.

A chicken concept costs roughly 2.5x an ice cream concept at the median low estimate. It also reports roughly 3.4x the revenue. Whether that trade is worth it depends entirely on the cost structure underneath, which Item 19 does not disclose.

What real brands cost to open

Industry medians tell you the neighborhood. A specific brand’s Item 7 tells you the price. Every row below is that brand’s own filing, already including the franchise fee, build-out, equipment and opening working capital.

Brand Total investment (Item 7) Franchise fee (Item 5) FDD year
Home Instead $92,640 – $350,550 $54,000 2026
Right at Home $94,330 – $176,239 $49,500 2026
Budget Blinds $100,500 – $211,250 $19,950 2026
Kumon $101,630 – $233,780 $2,000 2026
Mathnasium $127,316 – $165,846 $49,000 2026
Dunkin’ $142,000 – $1,832,500 $40,000 2026
Great Clips $187,800 – $419,900 $20,000 2026
Subway $227,000 – $630,000 $15,000 2026
Qdoba $234,500 – $1,294,000 $40,000 2025
Sport Clips $236,800 – $580,500 $30,000 2026
Denny’s $255,000 – $3,056,874 $30,000 2026
SERVPRO $263,305 – $385,570 $100,000 2026
Tropical Smoothie Cafe $275,500 – $770,500 $35,000 2026
Taco Bell $287,950 – $857,700 $22,500 2026
Wingstop $310,400 – $1,013,500 $25,000 2026
European Wax Center $331,600 – $776,950 $45,000 2026
Jersey Mike’s $436,176 – $1,162,228 $20,000 2026
Popeyes $504,545 – $3,923,245 $50,000 2026
Chick-fil-A $585,500 – $3,437,000 $10,000 2026
Moe’s Southwest Grill $644,425 – $1,968,450 $35,500 2026
Orangetheory Fitness $764,577 – $1,104,920 $59,950 2026
Taco John’s $802,310 – $2,010,750 $15,000 2026
Crumbl $848,566 – $1,472,533 $50,000 2026
Five Guys $977,850 – $1,375,750 $25,000 2025
Planet Fitness $1,282,500 – $5,386,000 $40,000 2026
Culver’s $3,406,350 – $10,294,100 $65,000 2026

Item 7 discloses total project investment. FDD years vary by brand and every range changes at the next annual filing, so confirm the live figures on each brand’s page before you budget.

The franchise fee tells you almost nothing about the cost

Read that table by the fee column and it stops making sense. Kumon charges $2,000 and Chick-fil-A charges $10,000, both less than a fifth of what Home Instead charges, yet Chick-fil-A’s Item 7 runs to $3,437,000. Taco John’s charges $15,000 and needs $802,310 at the low end. SERVPRO charges $100,000, the highest fee in the table, against a $263,305 to $385,570 range that is one of the narrower ones there.

The pattern holds across the whole library, not just these brands. Fee and total investment are close to unrelated, and the median fee is 10.4% of the total. Anyone selling you on a “low franchise fee” is quoting the one line item that was never going to decide whether you can afford the deal.

Your market can double the number

The other reason a single quoted figure misleads: the typical brand’s own Item 7 high estimate is 2.09x its low estimate, and 574 brands have a high at least 3x their low. Dunkin’ ranges from $142,000 for a small-format store to $1,832,500 for a freestanding drive-thru. Denny’s runs $255,000 to $3,056,874. Popeyes runs $504,545 to $3,923,245.

That spread is real estate, format and market. Building out in the Bay Area, Boston or New York puts you at or above the high estimate. A conversion of an existing space in a secondary market puts you near the low one. Budgeting from the low estimate because it is the number in the brochure is the most common way franchise buyers end up undercapitalized.

Cost to open vs. cost to own

Opening cost is a one-time number. Owning cost is a percentage of everything you ever sell, and it starts the day you unlock the door.

