Costa Vida Fresh Mexican Grill franchise research

Investment by format

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

Investment sourceFDD p.22 ↗

Franchise fees and ongoing costs

Franchise fee

$30,000 · Extracted Item 5 scalar range, not a universal minimum or maximum; formats, eligibility, discounts and waivers require original-filing review.

Royalty

6% · 6% of monthly Net Sales, payable monthly by the 15th of the following month (may be moved to as often as weekly)

Marketing contribution

2% (basis not captured; see original filing)

Technology fee

Information Systems Administration Fee (ISAF) up to 0.25% of Net Sales, monthly; plus Digital Menu System $75/month, Music subscription $39/month, and Centralized data system $50-$150/month

Other fees

Marketing Administration Fee (MAF) 0.5% of Net Sales monthly; Late payment fee $100/delinquent payment; Late reporting fee $25/report/day delinquent

Working capital (FDD Item 7)

$50,000-$100,000 estimated working capital for the first three months, covering lease payments, inventory, payroll, insurance, marketing, maintenance, and other operating expenses; first-Restaurant training costs push this toward the high end.

Fees sourceFDD p.15 ↗

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.22 ↗

Franchise fee sourceFDD · page not captured ↗

Financial performance: Item 19

Item 19 captured

Yes

Metric / basis

Average Unit Volume (AUV), Restaurant-level EBITDAR (before rent) and expense categories as % of AUV, plus Net Sales high/average/low/median

Reporting period

Fiscal year 2025 (twelve months ended December 31, 2025)

Sample

83 of 89 U.S. Costa Vida restaurants operating as of December 31, 2025 that were open the entire year (6 excluded: not operating in the U.S., incomplete-year data, or non-traditional restaurants)

Reported average

$2,153,159

Reported median

$2,074,364

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.57 ↗

Unit growth: Item 20

Reporting year

2025

Scope

franchised outlets

Starting outlets

47

Year-end outlets

47

Net change

+0

Derivation

ending minus starting outlets

Openings

2

Terminations

0

Non-renewals

0

Other closures

2

Reacquisitions

0

Transfers

Not captured

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.58 ↗

SBA loan history

Loan activity

3 approvals

Activity window

FY2021-FY2026 YTD; snapshot 2026-06-30

Median SBA loan

$658,500

Median loan window

FY2023-FY2026 YTD through 2026-06-30

Median loan sample

2 loans

Historical charge-off share

Suppressed: fewer than 10 seasoned loans

Cohort

7(a) FY2010-2019 approvals

Numerator / denominator

1 / 3

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 Costa Vida Fresh Mexican Grill franchise cost?

standard: $674,500 to $1,340,000 These are format-specific estimates, not a guaranteed cash requirement. Franchise fee: $30,000 · Extracted Item 5 scalar range, not a universal minimum or maximum; formats, eligibility, discounts and waivers require original-filing review..

Investment sourceFDD p.22 ↗

Franchise fee sourceFDD · page not captured ↗

How much do Costa Vida Fresh Mexican Grill owners make?

Owner income is not captured. Gross sales and EBITDA are not owner pay. Item 19 metric: Average Unit Volume (AUV), Restaurant-level EBITDAR (before rent) and expense categories as % of AUV, plus Net Sales high/average/low/median. Sample: 83 of 89 U.S. Costa Vida restaurants operating as of December 31, 2025 that were open the entire year (6 excluded: not operating in the U.S., incomplete-year data, or non-traditional restaurants). Period: Fiscal year 2025 (twelve months ended December 31, 2025).

Item 19 performance sourceFDD p.57 ↗

What's the SBA charge-off rate for Costa Vida Fresh Mexican Grill?

Suppressed: fewer than 10 seasoned loans; numerator / denominator: 1 / 3. 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: $658,500; window: FY2023-FY2026 YTD through 2026-06-30; sample: 2 loans. Median financing is not total investment.

SBA loans sourceSBA data · Jun 30, 2026 ↗

Median SBA loan sourceSBA data · Jun 30, 2026 ↗