Question 1

Is Jimmy John's or Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen cheaper to open?

Accepted Answer

Jimmy John's costs $366,200–$728,200 and Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen costs $1,222,045–$3,923,245 to open (FDD Item 7). Jimmy John's has the lower entry cost.

Question 2

Which earns more, Jimmy John's or Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen?

Accepted Answer

Jimmy John's reports $986,095 average annual unit revenue vs $1,978,635 for Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen (FDD Item 19). Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen is higher.

Question 3

Which is safer, Jimmy John's or Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen?

Accepted Answer

SBA 7(a) charge-off rate is 5.8% for Jimmy John's and 10.4% for Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen. Lower is safer, so Jimmy John's has the stronger loan-repayment record.

Question 4

Which is the better franchise, Jimmy John's or Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen?

Accepted Answer

FranchiseVerdict grades Jimmy John's A and Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen A, from FDD Items 5–7, 19–21 and SBA loan performance. See the full side-by-side above.

Metric	Jimmy John's	Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen
Verdict Grade	AStrongest tierStrongest tier	AStrongest tierStrongest tier
Investment Range	$366K – $728K	$1.2M – $3.9M
Franchise Fee	$35K	$50K
Royalty Rate	6.0%	5.0%
Average Revenue (Item 19)	$986K	$2.0M
SBA Charge-Off Rate	5.8% (1074 loans)	10.4% (332 loans)
Total Units	2,689	3,177
Unit Growth (YoY)	N/A	N/A
Year Began Franchising	2017	1976
FDD Year	2025	2025

Jimmy John's vs Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen