Buffalo Wild Wings Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Buffalo Wild Wings franchise requires a total initial investment of $2.5M – $4.9M, including a $13K – $25K franchise fee. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $3.6M[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 0.0% charge-off rate across 22 loans[1]. FranchiseVerdict grade: A (Strongest tier), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified · figures per the 2026 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $2.5M – $4.9M
- 51st pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $3.6M
- 27th pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- N/A
- Units
- 1,178
- 51st pct Service Resta…
- SBA charge-off
- 0.0%
- % of SBA 7(a) loans not repaid · median varies by category
Quick verdict · Full-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Full-Service Restaurants 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
- Total investment $2.5M – $4.9M including a $13K franchise fee.
- Average unit revenue of $3.6M/year (median $3.4M).
- Verdict A (Strongest tier), verdict score 65/100 (higher is better). SBA loan charge-off rate of 0.0% across 22 loans (well below the franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2025).
- Established system with 1,178 units across 35 years of franchising. Strong brand recognition and operational playbook.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Buffalo Wild Wings International, Inc.
- Parent company
- Inspire Brands, Inc.
- Ultimate parent
- Roark Capital Management, LLC (private equity)
- CEO title
- Inspire Brands Chief Executive Officer
- Paul Brown
- HQ
- Three Glenlake Pkwy NE, Atlanta, GA 30328
- Franchisor revenue
- $2.3B
- vs $2.3B prior year
Overview
About
Sports entertainment-oriented casual/fast casual restaurant offering chicken wings, sandwiches, and other food and beverages including alcohol
- CEO
- Paul Brown
- Headquarters
- GA
- Founded
- 1990
- FDD year
- 2026
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 291% above the typical full-service restaurants franchise.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7 · 2026 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $13K | $13K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $100K | $150K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $2.4M | $4.7M |
| Total initial investment | $2.5M | $4.9M |
Source: Buffalo Wild Wings 2026 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
- $2.5M – $4.9M
- Middle of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $100K – $150K
- Middle of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $13K – $25K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 5% of Gross Sales for first half of Franchise Agreement t…
- Ad fund
- 4.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 0.1%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Marketing / ad fund | 4.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $62 |
| Training fee | $3K |
| Transfer fee | $13K |
| Renewal fee | $20K |
| Inventory (initial) | $18K – $36K |
| Total fee load | 0.1% of rev |
A 0.1% total fee load is unusually lean. More of each revenue dollar stays with the franchisee.
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 133% above the full-service restaurants norm.
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 19
Single-unit · estimated
Returns at a glance
Indicative numbers using FDD Item 7 / Item 19 inputs and category-benchmarked cost ratios. Full single-unit, 25-unit portfolio, and LBO models (with every input editable to stress-test your own scenario) live on the financials page.
Store EBITDA · annual
$286K
8.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
8%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
13.3 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $3.6M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $3.4M
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
- Item 19 type
- historical AUV by quartile
- Sample size
- 532 units
- vs category median 16 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $1.4M→$8.1M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $2.3M→$5.1M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Reporting year
- 2026
- Fiscal year the figures cover
Compared against 1273 Full-Service Restaurants brands
Revenue is only 1.0x the investment. This means each unit may take 5+ years to recoup the initial outlay at typical margins.
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Unit economics
Average unit generates $3.6M/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 1.0x.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 0.1% — below the Full-Service Restaurants average of 7.6%.
Operator retention
System roughly stable (+3.0% 3-year CAGR) with 1,178 units.
Source: FDD Item 19 financial performance representations and publicly filed FDD data. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Verify all figures with the franchisor and current franchisees before making any investment decision.
vs Full-Service Restaurants averages
How Buffalo Wild Wings Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 1,178
- Opened
- 15
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 3
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 1
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 1.1%
- Company-owned
- 629
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 0%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +3.0%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +3.0%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 9
- Closed (3yr)
- 5
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 1
- Transfers (3yr)
- 7
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 22
- Loan volume
- $13.2M
- Median loan
- $530K
- 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
- 13
- Defaults
- 0
- Typical loan rate
- 9.0%
- avg rate to borrowers
- vs industry
- N/A
- NAICS 7225
- Jobs supported
- 520
- 3.9 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 14%
- top lender's share
Borrower mix: 0% went to startups / new businesses, 100% to established operators
Top lenders financing Buffalo Wild Wings franchisees
Showing 3 of 13 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.
With a 0.0% charge-off rate across 22 loans, banks have historically viewed this brand favorably for lending.
What could kill this investment?
SBA loans charge off at 0.0% — 100% 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 class action (Halim) alleging deceptive "boneless wings" marketing. Two concluded consumer class actions settled for $47,500 and $115,000 over delivery/service fee disclosure. Additional settled actions against affiliates (Arby's Restaurant Group, Dunkin' Brands) over no-poaching provisions and a data breach, and a Jimmy John's FDD disclosure consent order - none allege wrongdoing by Buffalo Wild Wings itself.
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: No
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 0.1% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 20 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | protected |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory population | 35,000 |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 5 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 90 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 27 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 2 |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Governing law | GA |
| Litigation count | 6 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
One pending class action (Halim) alleging deceptive "boneless wings" marketing. Two concluded consumer class actions settled for $47,500 and $115,000 over delivery/service fee disclosure. Additional settled actions against affiliates (Arby's Restaurant Group, Dunkin' Brands) over no-poaching provisions and a data breach, and a Jimmy John's FDD disclosure consent order - none allege wrongdoing by Buffalo Wild Wings itself.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 10 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 252 hrs
- Training location
- National Certified Training Sports Bar (NCTSB)
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 13 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- franchisee, subject to franchisor acceptance of site
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Designated POS system (approved supplier); information system costs $25,000-$40,000, annual maintenance $2,000-$9,000
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Designated POS system (approved supplier); information system costs $25,000-$40,000, annual maintenance $2,000-$9,000
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Buffalo Wild Wings franchise?
The total investment to open a Buffalo Wild Wings franchise ranges from $2.5M – $4.9M, with an initial franchise fee of $13K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Buffalo Wild Wings franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Buffalo Wild Wings FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $3.6M. The median is $3.4M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Buffalo Wild Wings's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Buffalo Wild Wings has a charge-off rate of 0.0% across 22 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 Buffalo Wild Wings franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Buffalo Wild Wings has 1,178 total units in the United States, including 549 franchised units and 629 company-owned units. 15 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Buffalo Wild Wings a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Buffalo Wild Wings as a A-grade franchise with a verdict score of 65 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.
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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.