Is Anchor Bar or JL Beers cheaper to open?

Anchor Bar costs $1,202,000–$1,854,000 and JL Beers costs $1,223,000–$1,883,000 to open (FDD Item 7). Anchor Bar has the lower entry cost.

Which earns more, Anchor Bar or JL Beers?

Anchor Bar reports $2,449,992 average annual unit revenue vs $1,439,911 for JL Beers (FDD Item 19). Anchor Bar is higher. For JL Beers: Includes company-owned outlets.

Which is the better franchise, Anchor Bar or JL Beers?

FranchiseVerdict grades Anchor Bar A and JL Beers A, from FDD Items 5–7, 19–21 and SBA loan performance. See the full side-by-side above.

Anchor Bar vs JL Beers

Franchise Comparison 2026

Both Anchor Bar and JL Beers are full-service restaurants franchises. Anchor Bar requires an investment of $1.2M – $1.9M while JL Beers requires $1.2M – $1.9M. In terms of revenue, Anchor Bar reports higher average unit revenue at $2.4M. Anchor Bar has SBA lending data on file with a 0.0% charge-off rate. FranchiseVerdict rates Anchor Bar A (Strongest tier) and JL Beers A (Strongest tier).

Metric	Anchor Bar	JL Beers
Verdict Grade	AStrongest tierStrongest tier	AStrongest tierStrongest tier
Investment Range	$1.2M – $1.9M	$1.2M – $1.9M
Franchise Fee	$60K	$50K
Royalty Rate	5.0%	4.0%
Average Revenue (Item 19)	$2.4M	$1.4MIncl. company outlets
SBA Charge-Off Rate	0.0% (14 loans)	N/A
Total Units	17	10
Unit Growth (YoY)	N/A	N/A
Year Began Franchising	2011	2013
FDD Year	2026	2025