Buffalo Wild Wings Sports BarFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Buffalo Wild Wings Sports Bar franchise requires a total initial investment of $2.5M – $4.9M, including a $25K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $3.6M[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2026 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $2.5M – $4.9M
- 48th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $3.6M
- 27th pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 7th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 1,178
- 48th pct Service Resta…
- SBA default
- N/A
Quick verdict · Full-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Full-Service Restaurants 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
Franchising since 1991. Systems this mature have refined operations and brand recognition.
Large franchise systems benefit from brand recognition, supply chain leverage, and proven operations.
Bottom line
- Total investment $2.5M – $4.9M including a $25K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $3.6M/year (median $3.4M).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 16/100.
- 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
- Legal entity
- Buffalo Wild Wings International, Inc.
- Parent company
- Buffalo Wild Wings, Inc.
- Incorporated in
- OH
- HQ
- Three Glenlake Pkwy NE, Atlanta, Georgia 30328
- Auditor
- KPMG LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $2.3B
- vs $2.3B prior year
Independent franchisee associations
- Franchise Advisory Council (FAC)
- Independent Franchisee Association
Franchisee-led councils or alliances disclosed in Item 20. Indicates operator voice.
Overview
About
Franchisees operate full-service sports bars serving wings, burgers, and appetizers with heavy emphasis on televised sports viewing. Day-to-day operations include managing 50–150+ staff, handling inventory and food costs, coordinating with corporate on marketing/promotions, managing delivery/takeout logistics, and maintaining compliance with franchise system standards.
- CEO
- Paul Brown
- Headquarters
- GA
- Founded
- 1990
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 38
FDD Item 7 · 2026 filing · 20 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fees related to site approval | $1K | $54K | |
| Initial franchise fee | $13K | $25K | |
| Reimbursement of expenses and administrative fee for on-site training | $0 | $105K | |
| Architecture fees (based upon utilization of national firm) | $90K | $160K | |
| Construction and leasehold improvements | $1.2M | $2.1M | |
| Furniture, fixtures, equipment and other fixed assets | $570K | $925K | |
| Audio/Visual equipment | $275K | $425K | |
| Computer POS system/kitchen display unit | $28K | $51K | |
| Office equipment and supplies | $6K | $13K | |
| Decor Package | $13K | $27K | |
| Signage and graphics (excluding pylon or monument signage) | $43K | $100K | |
| Training expenses | $15K | $40K | |
| Initial inventory | $18K | $36K | |
| Insurance | $25K | $48K | |
| Additional funds - 3 months | $100K | $150K | |
| Rent | $8K | $40K | |
| Lease and utility security deposits | $10K | $20K | |
| Grand opening advertising | $13K | $13K | |
| Liquor license | $5K | $500K | |
| Professional fees | $20K | $70K | |
| Total initial investment | $2.5M | $4.9M |
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.
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
$322K
9.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
8%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
11.8 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $2.5M – $4.9M
- Near category avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $100K – $150K
- Near category avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $13K – $25K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 4.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 9.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 4.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $62 |
| Transfer fee | $13K |
| Renewal fee | $20K |
| Total fee load | 9.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $3.6M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $3.4M
- Item 19 type
- Annual Unit Volumes
- Sample size
- 532 units
- vs category median 13 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $1.4M→$8.1M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $2.3M→$5.1M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Transparency
- 4 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · typical
Compared against 1264 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.
vs Full-Service Restaurants averages
How Buffalo Wild Wings Sports Bar Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 1,178
- Opened
- 15
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 4
- Terminated
- 15
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 1
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 0.3%
- Company-owned
- 629
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 47%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- +2.0%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- +3.0%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Closed (3yr)
- 2
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 8
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Transfer rate
- 38.1%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Continuity rate
- 100.0%
- Units that stayed open
- Termination rate
- 76.2%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 14.3%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 38 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.
Available to sell in · Item 12
- Michigan
States where the franchisor is registered to sell new franchises (FDD registration filings).
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 53
- Loan volume
- N/A
- Amount data pending
- Median loan
- N/A
- Charge-off rate
- N/A
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- N/A
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 0
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Buffalo Wild Wings presents moderate-to-cautious risk: pending litigation over product authenticity, undisclosed franchisee profitability, stagnant unit growth, and history of fee-related litigation weaken an otherwise established brand.
Litigation (Item 3)
9 case reference(s): 1 pending, 3 settled.
Largest disclosed settlement: $115,000
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · KPMG LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Must buy proprietary products: No
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
Score breakdown · what drove the 16 / 100 rating
- 01HIGHPending litigation (Halim) over core product marketing ('boneless wings') creates brand/legal exposure and potential operational/menu changes
- 02MINORNo Item 19 (net income) disclosure prevents validation of 3.57M avg revenue translating to actual franchisee profitability
- 03MINORMinimal unit growth (2.0% YoY) on 1,178 units suggests market saturation and weak franchisee demand despite 20-year terms
- 04MINORMultiple concluded class actions (Wheeldon, Pittman) indicate history of customer/franchisee disputes over fees and transparency
- 05MINORHigh investment range ($2.46M–$4.9M) requires strong ROI proof, but lack of income data makes breakeven/payback period unverifiable
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 |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | Designated Area |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 6 |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Georgia |
| Litigation count | 3 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
9 case reference(s): 1 pending, 3 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 11 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 253 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
572 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Buffalo Wild Wings Sports Bar · FDD (2026) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Buffalo Wild Wings Sports Bar franchise?
The total investment to open a Buffalo Wild Wings Sports Bar franchise ranges from $2.5M – $4.9M, with an initial franchise fee of $25K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Buffalo Wild Wings Sports Bar franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Buffalo Wild Wings Sports Bar 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 Sports Bar's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Buffalo Wild Wings Sports Bar (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 Buffalo Wild Wings Sports Bar franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Buffalo Wild Wings Sports Bar has 1,178 total units in the United States, including 533 franchised units and 629 company-owned units. 15 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Buffalo Wild Wings Sports Bar a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Buffalo Wild Wings Sports Bar as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 16 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.