Captain D’s franchise
A quick-service seafood restaurant serving fish, shrimp and related meals. At the end of 2025 there were 518 Captain D’s locations in the US, 229 franchised and 289 company-owned, so most are run by the company itself.
- Cost to open
- $1.44M–$1.86M
- Franchise fee
- $35,000
- Royalty
- 4.5% of gross sales
- Locations, 2025
- 518+6 in 3 yrs
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Company snapshot
- SBA loans
- On the SBA Franchise Directory
From Captain D's, LLC’s 2026 filing; SBA status from the SBA Franchise Directory, October 28, 2026.
How much a Captain D’s franchise costs
Opening 44-seat restaurant costs an estimated $1,435,000 to $1,862,100. That covers the franchise fee and everything else needed to open, through the first months of working capital.
Source: Captain D's, LLC, 2026 filing, page 1
Captain D’s franchise fee
The franchise fee is $35,000. You pay it when you sign the franchise agreement.
Source: Captain D's, LLC, 2026 filing, page 9
Royalty and ongoing fees
| Royalty | 4.5% of gross sales. |
|---|
The typical franchise royalty is 6% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. See franchise fees and royalties to compare.
Source: Captain D's, LLC, 2026 filing, page 11
Sales and earnings
Shares figures Captain D’s publishes sales or earnings figures for its locations. The full tables, with notes on which locations are counted, are in its filing.
Source: Captain D's, LLC, 2026 filing, page 40
Locations opened and closed
| Year | Franchised | Company-owned | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 227 (+4) | 313 | 5 |
| 2024 | 237 (+10) | 293 | 8 |
| 2025 | 229 (−8) | 289 | 13 |
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.
Captain D’s passes four of the five tests on our list of the best franchises to own; it had no more US locations than three years earlier.
Source: Captain D's, LLC, 2026 filing, page 44
How Captain D’s compares
Of the 192 restaurant franchises on this site, Captain D’s is the 164th cheapest to open and the 43rd largest by number of locations.
| Measure | Captain D’s | Typical restaurant |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, low end | $1.44M | $529K |
| Royalty | 4.5% | 5% |
| Closed or left per year | 3.8% | 4.1% |
| Change in franchised locations, 3 yrs | +2.7% | +5.3% |
| Shares earnings figures | Yes | 138 of 192 |
Typical is the median across the 192 brands in restaurant franchises.
