Knights Inn franchise
2026 filing · March 31, 2026Fewer locations
Knights Inn at a glance
An economy hotel brand for travelers looking for simple, low-cost rooms. At the end of 2025 there were 127 Knights Inn locations in the US, all franchised.
The business
- Industry
- Hotel
- Franchisor
- Sonesta RL Hotels Franchising Inc
- The company that sells the franchises
- Franchisor based in
- Newton, Massachusetts
What you pay
- Cost to open
- $189K–$2.07M
- 65-room hotel conversion
- Franchise fee
- $17,500
- $17,500 plus $150 for each guest room over 50.
- Royalty
- Per-room fee; $1,800 monthly minimum
- A brand fee of $45 per guest room per month, with a $1,800 monthly minimum
- Brand fund
- Yes
- $45 per guest room a month, at least $1,800 a month
- Renewal fee
- $5,000
- When the agreement ends and you sign again
- Agreement length
- 3 years
- Territory
- None
- No exclusive territory
- Franchisor financing
- None offered
Where it is
- US locations, 2025
- 127
- Franchised and company-owned
- Franchised
- 127
- Company-owned
- 0
- Change in 2 years
- −33
- Franchised locations, 2023–2025
- States
- 30
- Most in Texas, Pennsylvania and Florida
Support and records
- Lawsuits disclosed
- Yes
- Latest filing
- Mar 31, 2026
- 2026 filing
From Sonesta RL Hotels Franchising Inc’s 2026 filing; SBA status from the SBA Franchise Directory, October 28, 2026.
Where it ranks
Knights Inn among all franchises with the same figure.
| Figure | Knights Inn | Among all franchises |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, midpointHalfway between the low and high estimate | $1,128,661 | Costs more than 85% of franchises |
| Franchise feePaid once, when you sign | $17,500 | Lower than 92% of franchises |
| US locationsFranchised and company-owned | 127 | More than 80% of franchises |
How much a Knights Inn franchise costs
Opening 65-room hotel conversion costs an estimated $188,996 to $2,068,326. That covers the franchise fee and everything else needed to open, through the first months of working capital.
The biggest costs are furniture, fixtures and equipment (“FF&E”) ($15,525 to $1,105,000) and construction costs ($25,875 to $258,750). Here is every line of the estimate as filed:
| What it pays for | Range | Low | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Fee | $19,750 | ||
| Onboarding Administration Fee | $1,000 | ||
| Initial Brand Training Fee & Reimbursement of Expenses | $1,500 | $4,000 | |
| Initial Training Expenses | $1,000 | $2,000 | |
| PIP Fee | $0 | $5,000 | |
| Market Study | $0 | ||
| Construction Costs | $25,875 | $258,750 | |
| Furniture, Fixtures and Equipment (“FF&E”) | $15,525 | $1,105,000 | |
| Contingency | $5,000 | $50,000 | |
| Exterior Signage | $5,000 | $50,000 | |
| IT Implementation Services | $0 | $10,000 | |
| Property Management System Installation Fee | $1,000 | $1,500 | |
| RFID Key System | $0 | $45,500 | |
| Phone System | $5,000 | $15,000 | |
| Ancillary System, Hardware Network Administration | $2,000 | $15,000 | |
| CRS to PMS Interface and Tokenization Set Up Fee | $650 | $4,395 | |
| Low Voltage | $0 | $143,000 | |
| Inventory/Supplies (OS&E) to Begin Operating | $21,000 | $39,000 | |
| Other Pre-Opening and Grand Opening Expenses | $15,000 | $40,000 | |
| RMS Installation Fee | $400 | ||
| Insurance (for 12 months) | $32,000 | $61,000 | |
| Guest Wi-Fi and In-Room Entertainment Installation | $4,296 | $86,031 | |
| Photography Expenses | $1,000 | $5,000 | |
| PIP Reinspection Fee | $0 | $5,000 | |
| Custom Architecture & Design Review | $0 | $10,000 | |
| Lender Comfort Letter Fee | $2,000 | ||
| Construction Start Date Extension Fee | $0 | ||
| Additional Funds (3-month initial phase) | $30,000 | $90,000 | |
| Total | $188,996 | $2,068,326 | |
Source: Sonesta RL Hotels Franchising Inc, 2026 filing, page 31
Knights Inn franchise fee
The franchise fee is $17,500, $17,500 plus $150 for each guest room over 50.. You pay it when you sign the franchise agreement.
