DQ Grill & ChillFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A DQ Grill & Chill franchise requires a total initial investment of $1.5M – $2.4M, including a $45K franchise fee and an ongoing 4.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2022 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.4M[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2022 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $1.5M – $2.4M
- 98th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $1.4M
- 45th pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 4.0%
- 3rd pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 1,954
- 96th pct Service Resta…
- SBA default
- N/A
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
At 0.7x revenue per dollar invested, this system underperforms the typical 1.5-2.5x range.
Franchising since 1962. Systems this mature have refined operations and brand recognition.
14 legal cases disclosed in the FDD. Read Item 3 before signing.
Large franchise systems benefit from brand recognition, supply chain leverage, and proven operations.
Bottom line
- Total investment $1.5M – $2.4M including a $45K franchise fee, 4.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $1.4M/year (median $1.4M).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 44/100.
- 14 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
- American Dairy Queen Corporation
- Parent company
- International Dairy Queen, Inc.
- Ultimate parent
- Berkshire Hathaway, Inc.
- CEO title
- Director, Chief Executive Officer and President
- Troy A. Bader
- CEO experience
- 22 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- 8000 Tower, Suite 700, 8331 Norman Center Drive, Bloomington, MN 55437
- Auditor
- Deloitte & Touche LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $224.7M
- vs $190.4M prior year
- Management churn noted
- Frequent turnover
- Item 2 disclosed frequent executive changes
Overview
About
Franchisees operate a hybrid quick-service restaurant combining Dairy Queen's food menu (burgers, hot dogs, sandwiches) with grill-focused offerings and Blizzard/frozen treats. Day-to-day operations include food preparation, staff management, inventory control, equipment maintenance, customer service, and local marketing to drive the $1.4M average annual revenue.
- CEO
- Troy A. Bader
- Headquarters
- MN
- Founded
- 1962
- FDD year
- 2022
- States available
- 48
FDD Item 7 · 2022 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $45K | $45K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $51K | $198K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $1.4M | $2.2M |
| Total initial investment | $1.5M | $2.4M |
Source: DQ Grill & Chill 2022 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
$186K
13.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
9%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
11.1 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $1.5M – $2.4M
- Below avg, review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $51K – $198K
- Below avg, review vs category
- Franchise fee
- $45K – $45K
- Below avg, review vs category
- Royalty
- 4.0%
- Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 5.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 9.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 4.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Training fee | $1K |
| Transfer fee | $6K |
| Renewal fee | $23K |
| Total fee load | 9.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $1.4M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $1.4M
- Item 19 type
- gross_sales
- Sample size
- 129 units
- vs category median 28 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $592K→$2.9M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Reporting year
- 2021
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Transparency
- 7 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · above
Compared against 453 Quick-Service Restaurants brands
Revenue is only 0.7x the investment. This means each unit may take 5+ years to recoup the initial outlay at typical margins.
vs Quick-Service Restaurants averages
How DQ Grill & Chill Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 1,954
- Opened
- 47
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 23
- Terminated
- 23
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 1.2%
- Company-owned
- 2
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Multi-unit owners
- 50.0%
- Net growth (yr3)
- +1.3%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- +2.0%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 103
- Transfer rate
- 5.3%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Continuity rate
- 98.8%
- Units that stayed open
- Termination rate
- 1.2%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 31 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
- 1,750
- Loan volume
- N/A
- Amount data pending
- Median loan
- N/A
- Charge-off rate
- N/A
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
- 0
- Defaults
- 0
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
DQ Grill & Chill presents elevated risk due to undisclosed profitability data, stagnant unit growth, unprotected territories, active encroachment litigation, and potential franchisor financial concerns despite $1.4M average revenue.
Litigation (Item 3)
Three pending cases involving ADQ; two cases from subcontractors alleging non-payment and misrepresentation; one case initiated by ADQ regarding franchise transfer conditions
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Deloitte & Touche 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 44 / 100 rating
- 01MEDNet income not disclosed in FDD Item 19 — cannot assess actual profitability against $1.46M-$2.43M investment
- 02MINORMinimal unit growth (1.3% YoY) suggests market saturation or franchisee dissatisfaction in 1,954-unit system
- 03MINORNo protected territory exposes franchisees to direct brand competition and encroachment risk
- 04HIGHMultiple active litigation cases involving encroachment claims, territorial disputes, and termination enforcement indicate systemic franchisor-franchisee conflicts
- 05HIGHSubcontractor payment disputes in litigation suggest operational/financial stress among existing franchisees
- 06HIGHGoing Concern status is FALSE — requires clarification on franchisor's financial stability and support infrastructure
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 | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Protected territory | No |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 0.3 mi |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Not allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 1 year |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 0.3 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Minneapolis, Minnesota |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Minnesota |
| Litigation count | 14 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
Three pending cases involving ADQ; two cases from subcontractors alleging non-payment and misrepresentation; one case initiated by ADQ regarding franchise transfer conditions
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 32 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 245 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Ongoing training
- Required
- POS system
- ParTech
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: ParTech
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
83 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
DQ Grill & Chill · FDD (2022) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a DQ Grill & Chill franchise?
The total investment to open a DQ Grill & Chill franchise ranges from $1.5M – $2.4M, with an initial franchise fee of $45K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do DQ Grill & Chill franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the DQ Grill & Chill FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.4M. The median is $1.4M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is DQ Grill & Chill's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for DQ Grill & Chill (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 DQ Grill & Chill franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, DQ Grill & Chill has 1,954 total units in the United States, including 1,913 franchised units and 2 company-owned units. 47 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is DQ Grill & Chill a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates DQ Grill & Chill as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 44 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.