Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program Franchise Cost & 2026 FDD Data
64/100
Second tier
64 this brand51 Quick-Service Restaurants medianlikely 44–84: narrower with more SBA loans (very low confidence)
Higher is better · an editorial assessment, not investment advice
#872 of 3,068 graded brands
Why a B: Helped by financial health, legal record and transparency. Held back by unit growth. See all six factors
- Total investment
- $57K – $202K
- Avg gross sales
- not extracted
- SBA charge-off
- Not SBA-matched
Data from the FDD filing. Analysis by FranchiseVerdict · Methodology · Website · Report an error · Franchisor? Claim this listing
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026 FDD
Per the 2026 FDD, a Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program franchise requires a total initial investment of $57K – $202K, including a $8K franchise fee. The 2026 FDD on file does not yield a unit-revenue figure we can publish. Verdict grade: B (Second tier), an editorial assessment, not investment advice.
Sources: 2026 FDD · What one unit could make and lose →
Sources, dates and evidence
FDD issued: · Last cited check: · Staleness risk: low (issued within the last 12 months)
Evidence for the headline figures: partial✓ 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 scored5 of 5 headline figures on this page cite a page of the filing.
Overview
Quick verdict · vs Quick-Service Restaurants median
Top edge: green = better than the Quick-Service Restaurants median by more than 10%, red = worse by more than 10%, gray = within 10% or no benchmark. Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a).
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Methodology
Bottom line
- RETURNSNo Item 19 gross sales figure is on file for this brand. We have not established what its FDD discloses.
- GROWTHIn the latest Item 20 year, the number of franchised outlets grew by 1.
- FLAG7 units terminated last reporting year (9.3% of the franchised outlets open at the start of that year). Ask existing franchisees why.
AT STAKEOne unit at the Item 7 midpoint: $17K a year in payments on assumed SBA 7(a)-style terms.You put in about $26K of your own cash and personally guarantee a $103K loan. Assumptions are labeled in Sales; not investment advice.See what one unit could make and lose
Things to check before you sign (2)
- -5 franchised outlets between the first and last year-ends Item 20 prints. Ask owners why outlets closed.
- Limited data: this page holds only part of the filing. Read the FDD itself before relying on any figure here.
Not on file here, so ask: going-concern doubt, pending litigation, SBA charge-off rate against the category median, competition inside your territory, jury-trial waiver, supplier rebates and owner-operator rule.
What to do next
Step 1: Read the FDD itself.
Free: the franchisor must give it to you at least 14 days before you sign or pay. Or look it up in a state registry (Wisconsin, Minnesota, California). What to read first.
Step 2: Talk to current and former owners.
Free: Item 20 of the FDD lists every current owner and those who left last year, most with a phone number. Questions to ask.
Step 3: Talk to an SBA lender.
Free: the SBA's Lender Match. Ask what you would personally guarantee and what the monthly payment would be. If you plan to use retirement savings, ask a CPA about the rules for that first.
Step 4: Have a franchise attorney review the FDD and agreement.
Free: your state bar's lawyer referral service can name franchise lawyers, and many offer a short first consultation. Bring the checks listed above.
Research steps, not investment or legal advice.
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost (the Item 7 midpoint) is 73% below the Quick-Service Restaurants median ($487K).
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 5–7 (fees and startup costs)
Excludes the cost of land; assumes no additional real-estate leasing costs (added to an existing business); excludes any tariff increases above levels in effect at the issuance date.
Do you qualify? The filing states no minimum net worth or liquid capital. Ask Nathan's Famous Systems, Inc. (Item 1: One Jericho Plaza - Wing A, 2nd Floor, Jericho, New York 11753) and your lender what they require, and keep living costs for the first year outside the deal.
FDD Item 7 (startup costs) · 2026 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $8K | $8K |
| Working capital (first 3 months) | $12K | $22K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $38K | $173K |
| Total initial investment | $57K | $202K |
Source: Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program 2026 FDD, Items 5 and 7[2]. “Equipment, build-out, other” is computed as total minus disclosed line items above.
