Ace Hardware Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Ace Hardware franchise requires a total initial investment of $612K – $2.0M, including a $5K franchise fee. The latest FDD on file does not yield a unit-revenue figure we can publish. SBA 7(a) loans show a 13.4% charge-off rate across 863 loans[1]. FranchiseVerdict grade: A (Strongest tier), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified
Overview
- Investment
- $612K – $2.0M
- 45th pct Retail
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Outlet subset
- Royalty
- N/A
- Units
- 5,250
- 44th pct Retail
- SBA charge-off
- 13.4%
- % of SBA 7(a) loans not repaid · median varies by category
Quick verdict · Retail · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Retail avg · No shading = within ±10% · Red = unfavorable by >10% · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Bottom line
- COSTTotal investment $612K – $2.0M including a $5K franchise fee.
- RETURNSSales-weighted mean across all five printed retail formats of the 478 stores in the PPG Retail Financial Report: Express $2,117,668 (n=7), Convenience $2,935,511 (n=50), Core $3,061,641 (n=231), Super $5,521,303 (n=150), Home Center $10,756,255 (n=33), printed p.70. Ace publishes no system average, and the Core Hardware format alone — one of the five, about 30% below the all-format figure — is not one. The sample is voluntary: the 478 participants are 9.78% of domestic Ace branded stores.
- RISKVerdict A (Strongest tier), verdict score 76/100 (higher is better). SBA loan charge-off rate of 13.4% across 863 loans (above the 16% franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2025).
- DATAItem 19 reports historical single-store sales data by retail-format segment (PPG Retail Financial Report), gross sales only, no net income rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable. Ask franchisees directly for full unit-level revenue.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Ace Hardware Corporation
- Predecessor
- Ace Hardware Corporation (Illinois corporation organized in 1928)
- Prior franchisor entity
- Incorporated in
- Delaware
- HQ
- 2915 Jorie Boulevard, Oak Brook, Illinois 60523-2100
- Franchisor revenue
- $10.0B
- vs $9.5B prior year
Overview
About
Retailer-owned hardware cooperative; wholesaler of hardware products, paint, and related merchandise to member-owned retail hardware stores operating under the Ace or Ace Hardware name
- Headquarters
- Illinois
- Founded
- 1928
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 218% above the typical retail franchise.
Source: FDD · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $5K | $5K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $91K | $205K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $516K | $1.8M |
| Total initial investment | $612K | $2.0M |
Source: Ace Hardware FDD, Items 5 and 7[2]. “Equipment, build-out, other” is computed as total minus disclosed line items above.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $612K – $2.0M
- Middle of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $91K – $205K
- Middle of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $5K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- No traditional royalty; cooperative model. Annual Brand A…
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty (flat) | Initial Annual Brand Assessment: flat $6,000 (Q1-Q3 activation) or $12,000 (Q4 activation) |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Inventory (initial) | $210K – $1.0M |
What do units actually make?
Source: FDD · Item 19
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
No Item 19 revenue figure for Ace Hardware is on file. The return models need a revenue figure to start from, and the operating costs that turn gross sales into a profit are in no FDD. Enter your own and the calculator runs on your assumptions — nothing here is modelled until you do.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Ace Hardware unit return on the cash you put in?
Illustrative category typicals — not sourced to any filing, survey or sample. Replace them with figures from franchisee validation calls before you rely on the output.
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Your modelled return on total invested capital, before any debt financing.
—
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for annual revenue, royalty rate, COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
These models are for research and scenario planning only. Not investment advice. Actual results depend on your specific location, management, and market conditions. Consult a franchise attorney and accountant before signing any franchise agreement.
Financial Performance
Sales-weighted mean across all five printed retail formats of the 478 stores in the PPG Retail Financial Report: Express $2,117,668 (n=7), Convenience $2,935,511 (n=50), Core $3,061,641 (n=231), Super $5,521,303 (n=150), Home Center $10,756,255 (n=33), printed p.70. Ace publishes no system average, and the Core Hardware format alone — one of the five, about 30% below the all-format figure — is not one. The sample is voluntary: the 478 participants are 9.78% of domestic Ace branded stores.