Across the FDDs that disclose a rate, the median royalty is 6% of sales (mean 6.01%, with 69% of brands at 6% or below) and the median advertising or brand fund contribution is 2%. For the 1,667 brands that disclose both, the combined median is 8% of gross sales, and 59% of them are at 8% or higher. That is charged off the top, before rent, payroll, food cost, debt service or anything you pay yourself.

Brand Royalty Ad / brand fund FDD year
Culver’s 4% 2.5% 2026
Home Instead 5% of gross sales 2% 2026
Crumbl 8% 2% 2026
Great Clips 6% of biweekly gross sales 5% 2026
Wingstop 6% 5.5% of gross sales 2026
Subway 8% 4.5% 2026
Little Caesars 6% 7% 2026

Item 6 of each FDD discloses the full list of continuing fees. Several brands charge flat amounts instead of or alongside percentages, such as Anytime Fitness’s $900 per month advertising fee.

On a store doing $1 million in sales, the difference between Culver’s 6.5% combined and Little Caesars’ 13% combined is $65,000 a year, every year, for the length of the agreement. Over a ten-year term that gap is larger than almost any initial franchise fee in the library. Our royalty burden index ranks brands by total ongoing fee load, and Item 6 is where you should look before you look at Item 7.

What you get for the money, where it is disclosed

Cost only means something against revenue. Only 1,641 of 2,373 brands (69%) publish an Item 19 financial performance representation at all, and fewer still publish a clean median. Where they do, the numbers are worth putting side by side with the cost.

Brand Item 7 range Item 19 median revenue Units in the sample
Right at Home $94,330 – $176,239 $1,334,579 390
Home Instead $92,640 – $350,550 $2,261,503 611
Budget Blinds $100,500 – $211,250 $522,826 282
Great Clips $187,800 – $419,900 $390,685 4,158
Sport Clips $236,800 – $580,500 $416,189 1,645
The Joint Chiropractic $245,250 – $543,000 $526,397 799
Tropical Smoothie Cafe $275,500 – $770,500 $931,173 1,431
Wingstop $310,400 – $1,013,500 $1,890,866 2,116
Jersey Mike’s $436,176 – $1,162,228 $1,285,259 2,606
Club Pilates $403,289 – $1,029,811 $978,300 1,005
Anytime Fitness $539,329 – $905,482 $398,982 1,656
Popeyes $504,545 – $3,923,245 $1,785,736 2,248
Planet Fitness $1,282,500 – $5,386,000 $1,863,300 2,291

Item 19 medians are gross revenue, not profit, and each brand chooses which units to include. Sample size is the number of units in that brand’s own reported group.

Note what the ratio does. Home Instead’s $2,261,503 median revenue is roughly ten times its Item 7 midpoint, because home care is a payroll business with no build-out. Planet Fitness’s $1,863,300 is roughly half its Item 7 midpoint, because the gym is the asset. Anytime Fitness’s $398,982 is about 55% of its midpoint. A high revenue-to-investment ratio is not automatically better, since the low-investment models usually run on thinner gross margins, but a ratio well under 1.0 means you are financing a long payback and should be reading the debt terms as carefully as the Item 7.

Across the 776 brands with a clean Item 19 median in the library, the median of those medians is $759,740. And for the 31% of brands that publish no Item 19 at all, no amount of cost analysis will tell you what a unit earns. That absence is information.

Breaking down Item 7: where the money goes

The initial franchise fee (Item 5)

A one-time payment for the right to operate under the brand, the initial training program and pre-opening support. Median $40,000, and a median of 10.4% of your total. It does not cover build-out, equipment, working capital or a single dollar of ongoing royalty.

Real estate and build-out

Almost always the largest line item for brick-and-mortar. Leasehold improvements, construction, signage, architectural fees. This is the line that produces the 2.09x median spread between a brand’s low and high estimate, and franchisors typically quote it off national averages.

Equipment and fixtures

Kitchen equipment, gym equipment, service vehicles. More predictable than real estate because franchisors have established vendor relationships and often mandate suppliers.

Initial inventory and supplies

The stock you need on hand to open. Food inventory and packaging for restaurants, opening product order for retail.

Insurance and deposits

Lease security deposits, utility deposits, first insurance premiums. Routinely underestimated in buyer spreadsheets.

