Carl's Jr franchise research

Investment by format

Format-specific estimates only. Do not combine one format's minimum with another format's maximum.

Investment sourceFDD p.36 ↗

Franchise fees and ongoing costs

Franchise fee

$15,000 to $25,000 · Extracted Item 5 scalar range, not a universal minimum or maximum; formats, eligibility, discounts and waivers require original-filing review.

Royalty

4% · 4% of Gross Sales, paid within 10 calendar days after the end of each fiscal week

Marketing contribution

6% (basis not captured; see original filing)

Technology fee

Digital Tech Fee: $160 per fiscal period (4-week accounting period), for online ordering/delivery and loyalty program software

Other fees

Software Support Fee (Genius/PAR Brink + CrunchTime): $118/restaurant/fiscal period plus $825/restaurant biannually; Star University Access Fee: $18.20/fiscal period; Secret Shopper/QA re-audit fee: $211/restaurant as incurred

Working capital (FDD Item 7)

$160,000 to $250,000 (both formats) - estimated payroll, taxes, insurance, food, paper, supplies, utilities, licenses/permits, bank charges and repair/maintenance for the first 3 months; excludes advertising and royalty payments

Fees sourceFDD p.27 ↗

Working capital is drawn from Item 7. The Investment source below locates the investment section, not an independently verified working-capital scalar.

Investment sourceFDD p.36 ↗

Franchise fee sourceFDD · page not captured ↗

Financial performance: Item 19

Item 19 captured

Yes

Metric / basis

Average/median gross revenue (Section I) and average food & paper costs and labor costs as a percentage of revenue (Section II) for franchised and company-owned freestanding restaurants

Reporting period

FY26 - 53 weeks, January 28, 2025 to January 26, 2026

Sample

778 freestanding restaurants systemwide (728 franchised, 50 company-operated); California subset of 517 (467 franchised, 50 company-operated); non-California subset of 298 franchised restaurants

Reported average

$1,388,797

Reported median

$1,317,362

Owner income is not captured. Gross sales and EBITDA are not owner pay. Results depend on the disclosed metric, sample and period; consult the full filing.

Item 19 performance sourceFDD p.73 ↗

Unit growth: Item 20

Reporting year

2026 (fiscal year ended January 26, 2026)

Scope

franchised outlets

Starting outlets

982

Year-end outlets

942

Net change

-40

Derivation

ending minus starting outlets

Openings

5

Terminations

2

Non-renewals

0

Other closures

43

Reacquisitions

0

Transfers

5

Transfers are not closures. Net change is ending minus starting outlets for the stated scope and year, or complete openings less terminations, non-renewals, other closures and reacquisitions. Missing inputs stay unknown.

Unit growth sourceFDD p.78 ↗

SBA loan history

Loan activity

6 approvals

Activity window

FY2021-FY2026 YTD; snapshot 2026-06-30

Median SBA loan

$938,000

Median loan window

FY2023-FY2026 YTD through 2026-06-30

Median loan sample

3 loans

Historical charge-off share

Suppressed: fewer than 10 seasoned loans

Cohort

7(a) FY2010-2019 approvals

Numerator / denominator

0 / 8

Formula

CHGOFF / (PIF + CHGOFF + EXEMPT) × 100

This is a historical loan-level share, not a franchise failure probability or location survival rate. Loan size is not total investment. Other loan statuses are excluded from the seasoned denominator. Activity combines 7(a) and 504 approvals, excluding canceled and not-funded records; this is not a rolling five-year count. FY2024-25 franchise tags are sparse after directory suspension; fewer tagged loans do not establish brand decline. Recent charge-off cohorts are immature.

SBA loans sourceSBA data · Jun 30, 2026 ↗

Median loan amounts are financing context, not startup cost. The median window is separate from the seasoned charge-off cohort.

Median SBA loan sourceSBA data · Jun 30, 2026 ↗

Questions before you invest

How much does Carl's Jr franchise cost?

Traditional Format (current prototype, ~3,200 sq ft freestanding with drive-thru): $1,816,500 to $3,304,700; New Format (~2,200 sq ft freestanding with drive-thru): $1,488,000 to $2,862,135 These are format-specific estimates, not a guaranteed cash requirement. Franchise fee: $15,000 to $25,000 · Extracted Item 5 scalar range, not a universal minimum or maximum; formats, eligibility, discounts and waivers require original-filing review..

Investment sourceFDD p.36 ↗

Franchise fee sourceFDD · page not captured ↗

How much do Carl's Jr owners make?

Owner income is not captured. Gross sales and EBITDA are not owner pay. Item 19 metric: Average/median gross revenue (Section I) and average food & paper costs and labor costs as a percentage of revenue (Section II) for franchised and company-owned freestanding restaurants. Sample: 778 freestanding restaurants systemwide (728 franchised, 50 company-operated); California subset of 517 (467 franchised, 50 company-operated); non-California subset of 298 franchised restaurants. Period: FY26 - 53 weeks, January 28, 2025 to January 26, 2026.

Item 19 performance sourceFDD p.73 ↗

What's the SBA charge-off rate for Carl's Jr?

Suppressed: fewer than 10 seasoned loans; numerator / denominator: 0 / 8. Historical 7(a) FY2010-2019 approvals; CHGOFF / (PIF + CHGOFF + EXEMPT) × 100, snapshot 2026-06-30. This is not a franchise failure probability. Median SBA loan: $938,000; window: FY2023-FY2026 YTD through 2026-06-30; sample: 3 loans. Median financing is not total investment.

SBA loans sourceSBA data · Jun 30, 2026 ↗

Median SBA loan sourceSBA data · Jun 30, 2026 ↗