Source: Sonesta RL Hotels Franchising Inc, 2026 filing, page 22
Royalty and ongoing fees
| Royalty | A brand fee of $45 per guest room per month, with a $1,800 monthly minimum. |
|---|---|
| Brand or marketing fund | $45 per guest room a month, at least $1,800 a month. |
| Renewal Fee | $5,000 |
The typical franchise royalty is 6% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. See franchise fees and royalties to compare.
Source: Sonesta RL Hotels Franchising Inc, 2026 filing, page 24
Other fees as filed, from page 27. The filing lists every fee, including late fees and audit costs.
Sales and earnings
No figures Knights Inn 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: Sonesta RL Hotels Franchising Inc, 2026 filing, page 58
SBA loans to Knights Inn franchisees
Lenders approved 177 SBA-backed loans for Knights Inn franchisees from 1994 to 2025, $218.2M in all: 154 7(a) loans and 23 504 loans. Of the 143 that have ended, 118 were paid in full and 25 were charged off (17.5%). The other 34 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 Knights Inn compares
Of the 116 hotel franchises on this site, Knights Inn is the 7th cheapest to open and the 36th largest by number of locations.
| Figure | Knights Inn | Typical hotel brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, low end | $189K | $9.44M | $222K |
| Cost to open, high end | $2.07M | $21.3M | $477K |
| Franchise fee | $18K | $54K | $40K |
| US locations | 127 | 37 | 21 |
| Closed or left per year | 8.8% | 3.7% | – |
| Change in franchised locations, 2 yrs | −20.6% | +9.2% | – |
| Shares earnings figures | No | 71 of 116 | 2,147 of 3,352 |
Typical is the median across the 116 brands in hotel franchises; typical franchise, across every brand here.
Locations opened and closed
| Year | Franchised | Company-owned | Opened | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 170 (−16) | 0 | – | – |
| 2022 | 160 (−10) | 0 | – | – |
| 2023 | 146 (−14) | 0 | 0 | −14 |
| 2024 | 136 (−10) | 0 | +3 | −13 |
| 2025 | 127 (−9) | 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: hotel franchise costs and franchise failure rates.
Over 5 years, from the start of 2021 to the end of 2025, franchised locations went from 186 to 127 (−59, −32%). The earlier years come from the brand's 2024 filing.
Source: Sonesta RL Hotels Franchising Inc, 2026 filing, page 59
2021–2022: Sonesta RL Hotels Franchising Inc, 2024 filing, page 57
Where Knights Inn locations are
At the end of 2025, Knights Inn had franchised locations in 30 states. The most are in Texas, Pennsylvania and Florida.
- Texas15
- Pennsylvania13
- Florida9
- Michigan8
- Tennessee8
- Virginia8
| State | Franchised |
|---|---|
| Texas | 15 |
| Pennsylvania | 13 |
| Florida | 9 |
| Michigan | 8 |
| Tennessee | 8 |
| Virginia | 8 |
| Georgia | 7 |
| North Carolina | 7 |
| Arizona | 5 |
| Indiana | 5 |
All 30 states
Source: Sonesta RL Hotels Franchising Inc, 2026 filing, page 60
Who owns Knights Inn?
Knights Inn franchises are sold by Sonesta RL Hotels Franchising Inc.
Knights Inn is one of the 6 Sonesta brands here.
From Sonesta RL Hotels Franchising Inc’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 17–21. |
|---|---|
| Bankruptcy | No bankruptcy of the franchisor. It discloses that a company its officers and directors help manage filed for Chapter 11 in October 2025. |
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: Sonesta RL Hotels Franchising Inc, 2026 filing, litigation on pages 17–21, bankruptcy on page 21
Knights Inn filings
A franchisor files a new disclosure each year it sells franchises. The figures on this page come from Sonesta RL Hotels Franchising Inc’s 2026 filing, issued March 31, 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 31, 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 hotel franchises
All hotel franchises
Other brands from Sonesta: MOD Collection by Sonesta, Red Lion Inn & Suites, Signature Inn, Sonesta ES Suites and Sonesta Simply Suites. See all 6 in the finder