Crunch Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Crunch is a gym franchise offering cardio and weight equipment, group classes, and personal training at accessible membership prices. Franchisees operate health clubs in the Crunch Fitness or Crunch Select formats built on recurring memberships.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Crunch franchise requires a total initial investment of $2.1M – $5.4M, including a $35K – $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. The 2025 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). SBA 7(a) loans show a 0.0% charge-off rate across 15 loans[1]. FranchiseVerdict grade: A (Strongest tier), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $2.1M – $5.4M
- 98th pct Health & Fitn…
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 1st pct Health & Fitn…
- Units
- 486
- 95th pct Health & Fitn…
- SBA charge-off
- 0.0%
- % of SBA 7(a) loans not repaid · median varies by category
Quick verdict · Health & Fitness · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Health & Fitness 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 $2.1M – $5.4M including a $35K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSSystem average across all three printed thirds of franchised Crunch Fitness clubs — $4,307,728 / $2,506,012 / $1,481,919, each covering exactly 101 clubs (printed p.30), so the equal-weight mean is exact rather than approximate. Covers the Crunch Fitness model only; Crunch Select and Crunch Signature carry no financial performance representation.
- RISKVerdict A (Strongest tier), verdict score 89/100 (higher is better). SBA loan charge-off rate of 0.0% across 15 loans (well below the franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2025).
- GROWTHSystem growing at 31.7% CAGR over 3 years with 486 total units. Strong expansion trajectory.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Crunch Franchising, LLC
- Parent company
- Crunch Holdings, LLC
- Ultimate parent
- GEI IX Crunch Aggregator LP (managed by Leonard Green & Partners)
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer
- James Rowley, III
- Incorporated in
- Delaware
- HQ
- 155 Riveredge Dr., Suite 250, Dallas, Texas 75207
- Auditor
- Deloitte & Touche LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $112.4M
- vs $84.4M prior year
Overview
About
- CEO
- James Rowley, III
- Headquarters
- Texas
- Founded
- 2009
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 41
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 555% above the typical health & fitness franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $35K | $35K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $25K | $200K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $2.1M | $5.1M |
| Total initial investment | $2.1M | $5.4M |
Source: Crunch 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
- $2.1M – $5.4M
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $25K – $200K
- Middle of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $35K – $50K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- percentage · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 7.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $75 |
| Training fee | $500 |
| Transfer fee | $10K |
| Renewal fee | $15K |
| Inventory (initial) | $1K – $5K |
| Total fee load | 7.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 19
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
Crunch did not disclose financial performance in FDD Item 19. The ROIC and return models require Item 19 revenue. Without it all inputs are estimates. You can still run the calculator with your own assumptions by entering an expected revenue figure.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Crunch unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
6%
Below the 30–60% attractive-franchise band
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
System average across all three printed thirds of franchised Crunch Fitness clubs — $4,307,728 / $2,506,012 / $1,481,919, each covering exactly 101 clubs (printed p.30), so the equal-weight mean is exact rather than approximate. Covers the Crunch Fitness model only; Crunch Select and Crunch Signature carry no financial performance representation.
- Item 19 type
- actual - segmented by revenue tier (thirds) and club age cohort
- Sample size
- 303
- vs category median 12 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $560K→$7.3M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $1.5M→$4.3M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2025
- Disclosed in the 2025 filing, covering 2024
- Transparency
- 7 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · above
Compared against 173 Health & Fitness brands
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 7.0% — below the Health & Fitness average of 8.4%.
Disclosure
Item 19 reports actual - segmented by revenue tier (thirds) and club age cohort rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable.
Operator retention
System expanding at 31.7% CAGR over 3 years across 486 units — operators are staying and new ones are joining.
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 Health & Fitness averages
How Crunch Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 486
- Opened
- 202
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 31
- Terminated
- 1
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 4
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 3.3%
- Company-owned
- 5
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 99%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- +31.7%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +31.7%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 82
- Closed (3yr)
- 13
- Terminated (3yr)
- 1
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 2
- Transfers (3yr)
- 31
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 40 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
- 15
- Loan volume
- $32.2M
- Median loan
- $2.0M
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 0.0%
- 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)
- 100.0%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 9
- Defaults
- 0
- Typical loan rate
- 7.0%
- avg rate to borrowers
- Franchised industry avg
- 15.8%
- brand beats franchise avg ↓
- Jobs supported
- 486
- 2.3 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 30%
- top lender's share
Borrower mix: 67% went to startups / new businesses, 33% to established operators
Franchise vs independent — in fitness and recreational sports centers, franchised businesses charge off at 15.8% vs 18.2% for independents — franchising is associated with 13% lower SBA default risk in this category.
Top lenders financing Crunch franchisees
Showing 3 of 9 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 Crunch's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 8 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 5 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 6-year lending trend
- SBA 504 real estate/equipment data
Instant access. No subscription.
With a 0.0% charge-off rate across 15 loans, banks have historically viewed this brand favorably for lending.
What could kill this investment?
SBA loans charge off at 0.0% — 100% 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
Crunch presents moderate-to-caution risk due to recent litigation over financial misrepresentation, opaque unit economics spanning 8x investment range, and absence of disclosed financial performance data.
Litigation (Item 3)
DBKW1, LLC v. Crunch Franchising, LLC (2016, California) - territory/advertising dispute, settled 2017, dismissed 2018. Ronald J. Ciardiello v. Michael Blouin (2020, Massachusetts) - former area developer alleged unlawful financial performance representations against former SVP; settled for $475,000, dismissed 2025.
Largest disclosed settlement: $475,000
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Deloitte & Touche LLP
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
ⓘ 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
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 89 / 100 verdict
- 01HIGHRecent 2024 litigation settlement ($475,000) involving financial performance misrepresentation by area developer raises accuracy concerns about unit economics claims
- 02MINOR15.6% YoY unit growth, while positive, is modest for fitness sector and may indicate market saturation or franchisee acquisition challenges
- 03HIGHTwo disclosed litigation actions (2017 and 2024) suggest pattern of franchisor-franchisee disputes over territory and financial performance
- 04MEDNo Item 19 (Financial Performance Representations) disclosed limits ability to validate $929,856 average net income claim independently
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 7.0% 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 | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 3 |
| Territory type | protected |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory population | 75,000 |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 1 year |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 5 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| RoFR response window | 30 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 10 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 13 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 10 |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Texas |
| Litigation count | 2 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
DBKW1, LLC v. Crunch Franchising, LLC (2016, California) - territory/advertising dispute, settled 2017, dismissed 2018. Ronald J. Ciardiello v. Michael Blouin (2020, Massachusetts) - former area developer alleged unlawful financial performance representations against former SVP; settled for $475,000, dismissed 2025.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 35 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 200 hrs
- Training location
- Club Support Center, Dallas, Texas; National Training Center, Jacksonville, Florida; franchisee's location
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 12 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- third-party (franchisor-arranged, franchisee pays travel expenses)
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- ABC Financial Services, Inc. (ABC)
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: ABC Financial Services, Inc. (ABC)
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
402 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Crunch · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Crunch franchise?
The total investment to open a Crunch franchise ranges from $2.1M – $5.4M, with an initial franchise fee of $35K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Crunch franchise owners earn?
Crunch 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 Item 19 in the Crunch 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 Crunch FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Crunch's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, Crunch has a charge-off rate of 0.0% across 15 loans, meaning 0.0% 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 Crunch franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Crunch has 486 total units in the United States, including 481 franchised units and 5 company-owned units. 202 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Crunch a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Crunch as a A-grade franchise with a verdict score of 89 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
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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.