Working capital

The reserve that covers operating expenses before the business is self-sustaining. Item 7 typically estimates three months. During those months you are paying payroll, rent, utilities, grand-opening marketing, and a combined median 8% of every dollar of sales in royalty and ad fund contributions.

Professional fees

Legal review of the franchise agreement, accounting setup, entity formation. Budget $5,000 to $15,000 for a qualified franchise attorney and CPA.

Item 7 is filed under penalty of regulatory scrutiny, so it is honest. It is also bounded by what the franchisor can reasonably estimate about your specific deal.

Build-out overruns. Permitting delays, change orders and unexpected building conditions routinely add 10-20%. Budget a 15% contingency on top of the Item 7 high estimate.

Pre-opening labor. You hire and train staff before revenue exists. Depending on the concept that can mean 5 to 25 people on payroll one to four weeks before opening.

Your living expenses. Item 7 covers the business, not you. Leaving a salary means funding your mortgage and personal expenses for 6 to 12 months while the unit ramps.

Local marketing beyond the ad fund. National advertising does not fill your specific location on day one. Budget an additional 2-5% of projected first-year revenue for local marketing and grand opening.

Technology upgrades. Many systems are mid-cycle on POS or platform migrations. You can buy the current system and face a mandatory upgrade inside two years.

How to estimate your true total investment

You can estimate your total investment with our calculator, then layer in the buffers:

  1. Start with the Item 7 high estimate. Not the low one, and not the midpoint.
  2. Add a 15% build-out contingency.
  3. Add 3 to 6 months of working capital beyond Item 7’s three.
  4. Add 6 to 12 months of personal living expenses if this replaces your income.
  5. Add $10,000 to $20,000 for professional fees, local marketing and the miscellaneous.

Worked example on a $500,000 Item 7 high estimate:

Line Amount
Item 7 high estimate $500,000
Build-out contingency (15%) $75,000
Additional working capital $50,000
Personal living expenses (6 months) $30,000
Professional fees and miscellaneous $15,000
Realistic total $670,000

That is 34% above the disclosed figure, which is a large part of why so many franchisees describe their first year as undercapitalized.

Financing a franchise in 2026

SBA 7(a) loans are the most common vehicle: up to $5 million, 10-20% down, prime plus 1.5% to 3%, 10 to 25 year terms. The brand must be on the SBA Franchise Directory, and most established systems are.

Franchisor financing. Some brands offer in-house financing or preferred-lender relationships. Always compare the terms against an SBA quote rather than assuming the in-house option is favorable.

ROBS (Rollover for Business Startups). Uses 401(k) or IRA funds without early withdrawal penalties. Legal, but structurally complex enough to require a specialist provider.

Home equity. A HELOC is cheap capital. It also collateralizes your house against a business with a real failure rate.

What investment level is right for you

Brand-specific cost questions

How much does a Chipotle franchise cost to open?

You cannot open one at any price. Chipotle Mexican Grill does not franchise: every U.S. location is company-owned, the brand files no FDD, and it appears in no registry, so there is no Item 7, no franchise fee and no way to buy in. The closest franchised comparisons in the library are Qdoba at $234,500 to $1,294,000 and Moe’s Southwest Grill at $644,425 to $1,968,450. The Mexican and Latin format median is $351,000 to $856,900.

How much does a Pancheros franchise cost?

Pancheros Mexican Grill does franchise, but its FDD is not in our library, so we publish no Item 7 figures for it. The Mexican and Latin restaurant format in the library has a median Item 7 of $351,000 to $856,900 and a median franchise fee of $35,000, which is the right order of magnitude for the class. Read Item 7 of Pancheros’ current FDD for its actual numbers. Treat the format median as context, not a quote.

How much does a Texas Roadhouse franchise cost?

Texas Roadhouse is effectively closed to new domestic franchisees, so for most buyers there is nothing to open. The overwhelming majority of U.S. locations are company-operated and the remaining franchising is legacy and international, so we publish no buy-in figure. If you want a full-service, full-bar restaurant, budget against the Food & Beverage category median of $358,500 to $822,250 and look at what a franchised full-service brand actually discloses: Denny’s runs $255,000 to $3,056,874 in its 2026 FDD, which shows how much format and market swing the number.

