How to Open a Five Guys Franchise: Requirements, Costs & Process

Can You Open a Five Guys Franchise? (The Short Version)

Yes — but Five Guys is one of the more selective burger franchises in the U.S. The brand doesn’t sell single-unit licenses. You’ll need to sign an Area Development Agreement (ADA) committing you to open multiple locations, typically five or more, within a defined territory and timeline. The financial bar is steep: $1.5 million or more in liquid capital and a net worth exceeding $3 million.

If those numbers don’t scare you off, the rest of this guide walks through each stage of the process — from making first contact to cutting the ribbon on opening day. For a detailed breakdown of what you’ll actually spend, check our Five Guys franchise cost analysis.

Step 1: Self-Assessment — Are You the Right Fit?

Before you reach out to Five Guys, run an honest inventory of your qualifications. The franchise development team will evaluate you across three dimensions:

Financial Qualifications

Requirement	Minimum Threshold
Liquid capital	$1,500,000+
Net worth	$3,000,000+
Per-unit investment	$440,600–$940,600
Multi-unit total commitment	$2.2M–$4.7M (5 units)
Ongoing royalty	6% of gross sales
Marketing fund	3% of gross sales

These aren’t aspirational targets. Five Guys verifies financial statements during the qualification process. If your liquid assets are tied up in retirement accounts, real estate equity, or illiquid investments, they won’t count toward the threshold unless you can demonstrate a clear path to liquidity.

Experience Requirements

Five Guys strongly favors candidates with multi-unit restaurant or retail management backgrounds. Prior franchise ownership is a significant advantage. The brand wants operators who’ve already managed the complexities of scaling — hiring at volume, negotiating commercial leases, overseeing multiple P&Ls simultaneously. A single-unit operator with no growth experience will face an uphill battle in the qualification process.

Operational Commitment

This is not a semi-absentee franchise. Five Guys expects franchisees to be actively involved in daily operations, especially during the initial development phase. You’ll need to either run the business yourself or have a qualified operating partner with deep restaurant experience who holds an equity stake in the venture.

Step 2: Initial Contact and Application

Five Guys doesn’t list a franchise application form on its website like most brands do. The primary paths to getting in front of their development team include:

• Franchise brokers. Several established broker networks have relationships with Five Guys. A broker can make an introduction and help position your application, though they earn a commission from the franchisor if a deal closes.
• Industry events. Five Guys representatives attend major franchise expos including the IFA Annual Convention and Multi-Unit Franchising Conference. Face-to-face introductions carry weight.
• Direct outreach. Contact Five Guys Enterprises LLC directly at their corporate office in Lorton, Virginia. Be prepared to submit a personal financial statement and a brief background on your business experience.

Once you’ve made contact, the development team will schedule a preliminary call to gauge your interest, financial capacity, and geographic preferences. If the initial conversation goes well, you’ll receive a formal application package.

Step 3: Qualification and Territory Discussion

After submitting your application, Five Guys conducts a thorough background check and financial verification. This typically takes 2-4 weeks. During this period, the development team will also begin discussing available territories.

Territory availability is a real constraint. Many major metropolitan areas — New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, Houston — are fully developed or allocated to existing franchisees. Current domestic growth focuses on secondary and tertiary markets, along with some infill opportunities in underserved suburban corridors.

The territory discussion is a negotiation. Five Guys will present available markets, and you’ll need to evaluate each one based on demographics, competition, real estate availability, and your personal willingness to operate in that geography. Don’t commit to a territory you haven’t visited and researched independently.

Step 4: Franchise Disclosure Document Review

Once Five Guys determines you’re a qualified candidate, you’ll receive the Franchise Disclosure Document. Federal law (the FTC Franchise Rule) requires that you receive this document at least 14 days before signing any agreement or paying any fees.

The FDD contains 23 mandatory items covering everything from the franchisor’s litigation history to your estimated initial investment. Pay close attention to:

• Item 7 — Your estimated total investment per unit
• Item 19 — Financial performance representations (what existing locations earn)
• Item 20 — Current and former franchisee contact lists

Do not skim this document. Read every page. Better yet, hire a franchise attorney to review it with you. An experienced attorney will catch restrictive clauses, unfavorable termination provisions, and non-compete language that could limit your options down the road. Our franchise attorney guide covers what to look for when hiring legal counsel.

For a deeper understanding of FDD contents, see our guide on what a Franchise Disclosure Document is.

Step 5: Franchisee Validation Calls

Item 20 of the FDD lists contact information for every current and former franchisee. Use it. Call at least 10-15 operators across different markets and tenure levels. Ask direct questions:

• What was your actual total investment vs. the FDD estimate?
• How long did it take to reach breakeven?
• What surprised you most about operating a Five Guys?
• Would you sign the same agreement again knowing what you know now?
• How responsive is corporate when you have operational issues?

The best validation calls happen with former franchisees — people who left the system. They have no incentive to sugarcoat their experience. If Five Guys pushes back on you contacting former franchisees, that’s a red flag worth noting.

Step 6: Discovery Day

Five Guys invites qualified candidates to a Discovery Day at their corporate headquarters. This is a mutual evaluation: the brand is assessing whether you’re the right partner, and you should be assessing whether the culture, leadership, and support infrastructure match your expectations.

