AlignLifeFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A AlignLife franchise requires a total initial investment of $228K – $596K, including a $49K franchise fee and an ongoing 7.0% royalty[2]. The 2025 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). SBA 7(a) loans show a 0.0% charge-off rate across 17 loans[1]. Verdict grade: F. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $228K – $596K
- 49th pct Healthcare
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- 48th pct Healthcare
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- 34th pct Healthcare
- Units
- 32
- 47th pct Healthcare
- SBA default
- 0.0%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Healthcare · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Healthcare avg · No shading = within ±15% · Red = >15% below avg · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Only 0.0% of 17 SBA loans charged off, well below the 16% franchise average.
The system contracted 9% year-over-year. Investigate why units are closing.
The franchisor's auditor raised doubt about continued operations. This is a serious risk signal.
Bottom line
- Total investment $228K – $596K including a $49K franchise fee, 7.0% ongoing royalty.
- No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed. The franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
- Verdict F (Bottom Quintile) with a risk score of 79/100. SBA loan charge-off rate of 0.0% across 17 loans (well below the franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2024).
- Auditor disclosed a going-concern note, which flagged doubt about the franchisor's ability to continue operations. Verify against the latest FDD.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- ALIGNLIFE SYSTEMS, LLC
- Incorporated in
- IL
- HQ
- 624 W. Glen Ave., Peoria, IL 61614
- Auditor
- Kezos & Dunlavy
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $2.8M
- vs $3.2M prior year
- ⚠ Going-concern note
- Disclosed in FDD 2025
- Auditor flagged doubt about continued operations. Verify against the latest FDD before deciding.
Overview
About
AlignLife franchisees operate chiropractic and wellness clinics providing spinal adjustments, physical therapy, and complementary health services. Day-to-day operations include patient consultations and treatments, staff management, insurance billing, facility maintenance, and local marketing. Franchisees must be licensed chiropractors or hire licensed practitioners to deliver core services.
- CEO
- Joseph Esposito
- Headquarters
- IL
- Founded
- 2007
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 12
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing · 48 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Franchise Fee (New Franchise)not refundable | $49K | $49K | |
| Chiropractic or Other Professional Equipment (New Franchise)not refundable | $20K | $30K | |
| X-Ray Equipment (New Franchise)not refundable | $38K | $45K | |
| Bio Impedance Analysis Unit (New Franchise)not refundable | $284 | $9K | |
| Lease Deposit (New Franchise) | $6K | $9K | |
| Legal and Accounting (New Franchise)not refundable | $1K | $3K | |
| Signage (New Franchise)not refundable | $8K | $15K | |
| Furnishings (New Franchise)not refundable | $3K | $5K | |
| Millwork (New Franchise)not refundable | $24K | $31K | |
| Clinic and Architectural Design (New Franchise)not refundable | $5K | $15K | |
| Permits, Licenses (New Franchise)not refundable | $1K | $7K | |
| Center Construction (New Franchise)not refundable | $20K | $260K | |
| Insurance (New Franchise)not refundable | $500 | $2K | |
| Initial Inventory and Supplies (New Franchise)not refundable | $5K | $6K | |
| Technology Package (New Franchise)not refundable | $10K | $17K | |
| Initial Corporate Training and Annual Symposium Expenses (New Franchise)not refundable | $1K | $2K | |
| EMR Software Subscription and Start Up Fee - 3 Months (New Franchise)not refundable | $1K | $1K | |
| Merchant Services (Credit Card Processing) - 3 Months (New Franchise)not refundable | $135 | $135 | |
| QuickBooks Essential Subscription & Bookkeeping Services - 3 Months (New Franchise)not refundable | $848 | $2K | |
| VoIP Telephone Service and Start Up Equipment - 3 Months (New Franchise)not refundable | $152 | $548 | |
| Total initial investment | $295K | $987K |
Line items extracted from FDD Item 7. Ranges reflect the franchisor's stated low and high per line. Total is the sum of line-item lows / highs — actual costs may fall outside this range depending on market and build-out scope.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $228K – $596K
- Near category avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $15K – $20K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $39K – $49K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- $276
- Total fee load
- 7.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 7.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $126 |
| Training fee | $125 |
| Transfer fee | $29K |
| Renewal fee | $0 |
| Total fee load | 7.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
This franchisor did not disclose financial performance representations in Item 19, or our extractor could not parse them.
vs Healthcare averages
How AlignLife Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 32
- Opened
- 3
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 6
- Terminated
- 1
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 4
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 18.8%
- Company-owned
- 2
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 94%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 33.3%
- Net growth (yr3)
- -9.1%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- -3.2%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Projected new
- 9
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Termination rate
- 15.6%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 18.8%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 22 states with active franchisees
The Territory Map
Derived from franchisee contact records. Shows states with at least one current operator. Not where the franchisor is registered to sell new units (that data is re-extracting in a future refresh).
States derived from franchisee contact records (FDD Item 20). Shows states with at least one current operator on file. Full state registration data (Item 12) will appear on a future FDD refresh.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 17
- Loan volume
- $3.1M
- Median loan
- $140K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 0.0%
- 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)
- 100.0%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 12
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into AlignLife's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 10 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 8 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 7-year lending trend
Instant access. No subscription.
With a 0.0% charge-off rate across 17 loans, banks have historically viewed this brand favorably for lending.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
AlignLife presents meaningful financial and operational risk due to declining franchisee count, lack of earnings transparency, and high capital requirements without disclosed average returns.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation is required to be disclosed
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Kezos & Dunlavy⚠ Going-concern note flagged
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 79 / 100 rating
- 01MINORUnit count declining 9.1% YoY (32 units) indicates system contraction and potential market saturation or franchisee dissatisfaction
- 02MEDNo average revenue or net income disclosure (Item 19 missing) prevents accurate ROI assessment and raises transparency concerns
- 03MEDHigh investment range ($227K-$596K) combined with undisclosed profitability creates significant financial risk for franchisees
- 04MINORMinimum royalty of $175/week ($9,100/year) represents fixed overhead regardless of sales performance, creating break-even pressure
- 05MINORChiropractic/wellness franchise business model has high dependency on practitioner licensure, local competition, and patient acquisition costs
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | Population and Radius |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 5 mi |
| Territory population | 40,000 |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 20 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Peoria, IL |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Illinois |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation is required to be disclosed
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 114 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 15 hrs
- Training location
- Online, various sites determined by franchisor
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Field support
- 53 hrs/yr
- On-site visits per year
- Time to open
- 6 mo
- From signing to launch
- POS system
- ChiroHD
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: ChiroHD
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
32 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
AlignLife · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a AlignLife franchise?
The total investment to open a AlignLife franchise ranges from $228K – $596K, with an initial franchise fee of $49K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do AlignLife franchise owners earn?
AlignLife does not disclose average franchise owner earnings in their FDD Item 19. Not all franchisors are required to make financial performance representations. We recommend asking existing franchisees directly about their financial experience.
What is AlignLife's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, AlignLife has a charge-off rate of 0.0% across 17 loans, meaning 0.0% 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 AlignLife franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, AlignLife has 32 total units in the United States, including 30 franchised units and 2 company-owned units. 3 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is AlignLife a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates AlignLife as a F-grade franchise with a risk score of 79 out of 100, 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.
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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.