CinnabonFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Cinnabon franchise requires a total initial investment of $257K – $1.2M, including a $36K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $665K[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 6.9% charge-off rate across 63 loans[1]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2026 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $257K – $1.2M
- 48th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $665K
- 17th pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 44th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 1,338
- 95th pct Service Resta…
- SBA default
- 6.9%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Quick-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Quick-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 1990. Systems this mature have refined operations and brand recognition.
Franchised units fell from 1310 to 952 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
Large franchise systems benefit from brand recognition, supply chain leverage, and proven operations.
Bottom line
- Total investment $257K – $1.2M including a $36K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $665K/year (median $601K).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 19/100. SBA loan charge-off rate of 6.9% across 63 loans (near or below the 16% franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2024).
- System growing at 37.6% CAGR over 3 years with 1338 total units. Strong expansion trajectory.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- CINNABON FRANCHISOR SPV LLC
- Parent company
- GoTo Foods LLC
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- 5620 Glenridge Drive NE, Atlanta, Georgia 30342
- Auditor
- PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $309K
- vs $321K prior year
Overview
About
Cinnabon franchisees operate small-format bakery counters or standalone kiosks selling premium cinnamon rolls, baked goods, and beverages. Daily operations include dough preparation, baking, inventory management, and customer service in high-traffic locations (malls, airports, co-branded Arby's units). Most franchisees manage 2–8 employees and generate revenue through direct sales and, increasingly, delivery partnerships.
- CEO
- Omer Gajial
- Headquarters
- GA
- Founded
- 1990
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 49
FDD Item 7 · 2026 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $36K | $36K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $15K | $33K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $206K | $1.1M |
| Total initial investment | $257K | $1.2M |
Source: Cinnabon 2026 FDD, Items 5 and 7[2]. “Equipment, build-out, other” is computed as total minus disclosed line items above.
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
$90K
13.5% margin
Unlevered ROIC
12%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
8.4 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $257K – $1.2M
- Near category avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $15K – $33K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $6K – $71K
- Near category avg vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.5%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 8.5%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.5% of gross sales |
| Transfer fee | $50 |
| Renewal fee | $20 |
| Total fee load | 8.5% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $665K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $601K
- Item 19 type
- net_sales
- Sample size
- 440 units
- vs category median 28 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $13K→$2.8M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $344K→$1.1M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Transparency
- 4 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · typical
Compared against 453 Quick-Service Restaurants brands
Revenue is only 0.9x the investment. This means each unit may take 5+ years to recoup the initial outlay at typical margins.
vs Quick-Service Restaurants averages
How Cinnabon Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 1,338
- Opened
- 348
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 40
- Terminated
- 36
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 1
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 3.0%
- Company-owned
- 28
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 98%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- +30.7%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- +37.6%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 45
- Transfer rate
- 3.4%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Continuity rate
- 97.0%
- Units that stayed open
- Termination rate
- 2.8%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 0.2%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 8 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
- 63
- Loan volume
- $25.9M
- Median loan
- $269K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 6.9%
- 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)
- 93.1%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 36
- Defaults
- 2
Vintage analysis
Cinnabon charge-off rate by loan vintage
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Cinnabon'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 15 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 17-year lending trend
Instant access. No subscription.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Cinnabon presents moderate-to-cautionary risk due to missing profitability disclosure, unprotected territories, litigation history, and unclear unit economics that prevent prospective franchisees from validating investment returns.
Litigation (Item 3)
Two affiliate settlement actions: (1) Arby's Restaurant Group, Inc. - multi-state settlement with 11 states regarding no-poaching provisions in franchise agreements, no monetary payment required; (2) Dunkin' Brands, Inc. - multi-state settlement with 13 states and jurisdictions regarding no-poaching provisions. Both cases filed March 19, 2019. Franchisor denies wrongdoing but settled to avoid litigation.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · PricewaterhouseCoopers 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: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 19 / 100 rating
- 01MEDNo Item 19 (Average Net Income) disclosed — impossible to validate ROI claims or assess true profitability
- 02MINORUnprotected territory creates direct competition risk; 30.7% YoY unit growth suggests market saturation concerns
- 03HIGHLitigation history involving no-poaching provisions and disclosure omissions indicates compliance issues and potential franchisee misrepresentation
- 04MINORWide investment range ($29K–$1.2M) suggests inconsistent unit economics and unclear cost structure
- 05MED6% royalty on undisclosed net income means franchisees cannot calculate break-even or true cost burden
- 06HIGHAffiliated brand litigation (Arby's, Dunkin', Jimmy John's) under same parent company signals systemic corporate governance problems
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 | 20 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | Area of Protection |
| Protected territory | No |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 2 mi |
| 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 | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Georgia |
| Litigation count | 4 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
Two affiliate settlement actions: (1) Arby's Restaurant Group, Inc. - multi-state settlement with 11 states regarding no-poaching provisions in franchise agreements, no monetary payment required; (2) Dunkin' Brands, Inc. - multi-state settlement with 13 states and jurisdictions regarding no-poaching provisions. Both cases filed March 19, 2019. Franchisor denies wrongdoing but settled to avoid litigation.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 25 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 60 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- POS system
- POS System
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: POS System
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
94 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Cinnabon · FDD (2026) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Cinnabon franchise?
The total investment to open a Cinnabon franchise ranges from $257K – $1.2M, with an initial franchise fee of $36K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Cinnabon franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Cinnabon FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $665K. The median is $601K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Cinnabon's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Cinnabon has a charge-off rate of 6.9% across 63 loans, meaning 6.9% 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 Cinnabon franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Cinnabon has 1,338 total units in the United States, including 1,310 franchised units and 28 company-owned units. 348 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Cinnabon a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Cinnabon as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 19 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.