During Discovery Day, you’ll typically:

• Tour the corporate office and meet senior leadership
• Visit an operating Five Guys location
• Review operational systems, training programs, and supply chain logistics
• Discuss your specific territory and development timeline in detail
• Get candid face time with executives and the franchise development team

Come prepared with specific questions about unit economics, corporate support during your ramp-up period, and how disputes are handled. Our Discovery Day guide has a comprehensive list of questions to ask.

Step 7: Signing the Area Development Agreement

If both sides are aligned after Discovery Day, you’ll move toward signing two documents:

1. Area Development Agreement (ADA) — Commits you to opening a specific number of units within a defined territory over a set timeline (e.g., 5 locations in 7 years).
2. Individual Franchise Agreement — Governs the operation of your first unit specifically.

At this point, you’ll pay the initial franchise fee ($25,000 for your first unit) and the area development fee, which varies based on the number of committed locations. Total upfront fees for a 5-unit ADA typically run $100,000-$125,000.

Have your franchise attorney review every clause before signing. Pay particular attention to development schedule requirements, transfer restrictions, and what happens if you fall behind on your opening timeline. Understanding your franchise financing options well before this stage is critical — you need committed capital sources, not vague plans.

Step 8: Training

Five Guys requires franchisees and their designated operating partners to complete a comprehensive training program. Training combines classroom instruction at corporate headquarters with hands-on experience at an existing Five Guys location.

Key details about the training program:

• Duration: 4-6 weeks for the franchise owner; additional weeks for management staff
• Location: Five Guys corporate headquarters (Lorton, VA) plus a certified training restaurant
• Content: Food preparation, quality standards, crew management, inventory systems, financial reporting, customer service protocols
• Cost: Travel and lodging are at the franchisee’s expense. Budget $15,000-$25,000 for training-related costs for you and your management team.

Training is not optional, and Five Guys takes quality standards seriously. The brand’s reputation rests on consistency — every location should taste, look, and feel the same. If you or your operating partner don’t pass training benchmarks, the opening timeline stalls.

Step 9: Site Selection and Lease Negotiation

With training underway or complete, you’ll shift focus to securing your first location. Five Guys has specific site criteria:

• Size: 1,500-2,500 square feet
• Position: Inline retail, endcap, or freestanding preferred
• Traffic: Minimum daily vehicle counts and pedestrian traffic thresholds
• Demographics: Household income and population density requirements within a defined radius
• Co-tenancy: Proximity to complementary retailers (grocery stores, big box, other restaurant brands)

Five Guys’ real estate team must approve your proposed site before you execute a lease. Submit 2-3 viable options to accelerate the approval process. Lease negotiation is your responsibility, though Five Guys can provide benchmark data on typical lease terms for their concept.

In competitive real estate markets, site selection alone can take 3-6 months. Don’t rush this step. A bad location with a 10-year lease will cost you far more than a few extra months of searching.

Step 10: Build-Out and Grand Opening

Once you’ve secured an approved site, the build-out phase begins. Five Guys provides architectural plans and design specifications, but you’ll manage the construction process with local contractors.

Typical Build-Out Timeline

Phase	Duration
Permitting and approvals	4-8 weeks
Construction and build-out	10-16 weeks
Equipment installation	2-3 weeks
Pre-opening training (on-site)	2 weeks
Soft opening period	1-2 weeks

The total timeline from lease signing to grand opening typically runs 5-8 months, though permit delays in certain municipalities can push this longer. Budget $250,000-$600,000 for the build-out depending on your market and the condition of the space.

Grand opening includes a marketing push funded in part by your pre-opening marketing budget ($10,000-$25,000). Five Guys corporate may provide additional support, but the heavy lifting falls on you and your local team.

Complete Timeline: Application to Grand Opening

Stage	Estimated Duration
Self-assessment and initial contact	1-2 months
Application and qualification	1-2 months
FDD review and validation	1-2 months
Discovery Day and negotiation	1-2 months
Agreement signing and training	2-3 months
Site selection and lease	3-6 months
Build-out and grand opening	5-8 months
Total estimated timeline	12-18 months

This 12-18 month estimate assumes no major delays. Real-world timelines frequently extend to 20-24 months when permitting issues, construction delays, or site selection challenges arise.

Common Mistakes That Derail Five Guys Applications

Underestimating the financial commitment. Candidates who apply with exactly the minimum liquid capital rarely get approved. Five Guys wants to see a comfortable financial cushion — ideally 20-30% above the minimum thresholds. Having $1.5M in liquid assets when you need $1.5M leaves no margin for cost overruns or a slower-than-projected ramp-up.

Ignoring the multi-unit reality. Some applicants fixate on the per-unit economics without fully absorbing the multi-unit commitment. Your first location might perform beautifully, but you’re contractually obligated to open four more on a fixed schedule. If your second or third site underperforms, you’re still on the hook for units four and five.

Skipping franchisee validation. The FDD gives you contact information for every operator in the system. Candidates who skip this step are making the single most avoidable mistake in franchise due diligence. Talk to people who are living the experience — both current and former franchisees.

Not hiring a franchise attorney. General business lawyers don’t understand franchise-specific legal issues. A franchise attorney who reviews FDDs regularly will spot problems your corporate lawyer would miss. The $3,000-$7,000 you’ll spend on legal review is trivial relative to a multi-million dollar commitment.

Frequently Asked Questions