Bottom line
- Total investment $928K – $1.4M including a $25K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- No Item 19 financial performance data disclosed — the franchisor chose not to publish revenue figures.
- Rated STRONG with a risk score of 47/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 27 loans (below the industry average).
- No Item 19 financial performance representation. Without franchisor-disclosed revenue data, you'll need to gather unit economics directly from existing franchisees.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Yale framework · single-unit ROIC
Returns Analysis
Pulls Item 7 (investment) and Item 19 (revenue) from this brand's FDD into the Yale unlevered-ROIC formula. Override any input to stress-test it against your own assumptions.
The model · Yale framework
What would one FIVE GUYS® unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
10%
Below typical band (30–60%)
Overview
About
Franchisees operate fast-casual burger and fries restaurants featuring customizable toppings and fresh ingredients. Day-to-day operations include managing 20-40 staff, sourcing fresh produce/beef, executing 100%+ margin food prep, handling peak-hour service (lunch/dinner), and maintaining brand consistency across a limited menu model.
Item 7 · what it costs
The Vitals
Item 19
Financial Performance
This franchisor did not disclose financial performance representations in Item 19, or our extractor could not parse them.
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 10 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 phone area codes (Item 20). Approximate — ported numbers may show the original state, not the franchisee's current location.
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Five Guys presents elevated risk due to non-disclosure of unit economics, anemic growth, high capital requirements, and active executive litigation without transparent performance metrics to justify the investment.
Score breakdown · what drove the 47 / 100 rating
- 01MEDNo Item 19 (Average Unit Volume) disclosed — impossible to assess ROI against $927K-$1.38M investment
- 02MINORMinimal system growth (2.3% YoY on 1,558 units) suggests market saturation or declining franchisee interest
- 03MINORHigh initial investment ($927K-$1.38M) with 6% royalty burden and no transparent revenue benchmarks creates profitability opacity
- 04HIGH2024 active litigation involving COO (defamation/business interference) raises governance and leadership stability concerns
- 05MINOR2005 Maryland Consent Order indicates historical regulatory violations in pre-registration sales practices
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
Item 11
Training & Operations
Item 20
Franchisee Contacts
Phone numbers extracted directly from this brand's FDD Item 20. After purchase, you'll also receive a list of validation questions tailored to this brand.
Franchisee contacts
100 numbers
One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included
FDD download
FIVE GUYS® · FDD (2025) PDF