Friendly's franchise
2026 filing · April 8, 2026GrowingShares sales figures
Friendly's at a glance
A family restaurant serving breakfast, lunch and dinner with Friendly's ice cream, or a smaller Friendly's ice cream shop. At the end of 2025 there were 87 Friendly's locations in the US, 86 franchised and 1 company-owned.
The business
- Franchisor
- Friendly's Restaurants Franchising Co, LLC
- The company that sells the franchises
- First location
- 1935
- Franchisor based in
- Dallas, Texas
What you pay
- Cost to open
- $1.11M–$2.69M
- A Friendly's restaurant
- Franchise fee
- $30,000
- 50% off the first restaurant for military veterans and first responders
- Royalty
- 6%
- 6% of net sales, paid weekly, with a reduced rate in the first years for the first five new restaurants
- Brand fund
- 2.5%
- 2.5% of net sales, paid weekly; it can rise to 3.5%
- Renewal fee
- See terms
- Half of our then-current initial franchise fee (currently $15,000)
- Agreement length
- 10 years
- Franchisor financing
- None offered
Where it is
- US locations, 2025
- 87
- Franchised and company-owned
- Franchised
- 86
- Company-owned
- 1
- Change in 2 years
- +38
- Franchised locations, 2023–2025
- States
- 11
- Most in Massachusetts, New York and New Jersey
From Friendly's Restaurants Franchising Co, LLC’s 2026 filing; SBA status from the SBA Franchise Directory, October 28, 2026.
Where it ranks
Friendly's among all franchises with the same figure.
| Figure | Friendly's | Among all franchises |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, midpointHalfway between the low and high estimate | $1,900,558 | Costs more than 92% of franchises |
| Franchise feePaid once, when you sign | $30,000 | Lower than 72% of franchises |
| RoyaltyShare of sales paid to the franchisor | 6% | Higher than 35% of brands with a set rate |
| US locationsFranchised and company-owned | 87 | More than 74% of franchises |
How much a Friendly's franchise costs
Opening a Friendly's restaurant costs an estimated $1,110,680 to $2,690,435. That covers the franchise fee and everything else needed to open, through the first months of working capital.
The biggest costs are construction of restaurant (excluding malls) ($400,000 to $1,567,500) and furniture, equipment, signs and computers ($327,500 to $460,000). Here is every line of the estimate as filed:
| What it pays for | Range | Low | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $30,000 | ||
| Humble Donut License Fee (if applicable) | $0 | $5,000 | |
| Site Selection Fee | $3,500 | ||
| Project Management Fee | $3,500 | ||
| Design and Construction Fee | $0 | $3,000 | |
| Lease, Deposits & Rent | $25,000 | $50,000 | |
| Architect; Engineer; Drawings | $16,000 | $30,000 | |
| Construction of Restaurant (excluding malls) | $400,000 | $1,567,500 | |
| Furniture, Equipment, Signs and Computers | $327,500 | $460,000 | |
| Grand Opening Campaign | $10,000 | ||
| Miscellaneous Pre-Opening Expenses | $13,420 | $36,960 | |
| Insurance (3 months) | $6,000 | $7,500 | |
| Inventory of Food, Supplies, Small-wares and Uniforms | $39,000 | $65,000 | |
| Transportation and Living Expenses for Your Management Team’s Initial Training | $10,010 | $33,825 | |
| Opening Team Expenses | $24,750 | $78,650 | |
| Professional Fees | $2,000 | $6,000 | |
| Additional Funds for 3 Months of Operation | $200,000 | $300,000 | |
| Total | $1,110,680 | $2,690,435 | |
Source: Friendly's Restaurants Franchising Co, LLC, 2026 filing, page 24
Friendly's franchise fee
The franchise fee is $30,000, 50% off the first restaurant for military veterans and first responders. You pay it when you sign the franchise agreement.
