Early Bird franchise
2026 filing · April 30, 2026GrowingShares sales figures
Early Bird at a glance
A full-service restaurant serving breakfast, brunch and lunch. At the end of 2025 there were 8 Early Bird locations in the US, 3 franchised and 5 company-owned, so most are run by the company itself.
The business
- Franchisor
- Early Bird Corporate, LLC
- The company that sells the franchises
- Franchisor based in
- Omaha, Nebraska
- Typical size
- 3,200–4,500 sq ft
What you pay
- Cost to open
- $400K–$2.75M
- Fee, build-out and opening working capital
- Franchise fee
- $60,000
- Paid once, when you sign
- Royalty
- 4%
- 4% of gross sales, paid weekly, plus up to 1% to the brand development fund
- Brand fund
- Yes
- Up to 1% of gross sales, paid with the royalty
- Renewal fee
- $5,000
- When the agreement ends and you sign again
- Agreement length
- 10 years
- Territory
- None
- No exclusive territory
Where it is
- US locations, 2025
- 8
- Franchised and company-owned
- Franchised
- 3
- Company-owned
- 5
- Change in 3 years
- +3
- Franchised locations, 2023–2025
- States
- 2
- Most in Iowa and Nebraska
From Early Bird Corporate, LLC’s 2026 filing; SBA status from the SBA Franchise Directory, October 28, 2026.
Where it ranks
Early Bird among all franchises with the same figure.
| Figure | Early Bird | Among all franchises |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, midpointHalfway between the low and high estimate | $1,573,250 | Costs more than 90% of franchises |
| Franchise feePaid once, when you sign | $60,000 | Higher than 88% of franchises |
| RoyaltyShare of sales paid to the franchisor | 4% | Lower than 93% of brands with a set rate |
| US locationsFranchised and company-owned | 8 | Fewer than 65% of franchises |
How much a Early Bird franchise costs
Opening one Early Bird costs an estimated $400,000 to $2,746,500. That covers the franchise fee and everything else needed to open, through the first months of working capital.
The biggest costs are leasehold improvements ($97,000 to $1,500,000) and liquor license ($500 to $500,000). Here is every line of the estimate as filed:
| What it pays for | Range | Low | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $60,000 | ||
| Rent – 3 Months | $27,000 | $60,000 | |
| Utilities | $6,000 | $12,000 | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $97,000 | $1,500,000 | |
| Signage | $10,000 | $50,000 | |
| Furniture, Fixtures and Equipment | $65,000 | $285,000 | |
| Point of Sale System | $5,000 | $20,000 | |
| Business Licenses and Permits | $2,000 | $8,000 | |
| Liquor License | $500 | $500,000 | |
| Professional Fees | $5,000 | $15,000 | |
| Architectural/Design Fees | $8,000 | $45,000 | |
| Insurance – 3 Months | $5,000 | $10,000 | |
| Inventory | $22,500 | $35,000 | |
| Training Expenses | $27,000 | $60,000 | |
| Grand Opening Marketing | $10,000 | ||
| Secret Penguin Marketing and Design Service | $5,000 | ||
| Additional Funds – 3 Months | $45,000 | $71,500 | |
| Total | $400,000 | $2,746,500 | |
Source: Early Bird Corporate, LLC, 2026 filing, page 21
Early Bird franchise fee
The franchise fee is $60,000. You pay it when you sign the franchise agreement.
Source: Early Bird Corporate, LLC, 2026 filing, page 14
Royalty and ongoing fees
| Royalty | 4% of gross sales, paid weekly, plus up to 1% to the brand development fund. |
|---|---|
| Brand or marketing fund | Up to 1% of gross sales, paid with the royalty. |
| Transfer Fee (Multi-Unit Operator Agreement) | $25,000 |
| Renewal Fee | $5,000 |
| Local Marketing | Up to 2% of Gross Sales; however, we may require up to 5%. |
The typical franchise royalty is 6% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. See franchise fees and royalties to compare.
Source: Early Bird Corporate, LLC, 2026 filing, pages 14 and 15
Other fees as filed, from pages 15–17. The filing lists every fee, including late fees and audit costs.
Sales and earnings
Shares figures Early Bird publishes sales or earnings figures for its locations. The full tables, with notes on which locations are counted, are in its filing.
Source: Early Bird Corporate, LLC, 2026 filing, page 55
- Estimate Estimated yearly sales per location
- $1.7M–$3M
Estimated from the sales that 292 comparable franchises file, matched on industry, format, cost to open, fees and size.
How Early Bird compares
Of the 58 breakfast franchises on this site, Early Bird is the 16th cheapest to open and the 38th largest by number of locations.
| Figure | Early Bird | Typical breakfast brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, low end | $400K | $640K | $222K |
| Cost to open, high end | $2.75M | $1.2M | $477K |
| Franchise fee | $60K | $40K | $40K |
| Royalty | 4% | 5% | 6% |
| US locations | 8 | 13 | 21 |
| Closed or left per year | 0% | 3% | – |
| Shares earnings figures | Yes | 46 of 58 | 2,147 of 3,352 |
Typical is the median across the 58 brands in breakfast franchises; typical franchise, across every brand here.
Locations opened and closed
| Year | Franchised | Company-owned | Opened | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 0 (0) | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | 1 (+1) | 4 | +1 | 0 |
| 2025 | 3 (+2) | 5 | +2 | 0 |
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.
Source: Early Bird Corporate, LLC, 2026 filing, page 60
Where Early Bird locations are
At the end of 2025, Early Bird had locations in 2 states. The most are in Iowa and Nebraska.
- Iowa5
- Nebraska3
Source: Early Bird Corporate, LLC, 2026 filing, page 61
Who owns Early Bird?
Early Bird franchises are sold by Early Bird Corporate, LLC. Its filing names no parent company.
From Early Bird Corporate, LLC’s 2026 filing, page 9.
Lawsuits and bankruptcy
| Lawsuits and regulatory actions | Yes. The filing describes past or pending cases involving the franchisor, its affiliates or its executives on page 13. |
|---|---|
| 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: Early Bird Corporate, LLC, 2026 filing, litigation on page 13, bankruptcy on page 13
Early Bird filings
The figures on this page come from Early Bird Corporate, LLC’s 2026 filing, issued April 30, 2026, on record with the NASAA Electronic Filing Depository.
| Filing | Issued | Registry | On this page |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 filing | April 30, 2026 | NASAA depository | Costs, fees and locations, 2023–2025 |
Each link opens the filing as a PDF. See the newest filings across all brands.
Other breakfast franchises
All breakfast franchises
Early Bird is also on these lists: restaurant franchises, food franchises.