Koa Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
KOA (Kampgrounds of America) is a franchise of campgrounds and RV parks offering tent sites, RV hookups, cabins, and amenities. Franchisees own and operate a campground managing registrations, grounds, activities, and seasonal staff.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A KOA franchise requires a total initial investment of $5.0M – $16.4M, including a $15K – $45K franchise fee and an ongoing 8.0% royalty[2]. The 2025 FDD does not disclose unit-level revenue (no Item 19). SBA 7(a) loans show a 1.5% charge-off rate across 76 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
- $5.0M – $16.4M
- 33rd pct Lodging
- Avg gross sales
- N/A
- Royalty
- 8.0%
- 66th pct Lodging
- Units
- 478
- 62nd pct Lodging
- SBA charge-off
- 1.5%
- % of SBA 7(a) loans not repaid · median varies by category
Quick verdict · Lodging · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Lodging 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 $5.0M – $16.4M including a $45K franchise fee, 8.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSFY ended December 31, 2024 (yr1) and December 31, 2023 (yr2), per Consolidated Statements of Operations of Kampgrounds of America, Inc. and Subsidiaries. Total sales and operating revenue includes franchisee continuing fees ($34,056,589), other franchise revenue ($12,403,431), company-owned campground revenue ($147,925,762), and is net of losses on insurance recoveries, disposals, and impairment. 'Other' revenue line = $259,713.
- RISKVerdict A (Strongest tier), verdict score 78/100 (higher is better). SBA loan charge-off rate of 1.5% across 76 loans (well below the franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2025).
- DATAItem 19 reports per site revenue rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable. Ask franchisees directly for full unit-level revenue.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Kampgrounds of America, Inc.
- Parent company
- KOAH, Inc.
- CEO title
- Director, President and Chief Executive Officer
- Toby L. O'Rourke
- Incorporated in
- MT
- HQ
- 1205 N. Transtech Way, Billings, Montana 59102
- Auditor
- Eide Bailly LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $184.6M
- vs $190.0M prior year
Affiliated brands
- Kampgrounds of America
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
- CEO
- Toby L. O'Rourke
- Headquarters
- MT
- Founded
- 1960
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 46
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 9% above the typical lodging franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $45K | $45K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $16K | $116K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $4.9M | $16.3M |
| Total initial investment | $5.0M | $16.4M |
Source: KOA 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
- $5.0M – $16.4M
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $16K – $116K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $15K – $45K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Royalty
- 8.0%
- tiered · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 10.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 8.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $2K |
| Training fee | $4K |
| Transfer fee | $10K |
| Renewal fee | $8K |
| Inventory (initial) | $1K – $40K |
| Total fee load | 10.0% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 19
ROI & LBO modelsSingle-unit · 25-unit portfolio · editable
KOA 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 KOA unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
1%
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
FY ended December 31, 2024 (yr1) and December 31, 2023 (yr2), per Consolidated Statements of Operations of Kampgrounds of America, Inc. and Subsidiaries. Total sales and operating revenue includes franchisee continuing fees ($34,056,589), other franchise revenue ($12,403,431), company-owned campground revenue ($147,925,762), and is net of losses on insurance recoveries, disposals, and impairment. 'Other' revenue line = $259,713.
- Item 19 type
- per site revenue
- Sample size
- 417
- vs category median 99 · large
- Transparency tier
- limited
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2025
- Disclosed in the 2025 filing, covering 2024
- Transparency
- 0 / 10
- vs category median 0 / 10 · typical
Compared against 174 Lodging 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 10.0% (near the Lodging average).
Disclosure
Item 19 reports per site revenue rather than annual gross sales, so unit revenue is not directly comparable.
Operator retention
System roughly stable (+0.2% 3-year CAGR) with 478 units.
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 Lodging averages
How Koa Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 478
- Opened
- 10
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 5
- Terminated
- 6
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 4
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 3.5%
- Company-owned
- 51
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 89%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- -1.2%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- +0.2%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 10
- Closed (3yr)
- 5
- Terminated (3yr)
- 6
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 4
- Transfers (3yr)
- 20
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Projected new
- 24
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
- Transfer rate
- 4.1%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Termination rate
- 3.1%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 3.1%
- 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
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Michigan
- New York
- South Dakota
- Wisconsin
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
- 76
- Loan volume
- $49.1M
- Median loan
- $646K
- average
- Charge-off rate
- 1.5%
- 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)
- 98.5%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 0.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 44
- Defaults
- 1
- Typical loan rate
- 5.5%
- avg rate to borrowers
- vs industry
- N/A
- Jobs supported
- N/A
- Lender concentration
- 17%
- top lender's share
Vintage analysis
Koa charge-off rate by loan vintage
Top lenders financing Koa franchisees
Showing 3 of 44 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 Koa's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 10 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 20 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- SBA 504 real estate/equipment data
Instant access. No subscription.
With a 1.5% charge-off rate across 76 loans, banks have historically viewed this brand favorably for lending.
What could kill this investment?
SBA loans charge off at 1.5% — 91% 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
KOA presents moderate-to-cautious risk due to shrinking unit count, missing financial transparency, IP litigation, and royalty structure that penalizes lower-performing locations.
Litigation (Item 3)
Mark Polk, RV Savvy Productions, Inc. v. KOA (filed August 2024, E.D. North Carolina) - copyright infringement, trademark infringement, and related claims regarding use of plaintiffs' intellectual property on koa.com. KOA disputes and filed answer November 2024.
Largest disclosed settlement: $150,000
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Eide Bailly 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: No
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: Yes
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
Score breakdown · what drove the 78 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORUnit count declining 1.4% YoY (478 units) suggests system contraction and potential market saturation
- 02MEDNo Item 19 financial disclosure (Avg Revenue/Net Income not disclosed) prevents meaningful ROI validation
- 03HIGHActive litigation over intellectual property use indicates brand management/compliance issues
- 04MINOR8% royalty on gross receipts is high for hospitality; unprofitable units pay royalties on total registrations regardless of 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 2025 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12, 15, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 5 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Territory type | protected |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 1 mi |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 3 |
| Mandatory arbitration | No |
| Arbitration location | Montana (mediation then litigation) |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | MT |
| Litigation count | 1 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
Mark Polk, RV Savvy Productions, Inc. v. KOA (filed August 2024, E.D. North Carolina) - copyright infringement, trademark infringement, and related claims regarding use of plaintiffs' intellectual property on koa.com. KOA disputes and filed answer November 2024.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 12 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 14 hrs
- Training location
- KOA Headquarters, Billings, Montana
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Site selection
- Franchisee selects, franchisor must approve
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- KampSight/K2
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: KampSight/K2
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
138 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
KOA · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a KOA franchise?
The total investment to open a KOA franchise ranges from $5.0M – $16.4M, 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 KOA franchise owners earn?
KOA 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 KOA 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 KOA FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is KOA's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, KOA has a charge-off rate of 1.5% across 76 loans, meaning 1.5% 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 KOA franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, KOA has 478 total units in the United States, including 427 franchised units and 51 company-owned units. 10 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is KOA a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates KOA as a A-grade franchise with a verdict score of 78 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
Are you the franchisor?
If you represent KOA, you can request corrections or provide updated information.
Other Lodging franchises
Compare similar franchise opportunities in the Lodging category
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.