Source: Friendly's Restaurants Franchising Co, LLC, 2026 filing, page 13
Royalty and ongoing fees
| Royalty | 6% of net sales, paid weekly, with a reduced rate in the first years for the first five new restaurants. |
|---|---|
| Brand or marketing fund | 2.5% of net sales, paid weekly; it can rise to 3.5%. |
| Transfer Fee | $10,000 |
| Renewal Fee | Half of our then-current initial franchise fee (currently $15,000) |
| Local Marketing Requirement | 1% of Net Sales |
The typical franchise royalty is 6% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. See franchise fees and royalties to compare.
Source: Friendly's Restaurants Franchising Co, LLC, 2026 filing, page 16
Other fees as filed, from pages 17–18. The filing lists every fee, including late fees and audit costs.
Sales and earnings
Shares figures Friendly's publishes sales or earnings figures for its locations. The full tables, with notes on which locations are counted, are in its filing.
Source: Friendly's Restaurants Franchising Co, LLC, 2026 filing, page 63
- Estimate Estimated yearly sales per location
- $890K–$1.6M
Estimated from the sales that 292 comparable franchises file, matched on industry, format, cost to open, fees and size.
SBA loans to Friendly's franchisees
Lenders approved 37 SBA-backed loans for Friendly's franchisees from 2001 to 2021, $25M in all: 34 7(a) loans and 3 504 loans. Of the 34 that have ended, 31 were paid in full and 3 were charged off (8.8%). The other 3 haven’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
How Friendly's compares
Of the 58 breakfast franchises on this site, Friendly's is the 52nd cheapest to open and the 13th largest by number of locations.
| Figure | Friendly's | Typical breakfast brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, low end | $1.11M | $640K | $222K |
| Cost to open, high end | $2.69M | $1.2M | $477K |
| Franchise fee | $30K | $40K | $40K |
| Royalty | 6% | 5% | 6% |
| Brand fund | 2.5% | 1.4% | 2% |
| US locations | 87 | 13 | 21 |
| Closed or left per year | 7.2% | 3% | – |
| Change in franchised locations, 2 yrs | +79.2% | +6.7% | – |
| 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 | 86 (+38) | 17 | – | – |
| 2024 | 94 (+8) | 1 | +13 | −5 |
| 2025 | 86 (−8) | 1 | 0 | −8 |
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: ice cream franchise costs, franchises for veterans and franchise failure rates.
Source: Friendly's Restaurants Franchising Co, LLC, 2026 filing, page 65
Where Friendly's locations are
At the end of 2025, Friendly's had locations in 11 states. The most are in Massachusetts, New York and New Jersey.
- Massachusetts22
- New York17
- New Jersey12
- Pennsylvania12
- Connecticut10
- Maryland4
| State | Franchised | Company-owned | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Massachusetts | 22 | 0 | 22 |
| New York | 17 | 0 | 17 |
| New Jersey | 12 | 0 | 12 |
| Pennsylvania | 12 | 0 | 12 |
| Connecticut | 10 | 0 | 10 |
| Maryland | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| Delaware | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Florida | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| New Hampshire | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| South Carolina | 2 | 0 | 2 |
All 11 states
| Maine | 1 |
|---|
Source: Friendly's Restaurants Franchising Co, LLC, 2026 filing, page 66
Who owns Friendly's?
Friendly's franchises are sold by Friendly's Restaurants Franchising Co, LLC.
From Friendly's Restaurants Franchising Co, LLC’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 page 12. |
|---|---|
| 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: Friendly's Restaurants Franchising Co, LLC, 2026 filing, litigation on page 12, bankruptcy on page 12
Friendly's filings
The figures on this page come from Friendly's Restaurants Franchising Co, LLC’s 2026 filing, issued April 8, 2026, on record with the NASAA Electronic Filing Depository.
| Filing | Issued | Registry | On this page |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 filing | April 8, 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
Friendly's is also on these lists: ice cream franchises, restaurant franchises, food franchises.