Ding Tea franchise
2026 filing · March 19, 2026Fewer locations
Ding Tea at a glance
A bubble tea shop serving milk teas, fruit teas and other tea drinks made to order. At the end of 2025 there were 101 Ding Tea locations in the US, all franchised.
The business
- Franchisor
- Ding Tea Corporation
- The company that sells the franchises
- Franchisor based in
- Wilmington, Delaware
What you pay
- Cost to open
- $195K–$324K
- Fee, build-out and opening working capital
- Franchise fee
- $30,000
- Paid once, when you sign
- Royalty
- None
- No royalty. Owners buy opening inventory and supplies from Ding Tea and approved suppliers; a marketing fund of about 3% of monthly sales applies once Ding Tea sets one up
- Renewal fee
- $15,000
- When the agreement ends and you sign again
- Agreement length
- 3 years
- Franchisor financing
- None offered
Where it is
- US locations, 2025
- 101
- Franchised and company-owned
- Franchised
- 101
- Company-owned
- 0
- Change in 3 years
- −21
- Franchised locations, 2023–2025
- States
- 18
- Most in California, Georgia and Washington
From Ding Tea Corporation’s 2026 filing; revenue and net income from its audited financial statements, page 59; 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
Ding Tea among all franchises with the same figure.
| Figure | Ding Tea | Among all franchises |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, midpointHalfway between the low and high estimate | $259,705 | Costs less than 61% of franchises |
| Franchise feePaid once, when you sign | $30,000 | Lower than 72% of franchises |
| US locationsFranchised and company-owned | 101 | More than 76% of franchises |
How much a Ding Tea franchise costs
Opening one Ding Tea costs an estimated $195,240 to $324,170. That covers the franchise fee and everything else needed to open, through the first months of working capital.
Source: Ding Tea Corporation, 2026 filing, page 16
Ding Tea franchise fee
The franchise fee is $30,000. You pay it when you sign the franchise agreement.
Source: Ding Tea Corporation, 2026 filing, page 11
Royalty and ongoing fees
| Royalty | No royalty. Owners buy opening inventory and supplies from Ding Tea and approved suppliers; a marketing fund of about 3% of monthly sales applies once Ding Tea sets one up. |
|---|---|
| Transfer Fees | $10,000 |
| Renewal Fees | $15,000 |
The typical franchise royalty is 6% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. See franchise fees and royalties to compare.
Source: Ding Tea Corporation, 2026 filing, page 12
Other fees as filed, from pages 13–14. The filing lists every fee, including late fees and audit costs.
Sales and earnings
No figures Ding Tea 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: Ding Tea Corporation, 2026 filing, page 45
- Estimate Estimated yearly sales per location
- $380K–$670K
Estimated from the sales that 292 comparable franchises file, matched on industry, format, cost to open, fees and size.
SBA loans to Ding Tea franchisees
Lenders approved 2 SBA 7(a) loans for Ding Tea franchisees from 2022 to 2024, $499K in all. One has been paid in full; none was charged off. The other one hasn’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
Growth and closures
Share of franchised locations, 2025 / 2023–2025. Typical means the median: half of brands are above it, half below.
| Measure | Ding Tea | Typical bubble tea brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| GrowthNet change in franchised locations | −16% / −17% | +12% / +100% | +1.2% / +10% |
| ClosuresTerminated, not renewed or stopped operating | 20% / 50% | 3.8% / 28% | 3.9% / 16% |
| Bought backLocations the franchisor took back | 0% / 0% | 0% / 0% | 0% / 0% |
Typical bubble tea brand is the median of the 11 brands in bubble tea franchises with three years of counts.
How Ding Tea compares
Of the 56 bubble tea franchises on this site, Ding Tea is the 20th cheapest to open and the 3rd largest by number of locations.
| Figure | Ding Tea | Typical bubble tea brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, low end | $195K | $264K | $222K |
| Cost to open, high end | $324K | $502K | $477K |
| Franchise fee | $30K | $40K | $40K |
| US locations | 101 | 8 | 21 |
| Shares earnings figures | No | 19 of 56 | 2,147 of 3,352 |
Typical is the median across the 56 brands in bubble tea franchises; typical franchise, across every brand here.
Locations opened and closed
| Year | Franchised | Company-owned | Opened | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 116 (+20) | 0 | – | – |
| 2022 | 122 (+6) | 0 | – | – |
| 2023 | 137 (+15) | 0 | +31 | −16 |
| 2024 | 120 (−17) | 0 | +4 | −21 |
| 2025 | 101 (−19) | 0 | +5 | −24 |
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: franchise failure rates.
Over 5 years, from the start of 2021 to the end of 2025, franchised locations went from 96 to 101 (+5, +5%). The earlier years come from the brand's 2024 filing.
Source: Ding Tea Corporation, 2026 filing, page 46
2021–2022: Ding Tea Corporation, 2024 filing, page 44
Where Ding Tea locations are
At the end of 2025, Ding Tea had franchised locations in 19 states and territories. The most are in California, Georgia and Washington.
- California40
- Georgia12
- Washington8
- Texas7
- Utah5
- Michigan4
| State | Franchised |
|---|---|
| California | 40 |
| Georgia | 12 |
| Washington | 8 |
| Texas | 7 |
| Utah | 5 |
| Michigan | 4 |
| Louisiana | 3 |
| Oregon | 3 |
| Pennsylvania | 3 |
| Arizona | 2 |
Source: Ding Tea Corporation, 2026 filing, page 47
Who owns Ding Tea?
Ding Tea franchises are sold by Ding Tea Corporation.
From Ding Tea Corporation’s 2026 filing.
Lawsuits and bankruptcy
| Lawsuits and regulatory actions | Yes. The filing describes past or pending cases involving the franchisor, its affiliates or its executives on pages 9–11. |
|---|---|
| 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: Ding Tea Corporation, 2026 filing, litigation on pages 9–11, bankruptcy on page 11
Ding Tea filings
A franchisor files a new disclosure each year it sells franchises. The figures on this page come from Ding Tea Corporation’s 2026 filing, issued March 19, 2026; the earlier ones below are on record with the Minnesota Department of Commerce and fill in older location counts.
| Filing | Issued | Registry | On this page |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 filing | March 19, 2026 | Minnesota | Costs, fees and locations, 2023–2025 |
| 2024 filing | – | Minnesota | Locations, 2021–2022 |
Each link opens the filing as a PDF. See the newest filings across all brands.
Other bubble tea franchises
All bubble tea franchises
Ding Tea is also on these lists: food franchises.