California Pizza Kitchen franchise
2026 filing · April 15, 2026Fewer locations
California Pizza Kitchen at a glance
A full-service casual dining restaurant serving California-style pizzas, pastas, salads and entrees. At the end of 2025 there were 121 California Pizza Kitchen locations in the US, 14 franchised and 107 company-owned, so most are run by the company itself.
The business
- Franchisor
- CPK Franchise LLC
- The company that sells the franchises
- Franchising since
- 1996
- 30 years of selling franchises
- First location
- 1985
- Franchisor based in
- Costa Mesa, California
What you pay
- Cost to open
- $1.58M–$5.38M
- A new CPK restaurant
- Franchise fee
- $50,000
- For a traditional restaurant ($30,000 at non-traditional sites)
- Royalty
- 5%
- 5% of gross sales, paid every 28-day period
- Brand fund
- 1%
- 1% of gross sales
- Renewal fee
- $25,000
- When the agreement ends and you sign again
- Agreement length
- 10 years
- Territory
- Protected
- Protected territory
- Franchisor financing
- None offered
Where it is
- US locations, 2025
- 121
- Franchised and company-owned
- Franchised
- 14
- Company-owned
- 107
- Change in 3 years
- −1
- Franchised locations, 2023–2025
- States
- 26
- Most in California, Florida and Hawaii
Support and records
- Lawsuits disclosed
- None
- Franchisor revenue, 2025
- $3.47M
- The company, not one location
- Franchisor net income
- $23K
- Latest filing
- Apr 15, 2026
- 2026 filing
From CPK Franchise LLC’s 2026 filing; revenue and net income from its audited financial statements, page 148; SBA status from the SBA Franchise Directory, October 28, 2026.
Franchisor revenue is the company that sells the franchises (royalties, fees and anything else it earns), not what a location makes.
Where it ranks
California Pizza Kitchen among all franchises with the same figure.
| Figure | California Pizza Kitchen | Among all franchises |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, midpointHalfway between the low and high estimate | $3,479,750 | Costs more than 96% of franchises |
| Franchise feePaid once, when you sign | $50,000 | Higher than 70% of franchises |
| RoyaltyShare of sales paid to the franchisor | 5% | Lower than 69% of brands with a set rate |
| US locationsFranchised and company-owned | 121 | More than 79% of franchises |
How much a California Pizza Kitchen franchise costs
Opening a new CPK restaurant costs an estimated $1,582,000 to $5,377,500. That covers the franchise fee and everything else needed to open, through the first months of working capital.
Source: CPK Franchise LLC, 2026 filing, page 17
California Pizza Kitchen franchise fee
The franchise fee is $50,000, for a traditional restaurant ($30,000 at non-traditional sites). You pay it when you sign the franchise agreement.
Source: CPK Franchise LLC, 2026 filing, page 11
Royalty and ongoing fees
| Royalty | 5% of gross sales, paid every 28-day period. |
|---|---|
| Brand or marketing fund | 1% of gross sales. |
| Renewal Fee | $25,000 |
The typical franchise royalty is 6% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. See franchise fees and royalties to compare.
Source: CPK Franchise LLC, 2026 filing, page 12
Other fees as filed, from page 15. The filing lists every fee, including late fees and audit costs.
Sales and earnings
No figures California Pizza Kitchen does not share sales or profit figures for its locations. Talking to current and former franchise owners is the usual way to learn what a location earns.
Source: CPK Franchise LLC, 2026 filing, page 50
- Estimate Estimated yearly sales per location
- $2.2M–$3.9M
Estimated from the sales that 292 comparable franchises file, matched on industry, format, cost to open, fees and size.
Growth and closures
Share of franchised locations, 2025 / 2023–2025. Typical means the median: half of brands are above it, half below.
| Measure | California Pizza Kitchen | Typical pizza brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| GrowthNet change in franchised locations | +17% / −6.7% | 0% / −3% | +1.2% / +10% |
| ClosuresTerminated, not renewed or stopped operating | 8.3% / 27% | 2.8% / 9.1% | 3.9% / 16% |
| Bought backLocations the franchisor took back | 0% / 0% | 0% / 0% | 0% / 0% |
Typical pizza brand is the median of the 49 brands in pizza franchises with three years of counts.
