A&W franchise
2026 filing · April 3, 2026Shares sales figures
A&W at a glance
A quick-service restaurant serving A&W root beer, burgers and other menu items, freestanding with a drive-thru, in an endcap or in a non-traditional site. At the end of 2025 there were 210 A&W locations in the US, 208 franchised and 2 company-owned.
The business
- Franchisor
- A&W Restaurants, Inc
- The company that sells the franchises
What you pay
- Cost to open
- $894K–$1.64M
- A freestanding restaurant with a drive-thru
- Franchise fee
- $30,000
- $19,500 for an existing franchisee in good standing
- Royalty
- 5%
- 5% of net sales, paid monthly, reduced for new restaurants (none through the second full month, 3% to the tenth and 4% to the twenty-second), plus 5% of net sales for advertising
- Brand fund
- 5%
- 5% of net sales, paid with the royalty
- Renewal fee
- See terms
- 10% of its then current initial franchise fee
Where it is
- US locations, 2025
- 210
- Franchised and company-owned
- Franchised
- 208
- Company-owned
- 2
- States
- 34
- Most in Wisconsin, Michigan and Minnesota
From A&W Restaurants, Inc’s 2026 filing; SBA status from the SBA Franchise Directory, October 28, 2026.
Where it ranks
A&W among all franchises with the same figure.
| Figure | A&W | Among all franchises |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, midpointHalfway between the low and high estimate | $1,267,082 | Costs more than 87% of franchises |
| Franchise feePaid once, when you sign | $30,000 | Lower than 72% of franchises |
| RoyaltyShare of sales paid to the franchisor | 5% | Lower than 69% of brands with a set rate |
| US locationsFranchised and company-owned | 210 | More than 86% of franchises |
| Sales per locationYearly, as the brand reports it | $1,297,747 | Higher than 73% of brands that share sales figures |
| Sales against cost to openYearly sales over the cost midpoint | 1.0× | Lower than 76% of brands that share sales figures |
How much a A&W franchise costs
Opening a freestanding restaurant with a drive-thru costs an estimated $894,130 to $1,640,034. That covers the franchise fee and everything else needed to open, through the first months of working capital.
The biggest costs are building costs including site work ($500,000 to $869,484) and furnishings, fixtures & equipment ($184,900 to $275,639). Here is every line of the estimate as filed:
| What it pays for | Range | Low | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Building and Equipment Costs Professional Fees, Licenses & Permits | $30,000 | $84,000 | |
| Building Costs Including Site Work | $500,000 | $869,484 | |
| Signs | $70,000 | $87,658 | |
| Technology System | $33,230 | $69,851 | |
| Furnishings, Fixtures & Equipment | $184,900 | $275,639 | |
| Other Expenses Initial Franchise Fee | $15,000 | $30,000 | |
| Grand Opening Promotion Deposit | $5,000 | ||
| Management Training Course Expenses | $3,000 | $10,000 | |
| On-Site Team Member Training Expenses | $8,000 | $30,000 | |
| Miscellaneous Opening Costs | $6,000 | $12,402 | |
| Opening Inventory | $9,000 | $16,000 | |
| Additional Funds – 3 Months | $30,000 | $150,000 | |
| Total | $894,130 | $1,640,034 | |
Source: A&W Restaurants, Inc, 2026 filing, page 14
A&W franchise fee
The franchise fee is $30,000, $19,500 for an existing franchisee in good standing. You pay it when you sign the franchise agreement.
Source: A&W Restaurants, Inc, 2026 filing, page 9
Royalty and ongoing fees
| Royalty | 5% of net sales, paid monthly, reduced for new restaurants (none through the second full month, 3% to the tenth and 4% to the twenty-second), plus 5% of net sales for advertising. |
|---|---|
| Brand or marketing fund | 5% of net sales, paid with the royalty. |
| Technology System | $33,230 to $69,851 |
| Renewal Fee | 10% of its then current initial franchise fee |
| Additional On-Site Training or Assistance Fee | $200 per day. |
The typical franchise royalty is 6% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. See franchise fees and royalties to compare.
Source: A&W Restaurants, Inc, 2026 filing, page 11
Other fees as filed, from pages 12–14. The filing lists every fee, including late fees and audit costs.
