Franchises under $20K
Franchises you can open for $20,000 or less at the low end of their cost range, not counting estimates for converting a business you already own. Sort by fee, royalty or size, and open any brand for its full cost breakdown.
- Brands
- 65
- Typical cost
- $11K–$45K
- Lowest start
- $2KBeLocal
- Share earnings
- 22 of 65
All 65 brands
Sort by any column, or filter by budget and fees.
| $2K–$12K | $735 | 15% of ad value + costs | 148 | Yes | |
| $2K–$12K | $735 | 20% of ad value + costs | 153 | Yes | |
| $2K–$21K | $695+ | 1.5%–3% of fares | 3,125 | $411K | |
| $2K–$13K | $735 | 15% of ad value + costs | 620 | Yes | |
| $2K–$8K | $995+ | 10% + 20% mgmt | 1,229 | Yes | |
| $3K–$29K | $1,995+ | $99–$399 a month | 211 | No | |
| $4K–$26K | $0 | 25% | 268 | No | |
| $4K–$10K | $1,000 | Annual purchase requirement | 565 | No | |
| $4K–$134K | $2,500+ | 15%; $300 minimum currently waived | 402 | No | |
| $4K–$80K | $3,600+ | 5% | 740 | No | |
| $5K–$46K | $0 | 5% | 6 | No | |
| $5K–$32K | $12,000 | 10% or 50% | 61 | No | |
| $5K–$80K | $3,600+ | 5% | 26 | No | |
| $5K–$64K | $1,250 | 20% of member enrollment + minimum | 5,092 | No | |
| $5K–$20K | $1 | 1% + 40% of margin | 4 | No | |
| $6K–$38K | $4,725+ | 5% | 53 | No | |
| $6K–$16K | $3,500 | 8%–16% tiered | 263 | No | |
| $7K–$80K | $5,850+ | 5% | 104 | Yes | |
| $7K–$80K | $3,600+ | 5% | 2 | No | |
| $7K–$28K | $0 | 5%–8% tiered | 483 | No | |
| $8K–$11K | $5,000 | $600–$700 a month | 101 | No | |
| $9K–$23K | $4,000 | $10–$180 per student | 20 | No | |
| $9K–$44K | $3,250+ | Agreement-based rates up to 5.25% | 261 | Yes | |
| $10K–$30K | $5,000 | $225–$350 per month | 62 | No | |
| $10K–$38K | $10,000 | Revenue share | – | Yes | |
| $10K–$70K | $1,975+ | $195 per agent + 4.95% | 3 | No | |
| $10K–$131K | $7,500 | $210 a year | 58 | No | |
| $10K–$19K | $8,500 | 25% | 492 | $21K | |
| $10K–$61K | $4,000 | 5% of commissions | 51 | No | |
| $11K–$35K | $0 | 20–25% desk fee | – | No | |
| $11K–$65K | $1,500 | No royalty | 45 | No | |
| $11K–$12K | $9,900 | $80 weekly publication fee | 174 | No | |
| $11K–$46K | $20,000 | Commission-based royalties | 378 | No | |
| $12K–$69K | $5,440+ | 10% | 54 | Yes | |
| $12K–$21K | $10,500 | 1.5%-3% of commissionable sales | 2,515 | $511K | |
| $12K–$25K | $9,500 | 15% | 36 | No | |
| $13K–$21K | $8,000 | 8% + minimum | 62 | No | |
| $13K–$17K | $10,000 | 15% | 1 | Yes | |
| $13K–$68K | $8,750+ | 10% | 45 | No | |
| $13K–$22K | $10,000 | 20% | 8 | No | |
| $14K–$21K | $9,995 | $195 a month | 41 | Yes | |
| $14K–$68K | $10,000 | 22% | 28 | $322K | |
| $14K–$606K | $8,160+ | None | 6,158 | No | |
| $15K–$45K | $10,000 | 6% + minimum | – | No | |
| $15K–$28K | $10,000 | 7% | 1 | Yes | |
| $16K–$56K | $8,950 | 4% | 50 | No | |
| $16K–$43K | $12,000+ | 6% + minimum | 25 | No | |
| $16K–$71K | $3,000+ | 1%–12% | 12 | No | |
| $17K–$237K | $5,000+ | Base, associate and transaction fees | 587 | No | |
| $17K–$74K | $2,995 | 5% | 110 | No | |
| $17K–$233K | $1,500+ | 15%–18.5% of gross margin + minimum | 192 | Yes | |
| $17K–$45K | $10,000 | $100 per dealer lot a month | 73 | No | |
| $18K–$110K | $50,000 | 7%; volume discount possible | 27 | $1.11M | |
| $18K–$79K | $40,000 | Transaction-based royalties; seasonal minimums | 194 | $64K | |
| $18K–$37K | $2,499+ | 10% | 0 | No | |
| $18K–$64K | $15,570+ | 5% + 10% | 5,669 | Yes | |
| $18K–$111K | $5,000+ | 4% royalty plus 11% support | 1 | No | |
| $18K–$120K | $6,000+ | Revenue share plus administration fee | 586 | No | |
| $18K–$47K | $10,000 | 10% | 12 | Yes | |
| $18K–$84K | $7,000+ | 25% of receipts | 12 | No | |
| $20K–$66K | $20,000 | 7% | 8 | No | |
| $20K–$64K | $20,000 | 7% + minimum | 3 | Yes | |
| $20K–$85K | $15,000+ | 10% | 38 | Yes | |
| $20K–$35K | $17,500 | $199 a month | 14 | No | |
| $20K–$28K | $15,000 | 6%, capped | – | No |
Whole cost range under $20K
10 of the 65 brands here have a high estimate at or under $20,000 too, so the budget covers the most expensive version of the business, not just the cheapest. Whole range under $20K in the finder
Industries under $20K
Cleaning (14) and commercial cleaning (12) have the most brands that start at $20K or less.
| Industry | Brands under $20K |
|---|---|
| Cleaning | 14 of 125 |
| Commercial cleaning | 12 of 45 |
| Mobile | 7 of 139 |
| Real estate | 7 of 95 |
| Printing and sign | 4 of 34 |
| Sports | 2 of 120 |
| Staffing | 2 of 31 |
| Tax | 2 of 12 |
| Bakery | 1 of 112 |
| Home care and senior care | 1 of 73 |
| Painting | 1 of 22 |
| Pet | 1 of 88 |
Best franchises to own under $20K
One brand here makes our ranking of the best low-cost franchises, each missing one of the five tests. The full ranking
| Brand | Growth | Exits/yr | Cost to open |
|---|---|---|---|
| 26. Cruise PlannersMissed “Few exits”: 7.9% of locations exited each year$2K–$21K to open | +20% | 7.9% | $2K–$21K |
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Franchises under $20K: questions
What is the cheapest under-$20K franchise?
Of the 65 brands here, BeLocal has the lowest estimated starting investment: $1,925 to $11,910 to open.
Which under-$20K franchise is the largest?
Bimbo Bakeries Distribution, with 6,158 locations (5,901 franchised) at the end of 2022.
What royalty do under-$20K franchises charge?
Royalties on gross sales in this list run from 4% to 25%, with a median of 7%. Most brands add a separate marketing or brand fund fee.
Which under-$20K franchises share earnings figures?
22 of 65 share sales or earnings figures, among them Anago of Baltimore, Backyard PE, BeLocal, Buildingstars.