How California Pizza Kitchen compares
Of the 122 pizza franchises on this site, California Pizza Kitchen is the 118th cheapest to open and the 19th largest by number of locations.
| Figure | California Pizza Kitchen | Typical pizza brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, low end | $1.58M | $349K | $222K |
| Cost to open, high end | $5.38M | $787K | $477K |
| Franchise fee | $50K | $30K | $40K |
| Royalty | 5% | 5% | 6% |
| Brand fund | 1% | 1.9% | 2% |
| US locations | 121 | 26 | 21 |
| Shares earnings figures | No | 63 of 122 | 2,147 of 3,352 |
Typical is the median across the 122 brands in pizza franchises; typical franchise, across every brand here.
Locations opened and closed
| Year | Franchised | Company-owned | Opened | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 15 (0) | 133 | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | 12 (−3) | 119 | 0 | −3 |
| 2025 | 14 (+2) | 107 | +3 | −1 |
Closed or left counts terminations, non-renewals, locations bought back by the franchisor and locations that stopped operating.
See which brands grew most in the fastest-growing franchises rankings.
More in the guides: pizza franchise costs and franchise failure rates.
Source: CPK Franchise LLC, 2026 filing, page 50
Where California Pizza Kitchen locations are
At the end of 2025, California Pizza Kitchen had locations in 27 states and territories. The most are in California, Florida and Hawaii.
- California54
- Florida9
- Hawaii8
- Illinois6
- Virginia5
- Maryland4
| State | Franchised | Company-owned | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 4 | 50 | 54 |
| Florida | 0 | 9 | 9 |
| Hawaii | 2 | 6 | 8 |
| Illinois | 0 | 6 | 6 |
| Virginia | 0 | 5 | 5 |
| Maryland | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| Nevada | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| Georgia | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Michigan | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Connecticut | 0 | 2 | 2 |
All 27 states
| Guam | 2 |
|---|---|
| Massachusetts | 2 |
| New Jersey | 2 |
| New York | 2 |
| Pennsylvania | 2 |
| Texas | 2 |
| Arizona | 1 |
| Colorado | 1 |
| Kentucky | 1 |
| Louisiana | 1 |
| Missouri | 1 |
| New Mexico | 1 |
| Ohio | 1 |
| Oregon | 1 |
| Tennessee | 1 |
| Utah | 1 |
| Wisconsin | 1 |
Source: CPK Franchise LLC, 2026 filing, page 51
Who owns California Pizza Kitchen?
California Pizza Kitchen franchises are sold by CPK Franchise LLC. Its ultimate parent is Convive PK Holdings LLC.
From CPK Franchise LLC’s 2026 filing, page 9.
Lawsuits and bankruptcy
| Lawsuits and regulatory actions | None. The filing says no litigation has to be disclosed. |
|---|---|
| Bankruptcy | The franchisor's affiliate California Pizza Kitchen, Inc. and its parent CPK Holdings filed for Chapter 11 in July 2020; the case was discharged in March 2021. Two of its executives previously held the same roles at NPC International, which filed for Chapter 11 in July 2020 and was dissolved under its plan. |
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: CPK Franchise LLC, 2026 filing, litigation on page 11, bankruptcy on page 11
California Pizza Kitchen filings
The figures on this page come from CPK Franchise LLC’s 2026 filing, issued April 15, 2026, on record with the Minnesota Department of Commerce.
| Filing | Issued | Registry | On this page |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 filing | April 15, 2026 | Minnesota | Costs, fees and locations, 2023–2025 |
Each link opens the filing as a PDF. See the newest filings across all brands.
Other pizza franchises
All pizza franchises
California Pizza Kitchen is also on these lists: restaurant franchises, food franchises.