NerdsToGo Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
- Investment
- $94K – $130K
- Disclosed sales
- $357K
- gross sales, not profit
- SBA charge-off
- 31.3%
- on 30 loans
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
NerdsToGo is a technology services franchise offering computer repair and managed IT support for consumers and small businesses. Franchisees run local operations, dispatching technicians and managing service and IT accounts.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A NerdsToGo franchise requires a total initial investment of $94K – $130K, including a $25K – $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 7.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $357K[2]. SBA 7(a) loans show a 31.3% charge-off rate across 30 loans[1]. FranchiseVerdict grade: C (Average), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Sources, dates and evidence
FDD issued: · Data extracted: · Last cited check: · Staleness risk: medium - issued 12 to 24 months ago; a newer filing is likely on file
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
- $94K – $130K
- 29th pct Home Services
- Avg gross sales
- $357K
- Outlet subset5th pct Home Services
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- 48th pct Home Services
- Units
- 31
- 35th pct Home Services
- SBA charge-off
- 31.3%
- % of SBA 7(a) loans not repaid · median varies by category
Quick verdict · Home Services · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Home Services 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 $94K – $130K including a $50K franchise fee, 7.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $357K/year (median $318K) (reported for a subset of outlets rather than the whole system).
- RISKVerdict C (Average), verdict score 40/100 (higher is better). SBA loan charge-off rate of 31.3% across 30 loans (well above the 16% franchise average, based on all SBA 7(a) franchise lending, 2010–2025).
- GROWTHNegative: net -3 franchised outlets in the latest year (2 opened, 5 closed); 1 signed but not yet open (Item 20).
- FLAGItem 4 discloses a bankruptcy of an officer or of a company an officer ran, not of the franchisor. Review Item 4 for details.
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- GTN Capital Group LLC
- Parent company
- Propelled Brands Holdings, Inc.
- FDD Item 1, page 8 of the 2025 FDD
- Predecessor
- Nerds To Go Franchise Corporation
- Prior franchisor entity
- CEO title
- Chief Executive Officer, President and Director
- Catherine Monson
- Incorporated in
- CT
- HQ
- 2542 Highlander Way, Carrollton, Texas 75006
- Auditor
- BDO USA, P.C.
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $98.2M
- vs $72.4M prior year
Same owner · FDD Item 1, page 8
3 other brands on this site name Propelled Brands Holdings, Inc. as parent or ultimate parent in their own FDD.
Grouped by the owner's name as each filing prints it (this page: the 2025 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
- Catherine Monson
- Headquarters
- TX
- Founded
- 2015
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 16
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 33% below the typical home services franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $50K | $50K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $15K | $30K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $29K | $51K |
| Total initial investment | $94K | $130K |
Source: NerdsToGo 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
- $94K – $130K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $15K – $30K
- Top 40% of category vs category
- Franchise fee
- $25K – $50K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 7.0%
- Set by a formula · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 4.5%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 7.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $125 |
| Transfer fee | $18K |
| Renewal fee | $15 |
| Total fee load | 4.5% of rev |
A 4.5% total fee load is unusually lean. More of each revenue dollar stays with the franchisee.
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 39% below the home services norm.
Reported for a subset of outlets rather than the whole system
Source: FDD 2025 · 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 NerdsToGo 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
$135K
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 NerdsToGo 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: 2025 FDD
Financial Performance
Reported for a subset of outlets rather than the whole system
- Avg gross sales
- $357K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $318K
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 Revenue
- Sample size
- 25 outlets
- vs category median 32
- Range (low → high)
- $34K→$1.1MCited, not corroborated — printed on page 87 of the 2025 FDD. Nothing else in our record independently restates or re-derives it.
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $77K→$767K
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2025
- Disclosed in the 2025 filing, covering 2024
- Transparency
- 4 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · typical
Compared against 319 Home Services brands
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 $357K/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 3.2x. Reported for a subset of outlets rather than the whole system.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 4.5% — below the Home Services median of 8.0%.
Disclosure
Transparency score 4/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence.
Operator retention
System contracting at -3.1% 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 Home Services medians
How NerdsToGo Compares
Category median of published Home Services 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 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 31
- Opened
- 2
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 5
- Terminated
- 5
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 16.1%
- Company-owned
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- -3.1%
- Net unit change over 3 years
- 3-yr CAGR
- -3.1%
- Compounded over last 3 years
Last fiscal year · Item 20 exits and transfers
- Terminated
- 5
- Not renewed
- 0
- Transferred
- 4
- Reacquired
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Signed, not yet open
- 1
- 0.03 per open outlet · Item 20 Table 5
- Projected new
- 8
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 16 states reported
The Territory Map
FDD Item 12 reports the state count, but the specific list isn't in our current data. The map will appear once we re-extract from the FDD or enough franchisee contacts are available.
16
states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
- Total loans
- 30
- Loan volume
- $5.0M
- Median loan
- $150K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 31.3%
- on 30 loans · 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)
- 68.8%
- 5-yr charge-off
- 50.0%
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 16
- Defaults
- 5
- Typical loan rate
- 7.9%
- avg rate to borrowers
- Franchised industry avg
- 19.7%
- brand above franchise avg ↑
- Jobs supported
- 174
- 3.5 per loan
- Lender concentration
- 33%
- top lender's share
Borrower mix: 83% went to startups / new businesses, 17% to established operators
Franchise vs independent — in other computer related services, franchised businesses charge off at 19.7% vs 12.7% for independents — franchising is associated with 55% higher SBA default risk in this category.
Vintage analysis
NerdsToGo charge-off rate by loan vintage
Top lenders financing NerdsToGo franchisees
Showing 3 of 16 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 NerdsToGo from SBA 7(a) FOIA data.
