Peet's Coffee Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Peet's Coffee is a specialty-coffee franchise serving hand-crafted espresso drinks, single-origin coffees, and light food. Franchisees run cafes managing baristas, beverage prep, and daily service.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Peet's Coffee franchise requires a total initial investment of $1.0M – $1.7M, including a $35K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.5M[2]. FranchiseVerdict grade: A (Strongest tier), an editorial assessment, not investment advice. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified · figures per the 2026 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $1.0M – $1.7M
- 94th pct Service Resta…
- Avg gross sales
- $1.5M
- Company-owned only25th pct Service Resta…
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- 46th pct Service Resta…
- Units
- 199
- 84th 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 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 $1.0M – $1.7M including a $35K franchise fee, 6.0% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $1.5M/year (median $1.4M) (company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance).
- RISKVerdict A (Strongest tier), verdict score 61/100 (higher is better).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Peet's Coffee Franchise, LLC
- Parent company
- Peet's Coffee, Inc.
- Ultimate parent
- JDE Peet's N.V.
- CEO title
- President
- Stuart Heflin
- Incorporated in
- Delaware
- HQ
- 1400 Park Avenue, Emeryville, California 94608
- Auditor
- Deloitte & Touche LLP
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $0
- Most recent fiscal year
Independent franchisee associations
- Franchise Advisory Council (FAC)
Franchisee-led councils or alliances disclosed in Item 20. Indicates operator voice.
Overview
About
- CEO
- Stuart Heflin
- Headquarters
- CA
- Founded
- 2024
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 0
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 107% above the typical quick-service restaurants franchise.
Source: FDD 2026 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown13 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Feenot refundable | $35K | $35K | |
| Real Estate (3 Months' Rent and Security Deposit) | $30K | $50K | |
| Other Security and Utility Deposits | $10K | $20K | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $385K | $770K | |
| Computer System and Technology | $60K | $90K | |
| Initial Inventory and Supplies | $15K | $20K | |
| Furniture, Fixtures & Equipment | $260K | $350K | |
| Signage | $45K | $70K | |
| Professional Fees and Licenses | $70K | $110K | |
| Insurance | $7K | $10K | |
| Initial Training Program - Mandatory Trainees | $5K | $12K | |
| Grand Opening Advertising | $3K | $10K | |
| Additional Funds - First 3 Months of Operation | $110K | $150K | |
| Total initial investment | $1.0M | $1.7M |
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
- $1.0M – $1.7M
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $110K – $150K
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Franchise fee
- $35K – $35K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 6.0%
- percentage · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 0.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 6.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 0.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $500 |
| Training fee | $5K |
| Transfer fee | $15K |
| Renewal fee | $18K |
| Inventory (initial) | $15K – $20K |
| Total fee load | 6.0% of rev |
A 6.0% total fee load is unusually lean. More of each revenue dollar stays with the franchisee.
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 23% above the quick-service restaurants norm.
Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 19
Single-unit · estimated
Returns at a glance
Indicative numbers using FDD Item 7 / Item 19 inputs and category-benchmarked cost ratios. Full single-unit, 25-unit portfolio, and LBO models (with every input editable to stress-test your own scenario) live on the financials page.
Store EBITDA · annual
$238K
16.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
16%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
6.3 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
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. The target band for an attractive franchise is 30–60% ROIC. Below that and a passive index fund likely outperforms; above that and the franchisor has pricing power you're subsidizing.
Note: Item 19 revenue is what the franchisor discloses. It's the top line only. Operating costs below are category estimates. Override them to match your real lease quote, labor market, and build-out budget.
Returns model · single-unit ROIC
What would one Peet's Coffee unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
16%
Below the 30–60% attractive-franchise band
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%.
Levered LBO scenario · Yale Crease Capital framing
What would 25 Peet's Coffee units return on equity?
Equity IRR · 5-yr
37.1%
4.84× MOIC
Year-1 DSCR
2.23×
EBITDA ÷ debt service
Equity required
$4.4M
on $13.4M purchase
Total debt
$9.0M
SBA $5.0M + senior + seller note
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
Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance
- Avg gross sales
- $1.5M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $1.4M
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
- Sample size
- 196 outlets
- vs category median 20 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $474K→$2.9M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Quartile band
- $1.1M→$1.9M
- Bottom 25% → top 25%
- Transparency tier
- full
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2026
- Disclosed in the 2026 filing, covering 2025
- Transparency
- 4 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · typical
Compared against 782 Quick-Service Restaurants 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 $1.5M/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 1.1x. Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 6.0% — below the Quick-Service Restaurants average of 7.9%.
Disclosure
Transparency score 4/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence.
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 averages
How Peet's Coffee Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2026 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 199
- Opened
- 0
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 3
- Terminated
- 0
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 0.0%
- Company-owned
- 199
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 0%
- vs corporate-owned
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 0
- Closed (3yr)
- 14
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Projected new
- 0
- Franchisor's next-year forecast
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) and 504 loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
No SBA loan data available for this brand.
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
Peet's Coffee presents moderate-to-caution risk due to missing profitability disclosure, unprotected territory, and unclear unit growth — making it impossible to validate the $1M+ investment ROI.
Litigation (Item 3)
0 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Largest disclosed settlement: $262,500
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Deloitte & Touche LLP
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
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 61 / 100 verdict
- 01MEDNo Item 19 (Average Net Income) disclosed — impossible to validate ROI or profitability claims
- 02MINORUnprotected territory creates direct competition risk and cannibalization within the 199-unit system
- 03MINORUnknown unit growth trajectory — 199 units provides no context on system expansion, contraction, or stagnation
- 04MEDHigh initial investment ($1.035M–$1.697M) with no disclosed average net income creates severe ROI uncertainty
- 05MED10-year term with $35K franchise fee suggests relatively mature brand, but lack of growth data indicates potential plateau or decline
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 6.0% 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 | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 2 |
| Territory type | protected |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| 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 |
| RoFR response window | 60 days |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 2 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Emeryville, California (within 50 miles of principal place of business) |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | DE |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
0 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 20 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 130 hrs
- Training location
- Peet's Headquarters – Emeryville, CA and Peet's Certified Training Store in California
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 12 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- Franchisee selects, franchisor approves
- Franchisor financing
- Not offered
- Item 10
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Peet's Coffee franchise?
The total investment to open a Peet's Coffee franchise ranges from $1.0M – $1.7M, with an initial franchise fee of $35K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Peet's Coffee franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Peet's Coffee FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.5M. The median is $1.4M. Important context: Company-owned outlets only - not franchisee performance. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Item 19 in the Peet's Coffee 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 Peet's Coffee FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Peet's Coffee's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Peet's Coffee (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 Peet's Coffee franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Peet's Coffee has 199 total units in the United States, including 0 franchised units and 199 company-owned units.
Is Peet's Coffee a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Peet's Coffee as a A-grade franchise with a verdict score of 61 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 Peet's Coffee, you can request corrections or provide updated information.
Other Quick-Service Restaurants franchises
Compare similar franchise opportunities in the Quick-Service Restaurants 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.