How to use this site, and what each number means

Where every figure here comes from, which ones are comparable between brands, and the specific ways a franchise number can mislead you.

7 min read · Independent — no franchisor pays to appear here

Everything here is taken from a filing

Every figure on a brand page is extracted from that brand's own Franchise Disclosure Document as filed with a state registry, and linked back to the source document. Nothing is estimated, nothing is supplied by the franchisor for publication, and no brand can pay to change what appears.

That has a consequence worth stating: where a franchisor discloses something confusing, incomplete or self-flattering, you will see it that way here. We do not tidy it, because the tidied version would be ours rather than theirs.

The four numbers most people misread

Initial franchise fee (Item 5) — a deposit on the real cost, not the cost. Comparing brands on this figure is the most common beginner error.
Total investment (Item 7) — the range the franchisor discloses for opening one unit, and the number that actually matters. It usually includes only a short opening period of additional funds, so it is not a runway.
Royalty (Item 6) — normally a percentage of gross revenue, not profit. It is charged whether or not the unit makes money, and an advertising levy commonly sits on top of it.
Outlet counts (Item 20) — openings, closures, terminations, transfers and non-renewals, year by year. This is the only place in the document where the system's own churn is visible.

Turnover is the number worth learning to read

A system that opens two hundred units a year and closes a hundred and eighty is not growing, whatever the headline count says. Item 20 is where that shows up, and it is why this site computes turnover rather than only unit growth.

Watch for a system whose closure columns read zero across every year. Occasionally that is true. Far more often it means the figures did not survive extraction from the document, which is why we withhold a score in that case rather than award a perfect retention rank on it.

What the Factbook Score is and is not

The score blends owner retention, unit growth, disclosure quality and system maturity into a percentile within the brand's own category. It is computed, never assigned, and it cannot be bought.

It is a rank against the brands we can currently score in that category, which means a score in a thin category is a narrower statement than the same number in a large one. Where the underlying data cannot support a score, the brand shows "pending" with the reason instead of a low number — a gap is not a failing grade. The methodology page sets out every gate in full.

A sensible way to use the site

Start with the budget tool to find what is genuinely in range, or with categories if you do not yet know. Shortlist several brands rather than one. Read Items 5, 6, 7, 12, 19 and 20 of each disclosure document — we link to the source on every page. Then call the owners listed in Item 20, including the ones who left.

Only after that is a conversation with the franchisor worth having, because only then do you know which questions are the real ones.

This is not advice. It is general information about how franchising works, written from public filings and published rules. Your circumstances, your state and your agreement all change the answer. Before you sign anything, pay a franchise lawyer who is not connected to the franchisor or to a broker.

The rest of the series

What owning a franchise is actually likeThe parts of the job that nobody puts in a brochure: the first year, the hours, the control you give up, and what you are really buying.Your credit score, what you can borrow, and what it can be spent onHow franchise lending actually works: which score matters, roughly what lenders look for, how much of your own money goes in, and what a loan can and cannot cover.Territory, location, and how to check a franchise brokerWhy the site decision usually outlasts the franchise decision, and how to check the person recommending brands to you — including who actually pays them.Planning your exit before you sign, and limiting the downsideWhat your stake is worth when you want out, what happens if it does not work, and the terms that decide both — all of which are set on the day you sign.The red flags in a Franchise Disclosure DocumentSixteen things worth stopping for, item by item — including the four this site checks automatically on every brand, and what each one usually means.

Back to the franchisee tools — work out what fits your budget and how you want to work.