Jack in the Box Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $1.9M – $4.0M
- Disclosed sales
- $1.9M
- gross sales, not profit
- SBA charge-off
- Limited · 46 loans
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Jack in the Box is a quick-service chain serving burgers, tacos, chicken, and all-day breakfast, largely via drive-thru. Franchisees operate restaurants managing kitchen and counter staff, food safety, and local marketing.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Jack in the Box franchise requires a total initial investment of $1.9M – $4.0M, including a $25K – $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 5.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.9M[2]. FranchiseVerdict grade: A (Strongest tier), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Sources, dates and evidence
FDD issued: · Data extracted: · Last cited check: · Staleness risk: low - issued within the last 12 months
Evidence: strong✓ Investment (Item 7)✓ Item 19 status✓ Units and owners (Item 20)✓ SBA loan coverage✓ Litigation (Item 3)✓ Financial statements (Item 21)✓ Franchisor identityhow this is scored8 of 8 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing.
Overview
- Investment
- $1.9M – $4.0M
- 99th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $1.9M
- 32nd pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- 12th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 2,136
- 94th pct Service Resta…
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Quick-Service Restaurants · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Quick-Service Restaurants median · 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 $1.9M – $4.0M including a $50K franchise fee, 5.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $1.9M/year (median $1.8M).
- RISKVerdict A (Strongest tier), verdict score 75/100 (higher is better).
- GROWTHNegative: net -55 franchised outlets in the latest year (20 opened, 75 closed); 35 signed but not yet open (Item 20).
- FLAGBankruptcy history disclosed in the FDD. Review Item 4 for details before proceeding.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Different Rules, LLC
- Parent company
- Jack in the Box SPV Guarantor, LLC
- FDD Item 1, page 8 of the 2026 FDD
- Ultimate parent
- Jack in the Box Inc.
- FDD Item 1, page 8 of the 2026 FDD
- Predecessor
- Jack in the Box Inc. (JIB)
- Prior franchisor entity
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- 9357 Spectrum Center Blvd, San Diego, California 92123
- Auditor
- KPMG LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $1.0B
- vs $1.1B prior year
Affiliated brands
- does not operate the type of business you will operate
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Same owner · FDD Item 1, page 8
1 other brand on this site name Jack in the Box Inc. as parent or ultimate parent in their own FDD.
Grouped by the owner's name as each filing prints it (this page: the 2026 FDD). Spelling variants of the same group may be listed apart; a brand is never grouped with an owner its filing does not name.
Overview
About
- CEO
- Lance Tucker
- Headquarters
- CA
- Founded
- 2019
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 22
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 513% above the typical quick-service restaurants franchise.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown17 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $50K | $50K | |
| Grand Opening Advertising and Promotion Fee | $0 | $10K | |
| Fee for trade area survey analysis | $0 | $8K | |
| Land | — | — | |
| Fee for architect/ engineering services | $44K | $216K | |
| Environmental assessment | $3K | $34K | |
| On-site improvements | $337K | $825K | |
| Building Improvements | $626K | $1.3M | |
| Furniture, fixtures and equipment | $499K | $967K | |
| IT equipment and installation | $45K | $60K | |
| Initial inventory | $12K | $20K | |
| Pre-opening training and inventory expenses | $110K | $115K | |
| Pre-opening additional funds | $14K | $17K | |
| Uniforms | $3K | $5K | |
| Operating cash | $1K | $3K | |
| Business licenses and utility deposits | $500 | $3K | |
| Additional funds (3 months) | $165K | $459K | |
| Total initial investment | $1.9M | $4.0M |
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
- $1.9M – $4.0M
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $165K – $459K
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Franchise fee
- $25K – $50K
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Royalty
- 5.0%
- typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 5.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 10.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 5.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $425 |
| Transfer fee | $3K |
| Renewal fee | $50K |
| Inventory (initial) | $12K – $20K |
| Total fee load | 10.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 96% above the quick-service restaurants norm.
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 19
Single-unit · not modelled
Returns at a glance
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit, and the operating costs that turn one into the other are in no filing. We publish no modelled return for Jack in the Box until someone supplies them — yours, in the models below.
—
Not modelled yet
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for 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.
Total invested capital · disclosed
$3.3M
Item 7 initial investment plus working capital, as filed — the one figure here that needs no assumption.
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
What one unit earns on your invested capital
Model A · Single-Unit Return
Computes unlevered return on invested capital (ROIC) for a single franchise unit, read against the 30–60% reference band · Yale SOM, Post-MBA Path Exhibit 2 (2023). Below that band a passive index fund likely outperforms; above it the franchisor has pricing power you're subsidizing.
