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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.
These brands report different earnings metrics (Average Annual Gross Sales, EBITDAR9). Financial figures may not be directly comparable.
These figures come from FDDs of different years (2024, 2026). Costs, fees and unit counts change from one filing to the next, so the older column may be out of date.
Focus by buyer type
| Brand |  AStrongest tierWendy's Quick-Service Restaurants 2026 FDD Remove |  BAbove averageCarl's Jr. Quick-Service Restaurants 2024 FDD Remove |
|---|---|---|
| Vitals | ||
FDD filing | FDD issued Mar 27, 2026 | 2024 FDD |
Investment range | $1.6M – $3.1M | $1.5M – $3.2M |
Liquid capital | $88K – $163K | $160K – $250K |
Franchise fee | $50K | $25K |
Royalty rate | 4.0% | 4.0% |
Ad fund rate | Not extracted | 6.0% |
| Performance | ||
Avg gross sales | $2.0M | $1.4M |
Median gross sales | $1.9M | $1.3M |
Avg owner earnings Metric varies by brand. Check type below | Not extracted | $372K |
Earnings metric | Average Annual Gross Sales | EBITDAR9 |
| Risk | ||
Rating | AStrongest tier | BAbove average |
Verdict score | 79 / 100 | 66 / 100 |
SBA charge-off rate | 0.8% (n=200) | Limited · 34 loans |
SBA loans on record | 200 | 34 |
| Scale | ||
Total units | 5,969 | 1,063 |
Net change (latest yr) | -6 | -6 |
Signed, not yet open | 20 (0.00 per open outlet) | 7 (0.01 per open outlet) |
Turnover rate | 1.8% | 1.4% |
| Contract | ||
Initial term (years) | 20 | 20 |
Renewal term (years) | 20 | 10 |
Initial training (hrs) | 540 | 328 |
| Contacts | ||
Franchisee phones | 5,958 | 1,009 |
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