Aloft HotelsFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Aloft Hotels franchise requires a total initial investment of $13.3M – $36.2M, including a $75K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.5% royalty[2]. The 2025 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $13.3M – $36.2M
- 44th pct Lodging
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- 2nd pct Lodging
- Royalty
- 5.5%
- 31st pct Lodging
- Units
- 166
- 39th pct Lodging
- SBA default
- 0.0%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Lodging · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Lodging 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
Franchised units fell from 164 to 154 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
17 legal cases disclosed in the FDD. Read Item 3 before signing.
Bottom line
- Total investment $13.3M – $36.2M including a $75K franchise fee, 5.5% ongoing royalty.
- Item 19 discloses "ADR, Occupancy, and RevPAR" rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable.
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 38/100.
- 17 litigation matters disclosed in Item 3, higher than typical. Review the summary for patterns (franchisor-initiated vs. franchisee-initiated).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- MIF, L.L.C.
- Parent company
- Marriott International, Inc.
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- 7750 Wisconsin Avenue, Bethesda, Maryland 20814
- Auditor
- Ernst & Young LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $94.4M
- vs $103.3M prior year
Overview
About
Aloft Hotel franchisees own and operate upper-midscale, limited-service hotels (typically 150-300 rooms) under the Marriott-owned Aloft brand, managing daily operations including front desk, housekeeping, F&B, and guest services. Franchisees must maintain brand standards, pay 5.5% gross room sales royalty, and handle all staffing, maintenance, and local marketing while Marriott handles reservation systems and brand marketing. Success depends on occupancy rates, average daily room rates, and controlling operating costs across a capital-intensive, labor-dependent asset.
- CEO
- Anthony Capuano
- Headquarters
- MD
- Founded
- 2012
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 35
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing · 19 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Application Fee | $75K | $75K | |
| Pre-Opening Training, Revenue Management, Marketing & Digital Support, and Related Servicesnot refundable | $50K | $81K | |
| Property Management, Reservation, Yield Management, Opportunity Management, and Other Systems | $83K | $135K | |
| Market Feasibility Study | $6K | $18K | |
| Real Estate | — | — | |
| Building Permit, Tap, and Impact Fees | — | — | |
| Building Construction | $127K | $212K | |
| Kitchen and Laundry Equipment | $4K | $6K | |
| Furniture and Fixtures | $17K | $24K | |
| Technology Hardware & Software and Network Infrastructure | $136K | $239K | |
| Operating Supplies | $184K | $252K | |
| Professional Design Services (including stylist) | $380K | $854K | |
| Insurance | — | — | |
| Start-up Costs | $2K | $4K | |
| Hard Cost Contingency (5% of hard costs) | — | — | |
| Food Safety and Sanitation Compliance | $210 | $210 | |
| Food and Beverage Consulting Services | $6K | $8K | |
| Opening Advertising | $121K | $156K | |
| Additional Funds (first 3 months) | $3K | $5K | |
| Total initial investment | $1.2M | $2.1M |
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
- $13.3M – $36.2M
- Near category avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $240K – $525K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $75K – $150K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 5.5%
- Gross Room Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 1.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 6.5%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.5% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 1.0% of gross sales |
| Transfer fee | $150K |
| Total fee load | 6.5% of rev |
Financial Performance
This brand's FDD disclosed "ADR, Occupancy, and RevPAR" in Item 19 rather than annual gross sales. This metric cannot be directly compared across brands, so we omit it from rankings.
vs Lodging averages
How Aloft Hotels Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 166
- Opened
- 5
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 1
- Non-renewed
- 1
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 0.6%
- Company-owned
- 2
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 99%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 15.0%
- Net growth (yr3)
- +2.5%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- +6.5%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 5
- Transfer rate
- 3.0%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Continuity rate
- 99.4%
- Units that stayed open
- Termination rate
- 0.6%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 24 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 loan disclosures. This brand has only 3 7(a) loans on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 3
- Loan volume
- $8.2M
- Median loan
- $1.0M
- 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
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 1
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Aloft Hotels's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 1 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 1 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 1-year lending trend
- SBA 504 real estate/equipment data
Instant access. No subscription.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Aloft presents meaningful caution-level risk due to extreme capital requirements without financial transparency, litigation overhang from data breach, stagnant unit growth, and unprotected territories—requiring deep validation of actual unit economics before commitment.
Litigation (Item 3)
Data Security Incident litigation - Starwood reservations database unauthorized access (November 30, 2018). MDL consolidated in U.S. District Court for District of Maryland. Claims include negligence, invasion of privacy, violation of federal/state consumer protection and data privacy laws, GDPR violations, conversion, misrepresentation, and unfair/deceptive trade practices. Defendants: Starwood, MII, and officers/directors. Plaintiffs seek statutory, actual, compensatory, punitive, and consequential damages including attorneys' fees.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Ernst & Young LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 38 / 100 rating
- 01MEDMassive capital requirement ($13.3M-$36.2M) with no disclosed net income data to validate ROI
- 02MINORAnemic unit growth of only 2.5% YoY suggests market saturation or franchisee dissatisfaction in 166-unit system
- 03HIGHOngoing 2018 Starwood data breach litigation creates reputational risk and potential liability exposure for franchisees
- 04MINORNo protected territory means direct competition from other Aloft franchisees and Marriott brands in same market
- 05MINOR5.5% royalty on gross room sales is owed regardless of profitability, creating cash flow pressure during downturns
- 06MINORMultiple class-action lawsuits and antitrust investigations indicate systemic franchisor governance issues
- 07MINORAbsence of Item 19 (financial performance representations) prevents validation of $107.73M average revenue claim
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 | 20 years |
|---|---|
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 0 |
| Territory type | Radius or Boundary |
| Protected territory | No |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | No |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Maryland |
| Litigation count | 17 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
Data Security Incident litigation - Starwood reservations database unauthorized access (November 30, 2018). MDL consolidated in U.S. District Court for District of Maryland. Claims include negligence, invasion of privacy, violation of federal/state consumer protection and data privacy laws, GDPR violations, conversion, misrepresentation, and unfair/deceptive trade practices. Defendants: Starwood, MII, and officers/directors. Plaintiffs seek statutory, actual, compensatory, punitive, and consequential damages including attorneys' fees.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 154 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 0 hrs
- Training location
- Off-site and on-site
- Time to open
- 30 mo
- From signing to launch
- POS system
- Designated POS System
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Designated POS System
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
75 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Aloft Hotels · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Aloft Hotels franchise?
The total investment to open a Aloft Hotels franchise ranges from $13.3M – $36.2M, with an initial franchise fee of $75K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Aloft Hotels franchise owners earn?
Aloft Hotels 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 Aloft Hotels's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Aloft Hotels (fewer than 10 loans on file). Charge-off rates are one way to gauge franchise risk, but not all franchise loans go through the SBA program. We recommend reviewing turnover and closure data in the FDD and speaking with current franchisees.
How many Aloft Hotels franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Aloft Hotels has 166 total units in the United States, including 164 franchised units and 2 company-owned units. 5 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Aloft Hotels a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Aloft Hotels as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 38 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.