Reported for a subset of outlets rather than the whole system
- Item 19 type
- historical single-store sales data by retail-format segment (PPG Retail Financial Report), gross sales only, no net income
- Sample size
- 478 outlets
- vs category median 47 · large
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
Compared against 278 Retail brands
vs Retail averages
How Ace Hardware Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 5,250
- Opened
- N/A
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- N/A
- Turnover rate
- 1.7%
- Company-owned
- 268
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 95%
- vs corporate-owned
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 173
- Closed (3yr)
- 19
- Terminated (3yr)
- 65
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 105
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 5
- Franchisor bought back
No multi-year history disclosed and no opening/closing activity in the last reporting year.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 863
- Loan volume
- $578.7M
- Median loan
- $450K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 13.4%
- rates vary by category · see methodology
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- 86.6%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 238
- Defaults
- 77
- Typical loan rate
- 6.2%
- avg rate to borrowers
- vs industry
- N/A
- NAICS 4441
- Jobs supported
- 12,974
- 2.2 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 16%
- top lender's share
Borrower mix: 0% went to startups / new businesses, 100% to established operators
Vintage analysis
Ace Hardware charge-off rate by loan vintage
Top lenders financing Ace Hardware franchisees
Showing 3 of 238 lenders. The full breakdown — every lender, state distribution, interest rates & risk ratings — is in the SBA Lending Report below.
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
What could kill this investment?
SBA loans charge off at 13.4% — 16% below the 16.0% national norm, i.e. lower lender-observed risk.
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA · FDD Items 3, 21
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 4, 8, 16, 21
Risk & Legal
Litigation (Item 3)
One pending consumer/franchise-fraud-adjacent suit against Ace and Ace Handyman-related defendants (Hessler); three concluded matters (Cathay Bank successor-liability settlement $1.1M total/$650K by Ace, Advanced Caregivers class-type fraud claims settled $25,000 per plaintiff, trademark dispute with unrelated Ace Handyman Services Inc settled $150,000); plus one collection action against a former member for unpaid amounts
Largest disclosed settlement: $1,100,000
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: No
- Restricted to system-approved products: No
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: Yes
What are you signing up for?
Source: FDD · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Territory type | none |
|---|---|
| Protected territory | No |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 1 year |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 5 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Governing law | Illinois |
| Litigation count | 5 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
One pending consumer/franchise-fraud-adjacent suit against Ace and Ace Handyman-related defendants (Hessler); three concluded matters (Cathay Bank successor-liability settlement $1.1M total/$650K by Ace, Advanced Caregivers class-type fraud claims settled $25,000 per plaintiff, trademark dispute with unrelated Ace Handyman Services Inc settled $150,000); plus one collection action against a former member for unpaid amounts
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Ongoing training
- Optional
- Site selection
- franchisee
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Epicor Software Corporation (or other designated vendor)
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Epicor Software Corporation (or other designated vendor)
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Ace Hardware franchise?
The total investment to open a Ace Hardware franchise ranges from $612K – $2.0M, with an initial franchise fee of $5K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Ace Hardware franchise owners earn?
No average owner earnings figure for Ace Hardware is on file. Item 19 — where a franchisor may disclose what its outlets earn — is voluntary under the FTC Franchise Rule, and we have not established what this brand's FDD says. Item 20 of the FDD lists current and former franchisees; asking them directly is the standard way to fill this gap.
What is Item 19 in the Ace Hardware FDD?
The FDD section where a franchisor may disclose financial performance of its outlets. Disclosure is optional and formats vary; figures are typically gross sales, which is revenue before expenses, not profit. FranchiseVerdict extracts these figures directly from the Ace Hardware FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Ace Hardware's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Ace Hardware has a charge-off rate of 13.4% across 863 loans, meaning 13.4% of franchise loans were charged off. Charge-off rates are one proxy for franchise risk, though they do not capture all closures. This data comes from FOIA-sourced SBA lending records.
How many Ace Hardware franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Ace Hardware has 5,250 total units in the United States, including 4,982 franchised units and 268 company-owned units.
Is Ace Hardware a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Ace Hardware as a A-grade franchise with a verdict score of 76 out of 100 (higher is better), based on our analysis of investment costs, revenue data, SBA loan performance, and growth trends. Our rating is based solely on publicly available FDD and government data; we recommend speaking with current franchisees before making any investment decision. This is not investment advice.
Data sourced from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) FOIA records. Not financial advice.
For franchisors
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Data extracted from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) loan disclosures (FOIA). This information is provided for research purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. Verify all figures with the franchisor's current Franchise Disclosure Document before making any investment decision.