Zaxby's franchise research

Investment by format

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

Investment sourceFDD p.25 ↗

Franchise fees and ongoing costs

Franchise fee

$35,000 · Extracted Item 5 scalar range, not a universal minimum or maximum; formats, eligibility, discounts and waivers require original-filing review.

Royalty

6% · % of Gross Sales, paid weekly on Monday for the preceding week (incentive programs reduce to 0-4% for first two years)

Marketing contribution

1.5% (basis not captured; see original filing)

Technology fee

$0.06 per transaction, subject to caps (New Restaurants limited to lesser of $0.06/transaction or 0.33% of Gross Sales in first partial fiscal year); collected monthly after first partial year; may change beginning 2026

Other fees

Zax Rewardz program: $0.075 per dollar of Gross Sales from loyalty members; Franchisee Managed Training Program fee $500-$1,500 per Restaurant annually (if elected); Late fees $100/week (royalty) plus 18% interest

Working capital (FDD Item 7)

Additional Funds - 3 months: $1,000 to $96,000 (working capital for first three months of operation)

Fees sourceFDD p.18 ↗

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.25 ↗

Franchise fee sourceFDD · page not captured ↗

Financial performance: Item 19

Item 19 captured

Yes

Metric / basis

Average and median gross revenues of franchised Restaurants by quartile (Table 1, 3); average gross revenue, cost, and 4-wall EBITDAR/EBITDA by quartile for 270 franchised Restaurants (Table 2)

Reporting period

Fiscal year 2024 (Jan 1, 2024 - Dec 29, 2024)

Sample

776 franchised Restaurants (Table 1); 270 franchised Restaurants with submitted financials (Table 2)

Reported average

$2,782,488

Reported median

$2,710,374

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.61 ↗

Unit growth: Item 20

Reporting year

2024

Scope

franchised outlets

Starting outlets

796

Year-end outlets

826

Net change

+30

Derivation

ending minus starting outlets

Openings

37

Terminations

6

Non-renewals

0

Other closures

1

Reacquisitions

0

Transfers

58

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.65 ↗

SBA loan history

Loan activity

57 approvals

Activity window

FY2021-FY2026 YTD; snapshot 2026-06-30

Median SBA loan

$1,586,000

Median loan window

FY2023-FY2026 YTD through 2026-06-30

Median loan sample

32 loans

Historical charge-off share

2.60%

Cohort

7(a) FY2010-2019 approvals

Numerator / denominator

2 / 77

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 Zaxby's franchise cost?

Single Restaurant (assumes leased real estate, landlord not paying leasehold improvements): $1,445,000 to $3,810,500; Multi-unit Development Fee only (3-10 Restaurants, excludes per-Restaurant costs): $52,500 to $175,000 These are format-specific estimates, not a guaranteed cash requirement. Franchise fee: $35,000 · Extracted Item 5 scalar range, not a universal minimum or maximum; formats, eligibility, discounts and waivers require original-filing review..

Investment sourceFDD p.25 ↗

Franchise fee sourceFDD · page not captured ↗

How much do Zaxby's owners make?

Owner income is not captured. Gross sales and EBITDA are not owner pay. Item 19 metric: Average and median gross revenues of franchised Restaurants by quartile (Table 1, 3); average gross revenue, cost, and 4-wall EBITDAR/EBITDA by quartile for 270 franchised Restaurants (Table 2). Sample: 776 franchised Restaurants (Table 1); 270 franchised Restaurants with submitted financials (Table 2). Period: Fiscal year 2024 (Jan 1, 2024 - Dec 29, 2024).

Item 19 performance sourceFDD p.61 ↗

What's the SBA charge-off rate for Zaxby's?

2.60%; numerator / denominator: 2 / 77. 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: $1,586,000; window: FY2023-FY2026 YTD through 2026-06-30; sample: 32 loans. Median financing is not total investment.

SBA loans sourceSBA data · Jun 30, 2026 ↗

Median SBA loan sourceSBA data · Jun 30, 2026 ↗