Item 6 · what you pay once you are open
Ongoing fees
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 0.0% |
| Marketing / ad fund | 0.0% |
| Transfer fee | $1,125 |
| Renewal fee | $3,750 |
| Total fee loadbelow the Quick-Service Restaurants median of 7.0% (lean) | 0.0% of sales |
Items 6 (other fees), 7 (startup costs) and 19 (sales and earnings) · assumptions labeled
What you could make and lose: one unit
What one Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program unit would ask of you, from the filing's Item 7 total and labeled assumptions.
How these figures are worked out
- Loan (assumption): 80% of the $129K Item 7 midpoint is a $103K loan, paid over 10 years at 10.5%: $17K a year. SBA 7(a)-style terms on a long-term rate; your lender sets yours.
What you put at risk
Your own cash in: about $26K Assumption (the part the loan does not cover of the $129K Item 7 midpoint), plus whatever anything Item 7 leaves out (its notes say what). The loan is $103K.
Personal guarantee. SBA 7(a) loans require a personal guarantee from anyone who owns 20% or more of the business. If the unit cannot pay, the lender can collect from you personally, which can include your savings and your home. The worst case is losing the cash you put in and still owing the rest of the loan.
Gross sales are not profit, and none of these figures is take-home pay until tax and every operating cost are paid. The assumptions are ours, not the filing's. Not investment advice.
Returns modelOne unit · several units · editable
No Item 19 gross sales figure for Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program is on file. The return models need one gross sales figure to start from, plus the operating costs that turn gross sales into a profit. Enter your own and the calculator runs on your assumptions; nothing here is modelled until you do.
Returns model · one unit
What would one Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program unit leave you each year after the loan payment?
Not disclosed in Item 19. Enter your own gross sales assumption
Gross sales, not profit: the costs below decide what is left.
No Item 19 figures are on file for this brand. Enter your own costs from a lease quote, a payroll plan and calls with current owners.
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.
Item 7 midpoint of $57K to $202K
Item 7's $12K to $22K additional funds are already in the total
Left after the loan payment · per year
The unit's EBITDA minus the assumed loan payment. Before tax, depreciation and any cost your inputs leave out (insurance, accounting and legal, licenses, technology fees): not take-home pay.
Gross sales are not profit. Neither the filing nor a stated assumption on this page supplies annual revenue, COGS, labor, rent / occupancy and other operating costs. Enter your own (a lease quote, owner calls) and the model runs on it.
Loan of $103K at 10.5% over 10 years, an assumption, not a quote. Return and payback are before tax, depreciation and the costs above. The loan usually needs your personal guarantee.
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 · filed by Nathan's Famous Systems, Inc.
Financial performance
We have not established what this franchisor's Item 19 says. The FDD on file either has no locatable Item 19 or could not be read, so no figure is published here.
vs Quick-Service Restaurants medians
How Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program 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.
Who are you contracting with?
Nathan's Famous Systems, Inc., owned by Nathan's Famous Operating Corp.
Item 1 (the franchisor) · who you're contracting with
The franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Nathan's Famous Systems, Inc.
- Parent company
- Nathan's Famous Operating Corp.
- FDD Item 1, page 6 of the 2026 FDD
- Ultimate parent
- Nathan's Famous, Inc.
- FDD Item 1, page 6 of the 2026 FDD
- Incorporated in
- DE
- HQ
- One Jericho Plaza - Wing A, 2nd Floor, Jericho, New York 11753
- Auditor
- CBIZ CPAs P.C.
- Audited financials
Same owner · FDD Item 1, page 6
1 other brand on this site names Nathan's Famous, Inc. as parent or ultimate parent in its own FDD.
- Nathan's Famous (grade C)
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
Nathan's Famous Systems, Inc., a Delaware subsidiary of Nathan's Famous Operating Corp. based in Jericho, New York, licenses food-service operators to add Nathan's Famous hot dogs, crinkle-cut french fries and other approved items to their existing menus under its Branded Menu Program, offered since October 2006. The same disclosure also offers an Arthur Treacher's Branded Menu Program for seafood and chicken items; licensees buy all Nathan's BMP products from the franchisor or an approved distributor, and the franchisor profits on those sales instead of charging royalties.
Is the system healthy?
-5 franchised outlets between the first and last year-ends Item 20 prints (81 to 76, -6.2% in total, -3.1% a year compounded).
