Compare

3 brands side-by-side

Compare up to 4 brands side by side

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.

Download PDF

Focus by buyer type

Brand	AStrongest tier Black Bear Diner Full-Service Restaurants Remove	BAbove average Buffalo’s Cafe Full-Service Restaurants Remove	AStrongest tier Friendly’s Full-Service Restaurants Remove
Vitals
Investment range	$1.5M – $2.2M	$857K – $2.9M	$1.1M – $2.7M
Liquid capital	$100K – $150K	$30K – $60K	$200K – $300K
Franchise fee	$55K	$50K	$30K
Royalty rate	4.5%	6.0%	6.0%
Ad fund rate	1.0%	2.0%	2.5%
Performance
Avg gross sales	$2.8M	$2.4MNet sales	N/A
Median gross sales	$2.7M	$2.4M	N/A
Avg owner earnings Metric varies by brand. Check type below	N/A	N/A	N/A
Earnings metric	EBITDA	Not classified	Not classified
Risk
Rating	AStrongest tier	BAbove average	AStrongest tier
Verdict score	100 / 100	50 / 100	66 / 100
SBA charge-off rate	0.0%	N/A	6.5%
SBA loans on record	29	N/A	37
Scale
Total units	169	12	95
Net change (latest yr)	N/A	N/A	N/A
Turnover rate	2.1%	8.3%	5.3%
Contract
Initial term (years)	10	15	10
Renewal term (years)	10	10	10
Initial training (hrs)	342	100	200
Contacts
Franchisee phones	75	82	51

Need franchisee contacts for these brands?

Save with a contact bundle →