Compare the real numbers before you commit

Every figure on this page came out of a filed Franchise Disclosure Document, not a franchise development brochure. Use the compare tool to put brands side by side, browse the franchise library filtered by investment range, or start from the cheapest franchises ranked by total investment, the franchise fee benchmark and the franchise pricing index.

The cost to open a franchise is the first number you will be quoted and the least useful one on its own. Pair it with Item 5, Item 6 and Item 19 before you sign anything.

Get the full 12-section FDD analysis — $49

Real franchise data, real Item 19 numbers, personalized to your capital and location. Comparing 2–3 brands? The 3-pack is $99.

Browse franchises · pick your brand Or see a real sample report →

Get this comparison as a spreadsheet.

We'll email you the full comparison spreadsheet: every brand in this category with its Item 7 investment range and royalty, side by side. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.

✓ Check your inbox

The comparison spreadsheet is on its way.

Get a Professional FDD Analysis — $49

The only franchise report written entirely for the buyer. 12 sections covering financial risks, legal obligations, and a personalized recommendation.

Browse Franchise Library See a real sample report →

$49 per brand · $99 for a 3-brand pack

Franchises you might be evaluating

Jani-King of California

Learn more →

Doctor's Associates

Learn more →

McDonald's USA

Learn more →

Keep reading

Automotive Franchise Opportunities: From Oil Changes to Collision Repair

Learn more →

Beauty and Salon Franchises in 2026: Costs, Revenue, and What the FDDs Show

Learn more →

Best $1M+ Franchises With Strong Item 19 Data (2026)

Learn more →

franchise costsinvestmentitem 7item 5franchise feefinancingstartup costs

About this analysis The franchise data in this article is drawn from VetMyFranchise's structured analysis of 2,300+ Franchise Disclosure Documents filed with U.S. state regulators. See our data & methodology.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does it cost to open a franchise?

The median franchise costs $204,046 to $494,000 to open, measured across the 2,185 Franchise Disclosure Documents in VetMyFranchise's library that disclose a complete Item 7 initial investment range. The midpoint of the median brand's range is $362,381. The spread is wide and real: 557 brands have an Item 7 low estimate under $100,000, 246 are under $50,000, and 545 brands have a high estimate above $1 million. Item 7 already includes the franchise fee, build-out, equipment, opening inventory and the first three months of working capital.

How much does a franchise cost on average?

Averages and medians differ enough here to matter. The median initial franchise fee is $40,000 while the mean is $48,882, because a small number of brands charging $100,000 or more pull the average up. For total investment, the median brand's Item 7 midpoint is $362,381, but the 90th percentile brand sits at $1,681,773. When a source quotes one "average franchise cost," ask whether it is a median or a mean, and across how many FDDs.

How much is the average initial franchise fee?

Across 2,239 brands that disclose a non-zero initial franchise fee in Item 5, the median is $40,000 and the average is $48,882. The distribution is tight in the middle: the 25th percentile is $30,000, the 75th percentile is $50,000, and the 10th and 90th percentiles are $17,750 and $60,000. In total, 1,749 brands (78%) charge $50,000 or less, 448 (20%) charge $25,000 or less, and only 56 charge $100,000 or more. A further 23 brands disclose no separate initial fee at all.

How much does it cost to start a franchise?

Budget the Item 7 high estimate, not the low one, then add to it. Across the library the median Item 7 high estimate is $494,000, and the typical brand's high estimate is 2.09x its own low estimate because build-out and real estate vary by market. Item 7 also funds only the first three months of working capital, so a realistic startup budget adds a build-out contingency, additional operating reserves, and your personal living expenses through the ramp.

What is a typical franchise startup cost by industry?