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 20 (outlets opened, closed and transferred)
Item 20 (outlet counts) · unit dynamics
The growth chart
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
Last fiscal year · Item 20 rates and pipeline
- Reacquired
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
Item 20 · franchised units at year end
Franchised units fell from 81 in 2023 to 76 in 2025
Axis does not start at zero.
Source and method
Government records
SBA loan data
Matched to this brand from SBA 7(a) and 504 FOIA loan records.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
What are the risks?
Main risk: a shrinking system. Franchised outlets fell from 81 to 76 over the two Item 20 years.
Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA · FDD Items 3, 21
Verdict grade + FDD Items 3 (litigation), 4 (bankruptcy), 8 (required suppliers), 16 (what you may sell), 21 (audited financials)
Risk and legal
Grade B: Second tier, 64/100 (category median 51); the full grade is at the top of the page.
How the grade is built
Why a B, factor by factor
- Financial health HelpsAudited financials; franchisor net income positive
- Unit economics NeutralNo Item 19 sales figure to set against the investment, so neutral
- Unit growth Weighs on it, weakest dimension-5 franchised outlets between the first and last year-ends Item 20 prints (81 to 76, -6.2% in total, -3.1% a year compounded)
- Scale Neutral76 franchised units; franchising since 2006
- Legal Helps1 matter naming the franchisor among the Item 3 matters we list (1.3 per 100 outlets)
- Transparency HelpsItem 19 status not confirmed (neither credit nor penalty); audited financials
From the six scored dimensions, an editorial assessment, not investment advice. How the score is built
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · CBIZ CPAs P.C.
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
What are you signing up for?
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 11, 12, 17
FDD Items 12 (territory), 15 (owner participation) and 17 (renewal, termination and disputes)
Contract and territory detail
| Protected territory | No |
|---|---|
| Exclusive territory | No |
Items 10 (financing), 11 (training and support)
Training and operations
- Time to open
- 1–2 mo
- From signing to launch, at an existing food service establishment (FDD p.24)
Franchisee contacts
We hold no owner list for this brand. Item 20 of the FDD lists the current and former owners; the free FDD is the source.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to open a Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program franchise?
Per the 2026 FDD, the total investment to open a Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program franchise ranges from $57K to $202K, with an initial franchise fee of $8K. This is the Item 7 total in the Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD): the startup costs the franchisor lists, such as build-out, equipment, inventory and working capital. It usually leaves out buying land or a building; Item 7's notes say what is excluded.
What do Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program franchise owners earn?
No average owner earnings figure for Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program is on file. Item 19, where a franchisor may disclose what its outlets earn, is voluntary under the FTC Franchise Rule, and we have not established what this brand's FDD says. Item 20 of the FDD lists current and former franchisees; asking them directly is the standard way to fill this gap.
Who owns Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program?
Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program is franchised by Nathan's Famous Systems, Inc. Its parent company is Nathan's Famous Operating Corp.. The ultimate parent named in the FDD is Nathan's Famous, Inc.. Source: FDD Item 1, 2026 filing.
What is Item 19 in the Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program 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 Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program's franchise failure rate?
There is no published franchise failure rate, and Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program has too few resolved SBA 7(a) loans on file (fewer than 10) to show an SBA charge-off rate that would mean anything. The SBA charge-off rate is the share of a brand's resolved SBA 7(a) loans to its franchisees that the SBA wrote off, including purchased guarantees. Resolved means paid in full or charged off; active loans are excluded because their outcome is not yet known. It is a lending outcome, not a count of closed businesses. Review the turnover and closure figures in Item 20 of the FDD and speak with current and former franchisees.
How many Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program franchise locations are there?
Per the 2026 FDD, Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program has 76 franchised units and 0 company-owned (76 in all). In the latest year, the number of franchised outlets grew by 1.
Is Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict gives Nathan's Famous Branded Menu Program a B Verdict grade (Second tier) with a verdict score of 64 out of 100 (higher is better), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Helped by financial health (audited financials), legal record and transparency. Held back by unit growth (-5 franchised outlets between the first and last year-ends Item 20 prints: 81 to 76, -6.2% in total, -3.1% a year compounded). The “Why a B” section on this page lists all six dimensions and any adjustment. Speak with current franchisees before making any investment decision.
Other Quick-Service Restaurants franchises
Similar investment first, then by grade
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.