Chuck’s Hot Chicken Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Chuck's Hot Chicken is a fast-casual franchise serving Nashville-style hot chicken sandwiches and tenders with customizable heat. Franchisees run the restaurants, managing food prep, staffing, and counter service.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Chuck’s Hot Chicken franchise requires a total initial investment of $499K – $817K, including a $30K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.5% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.2M[2]. FranchiseVerdict grade: B (Above average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $499K – $817K
- 76th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $1.2M
- Incl. company outlets20th pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 5.5%
- 42nd pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 6
- 27th pct Service Resta…
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Quick-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Quick-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
- COSTTotal investment $499K – $817K including a $30K franchise fee, 5.5% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $1.2M/year (median $1.2M) (includes company-owned outlets).
- RISKVerdict B (Above average), verdict score 56/100 (higher is better).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Chuck's Hot Chicken Franchising LLC
- Ultimate parent
- Chuck's Hot Chicken LLC
- CEO title
- Co-Founder and Co-Owner
- Jonathan Plawsky
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- MO
- HQ
- 111 Westport Plaza Drive, Suite #657, Maryland Heights, MO 63146
- Auditor
- DA ADVISORY GROUP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $330K
- vs $121K prior year
Overview
About
- CEO
- Jonathan Plawsky
- Headquarters
- MO
- Founded
- 2021
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 14
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost is about average for a quick-service restaurants franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $30K | $30K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $20K | $30K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $449K | $757K |
| Total initial investment | $499K | $817K |
Source: Chuck’s Hot Chicken 2025 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
- $499K – $817K
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $20K – $30K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $30K – $30K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 5.5%
- percentage · 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 |
| Technology fee | $558 |
| Transfer fee | $15K |
| Renewal fee | $5K |
| Inventory (initial) | $15K – $20K |
| Total fee load | 6.5% of rev |
A 6.5% total fee load is unusually lean. More of each revenue dollar stays with the franchisee.
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales land near the quick-service restaurants norm.
Includes company-owned outlets
Source: FDD 2025 · 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
$189K
15.5% margin
Unlevered ROIC
28%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
3.6 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
What one unit earns on your invested capital
Model A · Single-Unit Return
Computes unlevered return on invested capital (ROIC) for a single franchise unit. The target band for an attractive franchise is 30–60% ROIC. Below that and a passive index fund likely outperforms; above that and the franchisor has pricing power you're subsidizing.
Note: Item 19 revenue is what the franchisor discloses. It's the top line only. Operating costs below are category estimates. Override them to match your real lease quote, labor market, and build-out budget.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Chuck’s Hot Chicken unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
28%
Below the 30–60% attractive-franchise band
What 25 units return when you use SBA financing
Model B · Return on Equity: Debt-Financed Acquisition
Models a 25-unit portfolio acquisition financed with an SBA 7(a) loan. Shows equity IRR (your return on cash invested), DSCR (how safely the cash flow covers debt service), and the capital stack (SBA + seller + equity breakdown).
This is the “search fund” or “entrepreneurship through acquisition” scenario: you buy an existing multi-unit operator, use leverage to amplify returns, and either operate or hire management. The 25-unit size is the typical minimum for an SBA-backed franchise portfolio acquisition to pencil as a full-time income.
What “return on equity” means here: if you put in $500K of your own cash and the business generates enough EBITDA to pay down debt and grow, your equity IRR is the annual return on that $500K, including the value created when you eventually sell. Target IRR for a search fund is typically 25–35%.
Levered LBO scenario · Yale Crease Capital framing
What would 25 Chuck’s Hot Chicken units return on equity?
Equity IRR · 5-yr
47.7%
7.03× MOIC
Year-1 DSCR
1.92×
EBITDA ÷ debt service
Equity required
$2.2M
on $10.3M purchase
Total debt
$8.1M
SBA $5.0M + senior + seller note
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.
