Quick Verdict · who it fits
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. fits first-time franchise buyers looking for a mid-scale financial services concept.
The numbers a buyer needs first — straight from the filing.
Initial investment (Item 7)
$104K - $222K
Franchise fee (Item 5)
$50K
System size (Item 20)
95 +1
Years in business
55+ yrs
Company-owned units
287
Item 3 litigation
10 suits
Buyer qualifications
Data extracted from the 2026 FDD filed with state regulators. Fees and terms may have changed since filing — request the current FDD from the franchisor before deciding. Not legal, financial, or investment advice. Full disclaimer.
Free AI summary — the first read on the filing.
382
Total units open
95 franchised + 287 company-managed
1 franchised; 10 company-managed
Units opened last year
1 company-managed
Units closed last year
1 total
Net unit growth
0 franchised net change
What our analysis flagged across the 2026 filing.
5
Risks to review
4
Strengths identified
5
Questions to ask
How Charles Schwab & ranks against 29 Financial Services peers we've analyzed.
Initial investment
89th pct · of 29 peers
Franchise fee
72nd pct · of 29 peers
System size
48th pct · of 29 peers
Financial Services industry averages
Avg investment
$58K - $182K
Avg franchise fee
$37K
Avg system size
458
Franchises analyzed
29
Closest concepts by category and investment.
| Brand | Item 19 | Fee | Investment | Royalty | Units |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charles Schwab & | Disclosed | $50K | $104K - $222K | — | 95 |
| The Retirement Income SourceSimilar price | Disclosed | $25K | $100K - $226K | 0% | 27 |
| Ameriprise Financial ServicesBiggest system | Disclosed | $2K | $10K - $138K | 72–91% | 3,738 |
| Brightway InsuranceTop-rated in category | Disclosed | $25K | $43K - $187K | — | 351 |
Free explainers to go deeper before you sign.
Investment Guide
A franchise net worth requirement and a liquid capital requirement measure two very different things — and most rejected applicants fail the one they never checked. Here's how the math works at every investment tier.
Investment Guide
Most franchises take 12-24 months to reach profitability, but that number hides massive variation by industry, investment level, and market conditions. Here's how to estimate your actual timeline and plan your financial runway.
Financial Analysis
Item 19 hands you an average revenue number and stops there. Here's the step-by-step way to haircut that top-line, layer in COGS, labor, occupancy, the fee stack, and debt service, and land on the profit you'd actually take home.
Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. requires a $50,000 initial franchise fee and a total initial investment range of $103,605–$221,705, per the most recent FDD on file.
Yes. Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. discloses Item 19 financial performance representations in its FDD. See the financials sub-page for the disclosed figures.
Franchisees pay an advertising fund contribution of 50% on gross sales as defined in Item 6 of the FDD.
As of their 2026 FDD, Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. has 95 total locations, with 1 new locations opened in the most recent reporting year. This information comes from Item 20 of the FDD.
This page is part of VetMyFranchise. View all pages: llms.txt · llms-full.txt