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indicates the clear winner per row. Ties and missing data are not highlighted.
How winners are chosen
Lower is better for investment, liquid capital, franchise fee, royalty and ad-fund rates, SBA charge-off rate, and owner turnover.
Higher is better for disclosed revenue and owner earnings, verdict score, total units, net unit growth, and franchisee contacts. For the letter grade, A ranks highest.
A row is highlighted only when one brand clearly leads. Ties are never highlighted, and missing data never counts as a win. Some rows (earnings-metric type, loan counts, contract terms) are informational and have no winner.
Focus by buyer type
| Brand |  BAbove averageA&W Quick-Service Restaurants Remove |  DBelow averageElevation Burger Quick-Service Restaurants Remove |
|---|---|---|
| Vitals | ||
Investment range | $894K – $1.6M | $517K – $2.0M |
Liquid capital | $30K – $150K | $25K – $40K |
Franchise fee | $30K | $50K |
Royalty rate | 5.0% | 6.0% |
Ad fund rate | 5.0% | 2.0% |
| Performance | ||
Avg gross sales | $1.3M | $1.1MOutlet subsetNet sales |
Median gross sales | $1.3M | $739KOutlet subset |
Avg owner earnings Metric varies by brand. Check type below | $244K | N/A |
Earnings metric | EBITDAR | Not classified |
| Risk | ||
Rating | BAbove average | DBelow average |
Verdict score | 56 / 100 | 31 / 100 |
SBA charge-off rate | 17.1% | 33.3% |
SBA loans on record | 97 | 3 |
| Scale | ||
Total units | 210 | 32 |
Net change (latest yr) | N/A | N/A |
Turnover rate | 3.8% | 34.4% |
| Contract | ||
Initial term (years) | 20 | 15 |
Renewal term (years) | 5 | 10 |
Initial training (hrs) | 81 | 500 |
| Contacts | ||
Franchisee phones | 268 | 15 |
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