It depends almost entirely on whether the concept needs a building. Median Item 7 ranges run from $50,000 to $207,000 in Real Estate and $55,700 to $111,500 in Financial Services, up to $358,500 to $822,250 in Food & Beverage and $1,349,901 to $10,776,122 in Hospitality & Travel, where hotel brands dominate. Home Services sits at $128,368 to $227,409 and Senior Care at $118,030 to $242,840.

How much does it cost to own a franchise each year?

Owning is a separate cost from opening. Across the FDDs that disclose a rate, the median royalty is 6% of sales and the median advertising or brand fund contribution is 2%, for a combined median of 8% of gross sales. That is charged from the day you open, before rent, payroll, debt service or your own pay. Real examples from 2026 filings: Subway charges 8% royalty plus 4.5% advertising, Great Clips 6% plus 5%, Wingstop 6% plus 5.5%, Home Instead 5% plus 2%, and Culver's 4% plus 2.5%.

What is the cheapest franchise to open?

The lowest-cost categories are Real Estate (median Item 7 of $50,000 to $207,000, median fee $25,000), Financial Services ($55,700 to $111,500, median fee $30,000) and Business Services ($77,500 to $152,100). Across all industries, 246 brands have an Item 7 low estimate under $50,000 and 557 are under $100,000. What they have in common is no build-out and low working-capital needs, not a cheaper brand name.

How much does it cost to open a fast food franchise?

It depends on the format more than the brand. Using the Food & Beverage subcategories in the library, median Item 7 ranges are $228,590 to $638,000 for ice cream and dessert, $281,530 to $637,129 for coffee and beverage, $346,720 to $855,433 for pizza, $366,220 to $830,850 for sandwiches and subs, $517,300 to $1,375,750 for burgers, and $580,250 to $1,869,550 for chicken. Chicken concepts are the most expensive quick-service format in the library by a wide margin.

What does the franchise fee actually cover?

The Item 5 initial fee buys the right to use the brand, the initial training program, access to the operating system, and pre-opening support. It does not cover build-out, equipment, inventory, working capital, or any ongoing royalty. That is why the fee is a poor proxy for cost: across 2,095 brands the initial fee is a median of just 10.4% of the Item 7 midpoint, and Taco John's charges $15,000 to open a restaurant with an $802,310 low estimate.

What is Item 7 in a Franchise Disclosure Document?

Item 7 is the section of the FDD that lists the estimated initial investment. It breaks the total into line items such as the franchise fee, build-out, equipment, inventory, deposits and the first three months of working capital, each with a low and a high estimate. It is the most reliable starting point for budgeting a franchise purchase, and it is filed with state regulators rather than written for marketing.

How much working capital do I need to open a franchise?

Item 7 typically covers three months of working capital. Experienced owners budget six to twelve months of operating expenses instead, because royalties and advertising fees (a combined median of 8% of gross sales) start the day you open, while revenue ramps over the following year. Working capital has to cover payroll, rent, utilities, marketing and those fees during that gap.

What are the ongoing costs of owning a franchise?

Beyond the initial investment you pay a royalty (median 6% of sales) and an advertising or brand-fund contribution (median 2%), plus technology, renewal and transfer fees. Item 6 of the FDD discloses every continuing fee. Some brands charge flat amounts instead of percentages, such as Anytime Fitness's $900 per month advertising fee. Over a ten-year agreement these recurring fees usually dwarf the one-time franchise fee.

Can I get an SBA loan to open a franchise?

Yes. The SBA 7(a) program is the most common franchise financing vehicle. You will typically need 10-20% down, a credit score above 680, relevant business experience, and the franchise must appear on the SBA Franchise Directory. Terms run 10 to 25 years depending on use of funds.

Why is the real cost higher than what the FDD shows?

Item 7 is thorough but bounded. It does not fully account for build-out overruns in high-cost markets, pre-opening labor, your personal living expenses during the ramp, local marketing beyond the national ad fund, or the working capital most new owners need past month three. Start from the Item 7 high estimate rather than the low one, then add a contingency.

Cite this page

Related on this site


This page is part of VetMyFranchise. View all pages: llms.txt · llms-full.txt

Site index for AI agents: llms.txt · sitemap