Item 19 · Source: 2025 FDD
Financial Performance
Includes company-owned outlets
- Avg gross sales
- $1.2M
- Per unit/yr · from the Item 19 franchised-cohort breakdown (no single system-wide average disclosed)
- Median gross sales
- $1.2M
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
- Item 19 type
- gross revenue
- Sample size
- 3
- vs category median 20 · small
- Range (low → high)
- $889K→$1.6M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2025
- Disclosed in the 2025 filing, covering 2024
- Transparency
- 4 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · typical
Compared against 782 Quick-Service Restaurants brands
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 $1.2M/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 1.8x. Includes company-owned outlets.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 6.5% — below the Quick-Service Restaurants average of 7.9%.
Disclosure
Transparency score 4/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence. Sample size of 3 units — treat as directional only.
Operator retention
Net unit growth of +400.0% over 3 years (3 opened, 0 closed).
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 Quick-Service Restaurants averages
How Chuck’s Hot Chicken Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 6
- Opened
- 3
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 1
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 83%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- Outlier (see FDD)
- Likely small-sample artifact
- 3-yr CAGR
- Outlier (see FDD)
- Likely small-sample artifact
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 3
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 1
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Projected new
- 2
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Transfer rate
- 16.7%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Ceased ops
- 16.7%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 14 states reported
The Territory Map
FDD Item 12 reports the state count, but the specific list isn't in our current data. The map will appear once we re-extract from the FDD or enough franchisee contacts are available.
14
states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)
Fast growth in a small system. Newer franchisors expanding quickly may not yet have the support infrastructure of larger systems.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
What could kill this investment?
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA · FDD Items 3, 21
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 4, 8, 16, 21
Risk & Legal
Minimal franchise system size, undisclosed unit-level profitability, franchisor going concern issues, and recent litigation create substantial execution and financial transparency risks despite strong headline revenue figures.
Litigation (Item 3)
Franchisor filed suit in St. Louis County Circuit Court on May 22, 2023 against Wichita franchisee (Foods, LLC and Brad Rogers) for breach of contract. Settled July 20, 2023; franchisee remains in system.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · DA ADVISORY GROUP
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 56 / 100 verdict
- 01HIGHGoing Concern status is False — indicates potential financial instability at franchisor level despite revenue claims
- 02HIGHActive litigation in 2023 (breach of contract settlement) — suggests franchisor-franchisee relationship tensions and enforcement willingness
- 03MINOROnly 6 units with 150% YoY growth — extremely small system size creates concentration risk and limits operational data reliability
- 04MEDHigh investment range ($499K-$817K) paired with undisclosed profitability — ROI timeline and payback period cannot be validated
- 05MED5-year term with no renewal information disclosed — short initial commitment increases risk if franchisor encounters financial distress
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 6.5% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 5 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | protected |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | Yes |
| 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 | 10 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 30 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 5 days |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 1 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Missouri |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | MO |
| Litigation count | 1 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
Franchisor filed suit in St. Louis County Circuit Court on May 22, 2023 against Wichita franchisee (Foods, LLC and Brad Rogers) for breach of contract. Settled July 20, 2023; franchisee remains in system.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 0 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 32 hrs
- Training location
- St. Louis Metro Area (franchisor HQ and/or affiliate/franchised outlet)
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 7 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee with franchisor approval
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- SquareUp
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: SquareUp
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
7 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Chuck’s Hot Chicken · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Chuck’s Hot Chicken franchise?
The total investment to open a Chuck’s Hot Chicken franchise ranges from $499K – $817K, with an initial franchise fee of $30K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Chuck’s Hot Chicken franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Chuck’s Hot Chicken FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.2M. The median is $1.2M. Important context: Includes company-owned outlets. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Item 19 in the Chuck’s Hot Chicken 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 Chuck’s Hot Chicken FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Chuck’s Hot Chicken's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Chuck’s Hot Chicken (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 Chuck’s Hot Chicken franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Chuck’s Hot Chicken has 6 total units in the United States, including 5 franchised units and 1 company-owned units. 3 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Chuck’s Hot Chicken a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Chuck’s Hot Chicken as a B-grade franchise with a verdict score of 56 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
Are you the franchisor?
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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.