Note: Item 19 revenue is what the franchisor discloses, and it is the top line only — gross sales are not profit. No FDD discloses the operating costs that turn one into the other, so those fields start empty and nothing is modelled until you supply them from your own lease quote, labor market and build-out budget.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Jack in the Box 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 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.
What 25 units return when you use SBA financing
Model B · Return on Equity: Debt-Financed Acquisition
Models a 25-unit portfolio acquisition financed with an SBA 7(a) loan. Shows equity IRR (your return on cash invested), DSCR (how safely the cash flow covers debt service), and the capital stack (SBA + seller + equity breakdown).
This is the “search fund” or “entrepreneurship through acquisition” scenario: you buy an existing multi-unit operator, use leverage to amplify returns, and either operate or hire management. The 25-unit size is the typical minimum for an SBA-backed franchise portfolio acquisition to pencil as a full-time income.
What “return on equity” means here: if you put in $500K of your own cash and the business generates enough EBITDA to pay down debt and grow, your equity IRR is the annual return on that $500K, including the value created when you eventually sell. Target IRR for a search fund is typically 25–35%.
Not modelled yet
An FDD discloses gross sales, not profit. We hold no sourced figure for 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.
A 25-unit return is built on a per-unit EBITDA. Fill in the operating costs in Model A above and this model runs on that figure, or take the whole scenario to the full ROI workbench, where the portfolio and LBO models accept your own per-unit economics directly.
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: 2026 FDD
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $1.9M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $1.8M
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
- Item 19 type
- gross sales with cost tables
- Sample size
- 1,754 outlets
- vs category median 19 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $624K→$5.9MCited, not corroborated — printed on page 80 of the 2026 FDD. Nothing else in our record independently restates or re-derives it.
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $1.6M→$2.1M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2026
- Disclosed in the 2026 filing, covering 2025
- Transparency
- 7 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · above
Compared against 781 Quick-Service Restaurants brands
Revenue is only 0.6x the investment. This means each unit may take 5+ years to recoup the initial outlay at typical margins.
Operator outlook
What the numbers say
Data-driven interpretation of this brand's financial disclosures, fee structure, and system trajectory.
Unit economics
Average unit generates $1.9M/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 0.6x.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 10.0% — above the Quick-Service Restaurants median of 7.5%.
Disclosure
Transparency score 7/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence.
Operator retention
System contracting at -2.8% CAGR over 3 years. Investigate whether closures are franchisor-driven consolidation or franchisee exits.
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 Quick-Service Restaurants medians
How Jack in the Box Compares
Category median of published Quick-Service Restaurants brands that report the figure; the middle half spans the 25th to 75th percentile and n counts the brands behind it. Medians are used because a few very large systems pull an average far from the typical brand. Revenue is disclosed gross sales, not profit.
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 2,136
- Opened
- 20
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 75
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 3.5%
- Company-owned
- 151
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 93%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- -2.8%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- -2.8%
- Compounded over last 3 years
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 0
- Not renewed
- 0
- Transferred
- 21
- Reacquired
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Signed, not yet open
- 35
- 0.02 per open outlet · Item 20 Table 5
- Projected new
- 34
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Termination rate
- 0.4%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 0.7%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 21 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.
Where the owners are · Item 20 owner list
1,966 current owners across 22 states.
- CA 839
- TX 516
- AZ 164
- WA 131
- NV 79
- OR 41
- ID 33
- HI 29
- MO 29
- CO 17
- NC 17
- LA 15
- +10 more states
Counts only, from the list the franchisor prints in Item 20; 41 entries carry no state. Names and phone numbers are for your own due diligence and are not shown here.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 46
- Loan volume
- $31.2M
- Median loan
- $543K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- Limited · 46 loans
- Limited SBA coverage: 46 loans, rate hidden until 10 have resolved and loans reach 2% of franchised units
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- Limited · 46 loans
- 5-yr charge-off
- Limited · 46 loans
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 14
- Defaults
- 0
- Typical loan rate
- 7.5%
- avg rate to borrowers
- Franchised industry avg
- 10.8%
- n=12,827 loans
- Jobs supported
- 117
- 1.4 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 25%
- top lender's share
Borrower mix: 100% went to startups / new businesses, 0% to established operators
Franchise vs independent — in limited-service restaurants, franchised businesses charge off at 10.8% vs 10.0% for independents — franchising is associated with 8% higher SBA default risk in this category.
Top lenders financing Jack in the Box franchisees
Showing 3 of 14 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.
Lender network · 7(a) + 504
SBA Lending Report
Full lending analysis for Jack in the Box from SBA 7(a) FOIA data.
