Country Inn & Suites by RadissonFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Country Inn & Suites by Radisson franchise requires a total initial investment of $678K – $15.9M, including a $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. The 2024 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). SBA 7(a) loans show a 12.1% charge-off rate across 243 loans[1]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2024 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $678K – $15.9M
- 24th pct Lodging
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- 2nd pct Lodging
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 39th pct Lodging
- Units
- 425
- 45th pct Lodging
- SBA default
- 12.1%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Lodging · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Lodging 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 1963. Systems this mature have refined operations and brand recognition.
Franchised units fell from 443 to 421 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
92 legal cases disclosed in the FDD. Read Item 3 before signing.
Bottom line
- Total investment $678K – $15.9M including a $50K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- Item 19 discloses "Average Occupancy Rate, ADR, and RevPAR" rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable.
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 49/100. SBA loan charge-off rate of 12.1% across 243 loans (above the 16% franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2024).
- 92 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
- Legal entity
- Choice Hotels International, Inc.
- Parent company
- Choice Hotels International, Inc.
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- 915 Meeting Street, Suite 600, North Bethesda, Maryland Maryland 20852
- Auditor
- Ernst & Young LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $1.4B
- vs $1.5B prior year
Independent franchisee associations
- Franchise Advisory Council (FAC)
Franchisee-led councils or alliances disclosed in Item 20. Indicates operator voice.
Overview
About
Franchisees operate mid-scale hotel properties under the Country Inn & Suites brand, managing daily front-desk operations, housekeeping, maintenance, guest services, and revenue management. They pay 6.0% royalties on gross room revenues plus participate in brand marketing fee programs, while competing without territorial exclusivity.
- CEO
- Patrick S. Pacious
- Founded
- 1963
- FDD year
- 2024
- States available
- 42
FDD Item 7 · 2024 filing · 15 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Affiliation Fee | $50K | $65K | |
| Property Improvements | $519K | $1.7M | |
| Insurance | $3K | $88K | |
| Advertising | $3K | $40K | |
| Pre-Opening Photography | $1K | $3K | |
| Hardware to operate choiceADVANTAGE property management system | $4K | $11K | |
| choiceADVANTAGE Software License and Systems Training | $9K | $11K | |
| Opening Inventory of Supplies | $24K | $330K | |
| Orientation and Hospitality Operations Training Fees | $1K | $3K | |
| Mandatory On-Premises Signs | $20K | $100K | |
| Interior Design Waiver Fee | $0 | $15K | |
| Architectural Design Review & Construction Services | $0 | $15K | |
| Design and engineering costs and inspections | $10K | $90K | |
| Working Capital Required Before Operations Begin | $15K | $40K | |
| Additional Funds for 3-Month Initial Period | $25K | $50K | |
| Total initial investment | $683K | $2.6M |
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.
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $678K – $15.9M
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $25K – $100K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $10K – $50K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- Gross Room Revenues · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 3.5%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 9.5%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 3.5% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $472 |
| Transfer fee | $65K |
| Inventory (initial) | $24K – $330K |
| Total fee load | 9.5% of rev |
Financial Performance
This brand's FDD disclosed "Average Occupancy Rate, ADR, and RevPAR" in Item 19 rather than annual gross sales. This metric cannot be directly compared across brands, so we omit it from rankings.
vs Lodging averages
How Country Inn & Suites by Radisson Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 425
- Opened
- 3
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 11
- Turnover rate
- 2.6%
- Company-owned
- 4
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 99%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- -1.9%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- -5.0%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Closed (3yr)
- 2
- Terminated (3yr)
- 4
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 2
- Transfers (3yr)
- 26
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Projected new
- 0
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Termination rate
- 1.3%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 0.4%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 32 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
- California
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
- 243
- Loan volume
- $458.5M
- Median loan
- $1.9M
- average
- Charge-off rate
- 12.1%
- 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)
- N/A
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 60
- Defaults
- 21
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
Country Inn & Suites exhibits high-risk characteristics including system decline, franchisee financial distress (84 collection actions), material litigation alleging RICO violations, undisclosed financial performance, and unprotected territories—warranting extreme caution.
Litigation (Item 3)
0 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Ernst & Young 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: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 49 / 100 rating
- 01MINORDeclining unit count (-1.9% YoY) indicates system contraction and market saturation concerns
- 02HIGHMultiple material litigations including RICO/antitrust allegations by franchisees suggest systemic franchisor-franchisee relationship problems
- 03MINOR84 royalty collection actions in one year demonstrates widespread franchisee financial distress and payment defaults
- 04MINORNo Item 19 financial performance disclosure (Avg Revenue and Net Income not provided) prevents informed ROI analysis on $678K-$15.9M investment range
- 05HIGHClass action litigation regarding destination marketing fees suggests hidden or unexpected fee structures impacting franchisee profitability
- 06MINORGuest data misappropriation lawsuit raises operational and legal compliance risks
- 07MINORUnprotected territory creates direct competition risk from other Country Inn & Suites locations and cannibalization of market revenue
- 08HIGHHigh litigation volume (4 material cases resolved + multiple pending) indicates contentious franchisor practices and dispute resolution patterns
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 |
|---|---|
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 0 |
| Territory type | specific site only |
| Protected territory | No |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Granted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Right of first refusalℹ | No |
| Termination notice | 60 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 4 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 5 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Maryland |
| Litigation count | 92 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
0 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 47 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 16 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Site selection
- franchisor
- 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
100 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Country Inn & Suites by Radisson · FDD (2024) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Country Inn & Suites by Radisson franchise?
The total investment to open a Country Inn & Suites by Radisson franchise ranges from $678K – $15.9M, 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 Country Inn & Suites by Radisson franchise owners earn?
Country Inn & Suites by Radisson does not disclose average franchise owner earnings in their FDD Item 19. Not all franchisors are required to make financial performance representations. We recommend asking existing franchisees directly about their financial experience.
What is Country Inn & Suites by Radisson's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Country Inn & Suites by Radisson has a charge-off rate of 12.1% across 243 loans, meaning 12.1% 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 Country Inn & Suites by Radisson franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Country Inn & Suites by Radisson has 425 total units in the United States, including 443 franchised units and 4 company-owned units. 3 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Country Inn & Suites by Radisson a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Country Inn & Suites by Radisson as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 49 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.
For franchisors
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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.