- Principal loss rate
- 10.0%
- Avg SBA guarantee
- 76%
- Avg interest rate
- 7.91%
- Avg chargeoff amount
- $100K
- Lender concentration
- 33.3%
- Job velocity
- 3.5 per $100K
- NAICS benchmark
- 18.6%
- NAICS 541519
- Jobs supported
- 174
Top SBA lendersTop lender holds 33% of loans
| # | Lender | Loans | Volume | Default % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Huntington National Bank | 10 | $1.5M | 60.0% |
| 2 | United Midwest Savings Bank National Association | 4 | $535K | 50.0% |
| 3 | Stearns Bank National Association | 3 | $491K | 0.0% |
| 4 | Quad City Bank and Trust Company | 1 | $150K | 0.0% |
| 5 | Mechanics Cooperative Bank | 1 | $150K | N/A |
| 6 | Midwest Regional Bank | 1 | $142K | 100.0% |
| 7 | Wells Fargo Bank National Association | 1 | $180K | 0.0% |
| 8 | Stone Bank | 1 | $220K | 0.0% |
| 9 | First Bank | 1 | $320K | 0.0% |
| 10 | John Marshall Bank | 1 | $150K | N/A |
Geographic failure vector
| State | Loans | Defaults | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| LALouisiana | 4 | 0 | 0.0% |
| NCNorth Carolina | 4 | 1 | 50.0% |
| PAPennsylvania | 3 | 0 | 0.0% |
| VAVirginia | 3 | 0 | 0.0% |
| COColorado | 2 | 0 | 0.0% |
| ILIllinois | 2 | 0 | 0.0% |
| NHNew Hampshire | 2 | 0 | 0.0% |
| TXTexas | 2 | 1 | 100.0% |
| WAWashington | 2 | 2 | 100.0% |
| FLFlorida | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
SBA 7(a) lending trend
Borrower profile
Source: SBA 7(a) + 504 FOIA loan-level data, matched by FranchiseVerdict
A 31.3% charge-off rate means roughly 1 in 3 franchisees failed to repay their SBA loan. Investigate what changed.
What could kill this investment?
SBA loans charge off at 31.3% — 95% above the 16.0% national norm, i.e. higher 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
NerdsToGo operates a shrinking 31-unit system with undisclosed profitability, recent major litigation settlement, and escalating royalty fees that create material risk of franchisee underperformance.
Litigation (Item 3)
Subject: officers or affiliates. The franchisor is not a named party in these cases.
One shareholder derivative suit (Lincolnshire Police Pension Fund v. Taylor, Delaware Court of Chancery, No. 2020-0487) involving former officers/directors John Roth and Brad Brutocao; settled September 2024 with combined $8,000,000 payment.
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
Subject: an officer. An officer’s own bankruptcy or a company an officer ran, not the franchisor’s
TGI Friday's Inc. filed voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy November 2, 2024 (Case No. 24-80069, N.D. Texas). Jennifer Rote, current General Counsel, previously served as TGI Friday's SVP/General Counsel and left the company in September 2024 prior to the filing.
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · BDO USA, P.C.
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Consolidated statements of operations for Propelled Brands Franchising, LLC (parent/guarantor); revenues comprise franchise sales, royalties, rental income, and other revenue across all Propelled Brands systems, not NerdsToGo alone.
ⓘ 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: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
Score breakdown · what drove the 40 / 100 verdict
- 01MEDSystem contracting sharply (-8.8% YoY unit decline from 31 to 28 units) indicates weakening franchisee performance or high failure rate
- 02HIGHMajor litigation settlement ($8M in Sept 2024) involving franchisor leadership and fiduciary duty breach allegations raises governance and transparency concerns
- 03MEDNet income not disclosed in FDD despite average revenue of $356,574—lack of profitability transparency is a critical red flag
- 04MINORRoyalty structure heavily back-loaded (3.5% Year 1 vs 7% thereafter) creates cash flow pressure as franchisees scale
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 4.5% 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 | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | Protected territory |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory sizeℹ | 5000 businesses minimum |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 5 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Dallas County, Texas |
| Jury trial waiver | No |
| Governing law | TX |
| Litigation count | 1 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
One shareholder derivative suit (Lincolnshire Police Pension Fund v. Taylor, Delaware Court of Chancery, No. 2020-0487) involving former officers/directors John Roth and Brad Brutocao; settled September 2024 with combined $8,000,000 payment.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 132 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 19 hrs
- Training location
- Virtual (online) and Carrollton, TX
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 9 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisor approval required; franchisor may select local broker
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- NerdNet / PSA (Professional Service Automation)
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: NerdNet / PSA (Professional Service Automation)
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
44 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 NerdsToGo franchise?
The total investment to open a NerdsToGo franchise ranges from $94K – $130K, 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 NerdsToGo franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the NerdsToGo FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $357K. The median is $318K. Important context: Reported for a subset of outlets rather than the whole system. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
Who owns NerdsToGo?
NerdsToGo is franchised by GTN Capital Group LLC. Its parent company is Propelled Brands Holdings, Inc.. Source: FDD Item 1, 2025 filing.
What is Item 19 in the NerdsToGo 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 NerdsToGo FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is NerdsToGo's franchise failure rate?
Based on SBA 7(a) loan data, NerdsToGo has a charge-off rate of 31.3% across 30 loans, meaning 31.3% 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 NerdsToGo franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, NerdsToGo has 31 total units in the United States, including 31 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 2 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is NerdsToGo a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates NerdsToGo as a C-grade franchise with a verdict score of 40 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
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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.