- Principal loss rate
- 0.0%
- Avg SBA guarantee
- 69%
- Avg interest rate
- 7.55%
- Lender concentration
- 25.0%
- Job velocity
- 1.4 per $100K
- NAICS benchmark
- 8.7%
- NAICS 722513
- Jobs supported
- 117
Top SBA lendersTop lender holds 25% of loans
| # | Lender | Loans | Volume | Default % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | PNC Bank, National Association | 1 | $50K | N/A |
| 2 | Banc of California | 1 | $3.2M | N/A |
| 3 | Live Oak Banking Company | 1 | $2.5M | N/A |
| 4 | Merchants Bank of Indiana | 1 | $2.6M | N/A |
Geographic failure vector
| State | Loans | Defaults | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| AZArizona | 1 | 0 | -- |
| ILIllinois | 1 | 0 | -- |
| MIMichigan | 1 | 0 | -- |
| TXTexas | 1 | 0 | -- |
SBA 7(a) lending trend
Borrower profile
Source: SBA 7(a) + 504 FOIA loan-level data, matched by FranchiseVerdict
What could kill this investment?
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA · FDD Items 3, 21
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 4, 8, 16, 21
Risk & Legal
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: the franchisor is a named party (defendant).
Pending: Philippines case (won at trial, concluded); Marilyn Garner trustee (appellate ruling in company favor, TX Supreme Court petition pending); AJP/NHG (WA, March 2025); Gulf Coast Jacks (CA, Dec 2025); JIB v Wazny/Chopra (marketing fee collection). Concluded: Rehkopf gift card (settled 2016); NFA (settled 2020); San-Tex Restaurant (settled 2021); Aslam Group (settled 2021, JIB paid $5.55M); Ibrahim Investment Corp (settled 2021, JIB paid $25K).
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
Subject: the company or an affiliate. Disclosed (Item 4 covers the last 10 years)
Officer disclosure only: Ryan Ostrom (Chief Brand Officer) and Steven Piano (Chief People Officer) were employees of GNC Holdings, Inc. when it filed Chapter 11 on June 23, 2020. GNC Holdings is unrelated to the franchisor.
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · KPMG 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
Score breakdown · what drove the 75 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORDeclining unit count (-2.7% YoY) indicates system contraction and potential market saturation or franchisee dissatisfaction
- 02MEDNo disclosed average net income despite $1.91M-$4.04M investment creates opacity around actual profitability and ROI
- 03HIGHMultiple active litigation cases across multiple states (Philippines, Texas, Washington) plus historical pattern of franchisee disputes suggests systemic franchisor-franchisee relationship issues
- 04HIGHHeavy litigation history including class actions (gift cards), franchisee association suits, and multi-state disputes suggests pattern of enforcement/transparency problems
- 05MED5% royalty on disclosed $1.91M average revenue = ~$95,668 annual royalty plus operating costs makes profitability questionable without disclosed net income
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 10.0% of sales (royalty + ad fund), before rent and labor.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 20 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 20 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 0 |
| Territory type | No territory protection |
| Protected territory | No |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 1 mi |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 1 year |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 0 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 8 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 10 |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Arbitration location | San Diego, California |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | CA |
| Litigation count | 10 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
Pending: Philippines case (won at trial, concluded); Marilyn Garner trustee (appellate ruling in company favor, TX Supreme Court petition pending); AJP/NHG (WA, March 2025); Gulf Coast Jacks (CA, Dec 2025); JIB v Wazny/Chopra (marketing fee collection). Concluded: Rehkopf gift card (settled 2016); NFA (settled 2020); San-Tex Restaurant (settled 2021); Aslam Group (settled 2021, JIB paid $5.55M); Ibrahim Investment Corp (settled 2021, JIB paid $25K).
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 80 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 320 hrs
- Training location
- San Diego, California; Dallas, Texas; or Los Angeles, California
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 18 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee (with Company approval); Company may assist
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Company-specified POS system
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Company-specified POS system
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
2,007 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 Jack in the Box franchise?
The total investment to open a Jack in the Box franchise ranges from $1.9M – $4.0M, 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 Jack in the Box franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Jack in the Box FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.9M. The median is $1.8M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
Who owns Jack in the Box?
Jack in the Box is franchised by Different Rules, LLC. Its parent company is Jack in the Box SPV Guarantor, LLC. The ultimate parent named in the FDD is Jack in the Box Inc.. Source: FDD Item 1, 2026 filing.
What is Item 19 in the Jack in the Box 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 Jack in the Box FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Jack in the Box's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Jack in the Box (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 Jack in the Box franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Jack in the Box has 2,136 total units in the United States, including 1,985 franchised units and 151 company-owned units. 20 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Jack in the Box a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Jack in the Box as a A-grade franchise with a verdict score of 75 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.
For franchisors
Are you the franchisor?
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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.