Sales and earnings
Shares figures A&W publishes sales or earnings figures for its locations. The full tables, with notes on which locations are counted, are in its filing.
- Average net sales
- $1,297,747
- Median net sales
- $1,214,671
Yearly figures for 2025, covering franchised freestanding restaurants reporting for 2025 (59 locations). The average is about 1 times the midpoint of the cost to open.
Sales are what a location takes in before rent, payroll, royalties and other costs, not what its owner keeps.
Source: A&W Restaurants, Inc, 2026 filing, pages 46–47
SBA loans to A&W franchisees
Lenders approved 107 SBA-backed loans for A&W franchisees from 1990 to 2025, $45.2M in all: 87 7(a) loans and 20 504 loans. Of the 92 that have ended, 72 were paid in full and 20 were charged off (21.7%). The other 15 haven’t ended yet.
A charged-off loan is one written off as uncollectible. See SBA franchise loans for how 7(a) and 504 loans work.
Source: SBA 7(a) and 504 loan data, as of September 30, 2026
How A&W compares
Of the 63 burger franchises on this site, A&W is the 39th cheapest to open and the 16th largest by number of locations.
| Figure | A&W | Typical burger brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, low end | $894K | $556K | $222K |
| Cost to open, high end | $1.64M | $1.52M | $477K |
| Franchise fee | $30K | $35K | $40K |
| Royalty | 5% | 5% | 6% |
| Brand fund | 5% | 2% | 2% |
| Sales per location | $1.3M | $1.56M | $794K |
| US locations | 210 | 25 | 21 |
| Change in franchised locations, 0 yrs | −1% | −2.4% | – |
| Shares earnings figures | Yes | 44 of 63 | 2,147 of 3,352 |
Typical is the median across the 63 brands in burger franchises; typical franchise, across every brand here.
Locations opened and closed
| Year | Franchised | Company-owned |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 212 (+2) | 2 |
| 2024 | 213 (+1) | 2 |
| 2025 | 208 (−5) | 2 |
Closed or left counts terminations, non-renewals, locations bought back by the franchisor and locations that stopped operating. Single-brand A&W restaurants only; the 199 franchised A&W co-brand restaurants at the end of 2025 are counted in a separate table.
See which brands grew most in the fastest-growing franchises rankings.
More in the guides: burger franchise costs and franchise failure rates.
Source: A&W Restaurants, Inc, 2026 filing, page 53
Where A&W locations are
At the end of 2025, A&W had locations in 34 states. The most are in Wisconsin, Michigan and Minnesota.
- Wisconsin53
- Michigan33
- Minnesota21
- Iowa12
- California11
- Idaho8
| State | Franchised | Company-owned | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wisconsin | 53 | 0 | 53 |
| Michigan | 33 | 0 | 33 |
| Minnesota | 21 | 0 | 21 |
| Iowa | 12 | 0 | 12 |
| California | 11 | 0 | 11 |
| Idaho | 8 | 0 | 8 |
| Arizona | 6 | 0 | 6 |
| Oregon | 6 | 0 | 6 |
| Kansas | 5 | 0 | 5 |
| Missouri | 5 | 0 | 5 |
All 34 states
Source: A&W Restaurants, Inc, 2026 filing, page 54
Who owns A&W?
A&W franchises are sold by A&W Restaurants, Inc.
From A&W Restaurants, Inc’s 2026 filing.
Lawsuits and bankruptcy
| Lawsuits and regulatory actions | None. The filing says no litigation has to be disclosed. |
|---|---|
| Bankruptcy | None. The filing says no bankruptcy has to be disclosed. |
Franchisors must disclose lawsuits and bankruptcies involving the company, its parents and affiliates, and its executives. Many cases are routine disputes with franchisees over fees or contracts; read the descriptions in the filing and ask current owners about anything that worries you.
Source: A&W Restaurants, Inc, 2026 filing, litigation on page 9, bankruptcy on page 9
A&W filings
The figures on this page come from A&W Restaurants, Inc’s 2026 filing, issued April 3, 2026, on record with the NASAA Electronic Filing Depository.
| Filing | Issued | Registry | On this page |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 filing | April 3, 2026 | NASAA depository | Costs, fees and locations, 2023–2025 |
Each link opens the filing as a PDF. See the newest filings across all brands.
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