Comfort Inn Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Comfort Inn franchise requires a total initial investment of $319K – $2.3M, including a $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. The 2024 FDD on file does not yield a unit-revenue figure we can publish. SBA 7(a) loans show a 1.8% charge-off rate across 225 loans[1]. FranchiseVerdict grade: A (Strongest tier), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified · figures per the 2024 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $319K – $2.3M
- 17th pct Lodging
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Projection
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 53rd pct Lodging
- Units
- 1,664
- 72nd pct Lodging
- SBA charge-off
- 1.8%
- % of SBA 7(a) loans not repaid · median varies by category
Quick verdict · Lodging · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Lodging 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 $319K – $2.3M including a $50K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSItem 19 reports Historical rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable.
- RISKVerdict A (Strongest tier), verdict score 86/100 (higher is better). SBA loan charge-off rate of 1.8% across 225 loans (well below the franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2025).
- LEGAL83 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
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Choice Hotels International, Inc.
- Parent company
- Choice Hotels International, Inc.
- Predecessor
- Quality Courts Motels, Inc. (later Choice Hotels Franchising, Inc.); now Choice Hotels International, Inc.
- Prior franchisor entity
- CEO title
- Director, President and Chief Executive Officer
- Patrick S. Pacious
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- 915 Meeting Street, Suite 600, North Bethesda, Maryland 20852
- Auditor
- Ernst & Young LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $1.5B
- vs $1.4B prior year
Overview
About
Franchisor of limited-service, upper mid-scale hotels operating under the COMFORT INN, COMFORT INN & SUITES, and COMFORT SUITES trademarks
- CEO
- Patrick S. Pacious
- Headquarters
- MD
- Founded
- 1939
- FDD year
- 2024
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 87% below the typical lodging franchise.
Source: FDD 2024 · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7 · 2024 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $50K | $50K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $25K | $50K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $244K | $2.2M |
| Total initial investment | $319K | $2.3M |
Source: Comfort Inn 2024 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
- $319K – $2.3M
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $25K – $50K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $50K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 3.5%
- typical 3–5%
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 3.5% of gross sales |
| Inventory (initial) | $24K – $136K |
What do units actually make?
Source: FDD 2024 · Item 19
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
No Item 19 revenue figure for Comfort Inn is on file. The return models need a revenue figure to start from, and the operating costs that turn gross sales into a profit are in no FDD. Enter your own and the calculator runs on your assumptions — nothing here is modelled until you do.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Comfort Inn unit return on the cash you put in?
Illustrative category typicals — not sourced to any filing, survey or sample. Replace them with figures from franchisee validation calls before you rely on the output.
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Your modelled return on total invested capital, before any debt financing.
—
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for annual revenue, COGS, labour, rent / occupancy and other operating costs, and will not substitute an assumed one. Enter your own and the model runs on your assumptions.
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: 2024 FDD
Financial Performance
An occupancy metric, not unit revenue
- Item 19 type
- Historical
- Sample size
- 1,600
- vs category median 98 · large
- Reporting year
- 2023
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2024
- Disclosed in the 2024 filing, covering 2023
Compared against 175 Lodging brands
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Fee burden
6.0% royalty + 3.5% ad fund.
Disclosure
Item 19 reports Historical rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable.
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 Lodging averages
How Comfort Inn Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2024 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 1,664
- Opened
- 45
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 36
- Terminated
- 1
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 9
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 2.2%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 45
- Closed (3yr)
- 26
- Terminated (3yr)
- 1
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 9
- Transfers (3yr)
- 107
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 14 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
- 225
- Loan volume
- $283.1M
- Median loan
- $1.1M
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 1.8%
- 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)
- 98.2%
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 99
- Defaults
- 4
- Typical loan rate
- 5.7%
- avg rate to borrowers
- vs industry
- N/A
- NAICS 7211
- Jobs supported
- 1,064
- 0.4 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 9%
- top lender's share
Vintage analysis
Comfort Inn charge-off rate by loan vintage
Top lenders financing Comfort Inn franchisees
Showing 3 of 99 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.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Comfort Inn's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 5 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 15 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 22-year lending trend
Instant access. No subscription.
With a 1.8% charge-off rate across 225 loans, banks have historically viewed this brand favorably for lending.
What could kill this investment?
SBA loans charge off at 1.8% — 89% 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
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Ernst & Young LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Audited consolidated financial statements of Choice Hotels International, Inc. (parent franchisor) for years ended December 31, 2023, 2022, 2021 (Exhibit C), in thousands. FY2023 total revenues $1,544.165M include $784.16M of pass-through other revenues from franchised and managed properties; royalty/licensing/management fees $513.412M, initial franchise fees $27.787M. Net worth (total shareholders' equity) is low ($35.598M) due to $2.047B treasury stock against $1.756B retained earnings.
ⓘ These are the parent company's consolidated financials (the parent guarantees the franchisor), not this brand's standalone results — the figure reflects the whole corporate group, not this brand alone.
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
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 9.5% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2024 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 20 years |
|---|---|
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 0 |
| Protected territory | No |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Right of first refusalℹ | No |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Maryland |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | MD |
| Litigation count | 83 |
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Training duration
- 3 days
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Site selection
- Franchisee selects site; franchisor must approve location
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- choiceADVANTAGE
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: choiceADVANTAGE
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
78 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Comfort Inn franchise?
The total investment to open a Comfort Inn franchise ranges from $319K – $2.3M, with an initial franchise fee of $50K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Comfort Inn franchise owners earn?
No average owner earnings figure for Comfort Inn is on file. Item 19 — where a franchisor may disclose what its outlets earn — is voluntary under the FTC Franchise Rule, and we have not established what this brand's FDD says. Item 20 of the FDD lists current and former franchisees; asking them directly is the standard way to fill this gap.
What is Item 19 in the Comfort Inn 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 Comfort Inn FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Comfort Inn's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Comfort Inn has a charge-off rate of 1.8% across 225 loans, meaning 1.8% 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 Comfort Inn franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Comfort Inn has 1,664 total units in the United States, including 1,664 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 45 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Comfort Inn a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Comfort Inn as a A-grade franchise with a verdict score of 86 out of 100 (higher is better). The grade is a deterministic score built from six weighted dimensions — financial health, unit economics, unit growth, scale, legal, and transparency — then calibrated against SBA loan charge-off rates and FDD age. Transparency is one of the six, so a filing that discloses less scores lower on that dimension than one that discloses more. 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.