Tide Laundromat Franchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Formerly known as Tide Cleaners
Data from FDD filing
Analysis by FranchiseVerdict Research · Methodology
Tide Laundromat is a laundromat franchise operating modern self-service laundry facilities under the Tide brand. Franchisees run the stores, managing equipment upkeep, supplies, and operations.
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Tide Laundromat franchise requires a total initial investment of $1.8M – $2.3M, including a $50K franchise fee and an ongoing 6.5% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $1.2M[2]. 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
- $1.8M – $2.3M
- 88th pct Cleaning & Ma…
- Avg gross sales
- $1.2M
- 32nd pct Cleaning & Ma…
- Royalty
- 6.5%
- 27th pct Cleaning & Ma…
- Units
- 8
- 18th pct Cleaning & Ma…
- SBA charge-off
- N/A
Quick verdict · Cleaning & Maintenance · color = vs category peers
Green = favorable by >10% vs Cleaning & Maintenance 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 $1.8M – $2.3M including a $50K franchise fee, 6.5% ongoing royalty.
- RETURNSAverage unit revenue of $1.2M/year (median $1.1M).
- RISKVerdict A (Strongest tier), verdict score 60/100 (higher is better).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Corporate structure & franchisor financials
- Legal entity
- Agile Pursuits Franchising, Inc.
- Parent company
- The Procter & Gamble Company
- CEO title
- President and Chief Executive Officer, Tide Services
- Andrew (Andy) Gibson
- Incorporated in
- Ohio
- HQ
- 2 Procter & Gamble Plaza, TE-16, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
- Auditor
- Barnes Dennig & Co., Ltd.
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $11.5M
- vs $13.3M prior year
Independent franchisee associations
- Franchise Advisory Council (FAC)
Franchisee-led councils or alliances disclosed in Item 20. Indicates operator voice.
Affiliated brands
- Agile Pursuits
- The Procter and Gamble Distributing
Other brands the franchisor or its parent operates (Item 1).
Overview
About
- CEO
- Andrew (Andy) Gibson
- Headquarters
- OH
- Founded
- 2008
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 2
Can you afford it, and what does the money buy?
Entry cost runs 541% above the typical cleaning & maintenance franchise.
Source: FDD 2025 · Items 5–7
Full Item 7 breakdown14 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Furnishings, Fixtures, Equipment and Installation | $972K | $1.3M | |
| Signage (Interior & Exterior) | $30K | $44K | |
| POS and Related IT System | $12K | $22K | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $533K | $641K | |
| Development Rights Fee | $10K | $10K | |
| Initial Franchise Fee | $50K | $50K | |
| New Store Marketing Expense | $35K | $35K | |
| Initial Training Travel Related Expenses (First Business) | $6K | $9K | |
| Cleaning Agents | $14K | $18K | |
| Pre-Opening Wages | $8K | $12K | |
| Start-up Supplies | $6K | $7K | |
| Insurance and Other Business Set Up Costs | $2K | $6K | |
| 3 Months' Occupancy Cost | $0 | $38K | |
| Additional Funds | $73K | $95K | |
| Total initial investment | $1.8M | $2.3M |
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
- $1.8M – $2.3M
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $73K – $95K
- Bottom third — review vs category
- Franchise fee
- $50K – $50K
- Middle of category vs category
- Royalty
- 6.5%
- Net Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 8.5%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6.5% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $750 |
| Transfer fee | $25K |
| Renewal fee | $25K |
| Inventory (initial) | $14K – $18K |
| Total fee load | 8.5% of rev |
What do units actually make?
Average unit sales run 34% above the cleaning & maintenance norm.
Source: FDD 2025 · 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
$126K
10.5% margin
Unlevered ROIC
6%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
16.6 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 Tide Laundromat unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
Estimated return on your total franchise investment, before any debt financing.
6%
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 Tide Laundromat units return on equity?
Equity IRR · 5-yr
49.9%
7.57× MOIC
Year-1 DSCR
1.88×
EBITDA ÷ debt service
Equity required
$840K
on $4.2M purchase
Total debt
$3.4M
SBA $2.1M + 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: 2025 FDD
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $1.2M
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $1.1M
Gross sales are revenue before expenses — not profit. Actual owner earnings depend on rent, labor, royalties, marketing fees, and debt service.
- Item 19 type
- Historical Performance
- Sample size
- 3
- vs category median 32 · small
- Range (low → high)
- $925K→$1.6M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Transparency tier
- full
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Source filing
- FDD 2025
- The FDD edition these figures were read from
- Transparency
- 9 / 10
- vs category median 4 / 10 · above
Compared against 192 Cleaning & Maintenance 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 $1.2M/year in gross sales. Revenue-to-investment ratio: 0.6x.
Fee burden
Total ongoing fee load of 8.5% (near the Cleaning & Maintenance average).
Disclosure
Transparency score 9/10 — this franchisor discloses detailed breakdowns (quartiles, segments, or cohort data). Buyers can model unit economics with higher confidence. Sample size of 3 units — treat as directional only.
Operator retention
Net unit growth of +300.0% over 3 years (5 opened, 0 closed).
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 Cleaning & Maintenance averages
How Tide Laundromat Compares
Is the system healthy?
Source: FDD 2025 · Item 20
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 8
- Opened
- 5
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 0
- 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
- 0
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 100%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (3-yr)
- Outlier (see FDD)
- Likely small-sample artifact
- 3-yr CAGR
- Outlier (see FDD)
- Likely small-sample artifact
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 5
- Closed (3yr)
- 0
- Terminated (3yr)
- 0
- Non-renewed (3yr)
- 0
- Transfers (3yr)
- 3
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 0
- Franchisor bought back
- Ceased ops
- 37.5%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 6 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.
Fast growth in a small system. Newer franchisors expanding quickly may not yet have the support infrastructure of larger systems.
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
Clean profile: no litigation, no bankruptcy, no distress, positive equity of $4.86M and $2.66M net income on $13.3M revenue. Audited, Item 19 disclosed (avg gross sales $1.2M), rapid 300% growth off a small 8-unit base.
Litigation (Item 3)
0 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Largest disclosed settlement: $171,029
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Barnes Dennig & Co., Ltd.
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 60 / 100 verdict
- 01MINORPositive net worth $4.86M, net income $2.66M on $13.3M revenue
- 02MINORNo litigation, no bankruptcy, no distress
- 03MEDAudited, Item 19 disclosed; early-stage 8-unit base
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
What are you signing up for?
Ongoing fees run about 8.5% 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 | Radius |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Online sales rights | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 2 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 7 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Ohio |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
0 case reference(s): 0 pending, 0 settled.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 33 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 55 hrs
- Training location
- On-site at franchisee's restaurant and corporate training facility
- Site selection
- joint
- Franchisor financing
- Offered
- Item 10
- POS system
- Clean Cloud
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: Clean Cloud
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
12 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Tide Laundromat · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Tide Laundromat franchise?
The total investment to open a Tide Laundromat franchise ranges from $1.8M – $2.3M, 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 Tide Laundromat franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Tide Laundromat FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $1.2M. The median is $1.1M. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Item 19 in the Tide Laundromat 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 Tide Laundromat FDD and qualifies whose outlets they describe.
What is Tide Laundromat's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Tide Laundromat (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 Tide Laundromat franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Tide Laundromat has 8 total units in the United States, including 8 franchised units and 0 company-owned units. 5 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Tide Laundromat a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Tide Laundromat as a A-grade franchise with a verdict score of 60 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 Tide Laundromat, you can request corrections or provide updated information.
Other Cleaning & Maintenance franchises
Compare similar franchise opportunities in the Cleaning & Maintenance 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.