Papa Murphy's franchise
2026 filing · March 27, 2026Fewer locationsShares sales figures
Papa Murphy's at a glance
A take-and-bake pizza shop selling fresh, unbaked pizzas for customers to bake at home. At the end of 2025 there were 1,014 Papa Murphy's locations in the US, 965 franchised and 49 company-owned.
The business
- Franchisor
- PAPA MURPHY’S INTERNATIONAL LLC
- The company that sells the franchises
- Franchising since
- 1982
- 44 years of selling franchises
- Franchisor based in
- Vancouver, Washington
What you pay
- Cost to open
- $450K–$693K
- Fee, build-out and opening working capital
- Franchise fee
- $25,000
- Paid once, when you sign
- Royalty
- 5%
- 5% of weekly net sales
- Brand fund
- 2%
- 2% of net sales, paid weekly
- Agreement length
- 10 years
- Franchisor financing
- None offered
Where it is
- US locations, 2025
- 1,014
- Franchised and company-owned
- Franchised
- 965
- Company-owned
- 49
- Change in 3 years
- −180
- Franchised locations, 2023–2025
- States
- 35
- Most in Washington, California and Oregon
From PAPA MURPHY’S INTERNATIONAL LLC’s 2026 filing; SBA status from the SBA Franchise Directory, October 28, 2026.
Where it ranks
Papa Murphy's among all franchises with the same figure.
| Figure | Papa Murphy's | Among all franchises |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, midpointHalfway between the low and high estimate | $571,890 | Costs more than 69% of franchises |
| Franchise feePaid once, when you sign | $25,000 | Lower than 82% of franchises |
| RoyaltyShare of sales paid to the franchisor | 5% | Lower than 69% of brands with a set rate |
| US locationsFranchised and company-owned | 1,014 | More than 97% of franchises |
| Sales per locationYearly, as the brand reports it | $687,539 | Lower than 56% of brands that share sales figures |
| Sales against cost to openYearly sales over the cost midpoint | 1.2× | Lower than 68% of brands that share sales figures |
How much a Papa Murphy's franchise costs
Opening one Papa Murphy's costs an estimated $450,330 to $693,450. That covers the franchise fee and everything else needed to open, through the first months of working capital.
The biggest costs are leasehold improvements ($210,500 to $325,000) and opening package (including equipment and supplies), décor, cabinets, POS system, smallwares, warehousing and last-mile delivery ($160,000 to $173,000). Here is every line of the estimate as filed:
| What it pays for | Range | Low | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial or Subsequent Franchise Fee | $15,000 | $25,000 | |
| Lease and Utilities Deposits and Payments | $3,000 | $7,500 | |
| Leasehold Improvements | $210,500 | $325,000 | |
| Signs | $10,000 | $25,000 | |
| Stamped Architectural Drawings | $11,150 | $13,050 | |
| As Built Survey | $2,800 | $5,000 | |
| Opening Package (including Equipment and Supplies), décor, cabinets, POS System, smallwares, warehousing and last-mile delivery | $160,000 | $173,000 | |
| Miscellaneous Development Service Fees | $0 | $1,270 | |
| Inventory | $5,000 | $9,600 | |
| Initial Marketing Fees and Expenses – 6 months | $15,000 | ||
| Franchise Premises Rent(6) – 3 months | $4,500 | $17,500 | |
| Materials and Supplies | $500 | $2,000 | |
| Operations In-Store Training, Enterprise Solution Training and Foundations Class | $0 | $750 | |
| Travel and Living Expenses for Operations In-Store Training, Enterprise Solutions Training and Foundations Class | $1,180 | $9,305 | |
| Employee Training | $500 | $1,500 | |
| Insurance – 3 months | $375 | $1,175 | |
| Bookkeeping/Payroll Service(8) – 3 months | $825 | $1,800 | |
| Lease Guaranty Fee | $0 | $10,000 | |
| Additional Funds, Working Capital, and Miscellaneous Expenses(10) – 3 months | $10,000 | $50,000 | |
| Total | $450,330 | $693,450 | |
Source: PAPA MURPHY’S INTERNATIONAL LLC, 2026 filing, page 36
Papa Murphy's franchise fee
The franchise fee is $25,000. You pay it when you sign the franchise agreement.
Source: PAPA MURPHY’S INTERNATIONAL LLC, 2026 filing, page 27
Royalty and ongoing fees
| Royalty | 5% of weekly net sales. |
|---|---|
| Brand or marketing fund | 2% of net sales, paid weekly. |
| Online Ordering Fee | $0.35 per online transaction |
| Additional Assistance or Training | $100 to $300 per day |
The typical franchise royalty is 6% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. See franchise fees and royalties to compare.
Source: PAPA MURPHY’S INTERNATIONAL LLC, 2026 filing, pages 28 and 29
Other fees as filed, from pages 29–30. The filing lists every fee, including late fees and audit costs.
Sales and earnings
Shares figures Papa Murphy's publishes sales or earnings figures for its locations. The full tables, with notes on which locations are counted, are in its filing.
- Average net sales
- $687,539
- Median net sales
- $617,941
Yearly figures for 52 weeks ended September 24, 2025, covering domestic franchised stores open all 52 weeks (947 locations). The average is about 1.2 times the midpoint of the cost to open.
Sales are what a location takes in before rent, payroll, royalties and other costs, not what its owner keeps.
Source: PAPA MURPHY’S INTERNATIONAL LLC, 2026 filing, pages 63–64
SBA loans to Papa Murphy's franchisees
Lenders approved 500 SBA-backed loans for Papa Murphy's franchisees from 1996 to 2026, $131.5M in all: 491 7(a) loans and 9 504 loans. Of the 445 that have ended, 415 were paid in full and 30 were charged off (6.7%). The other 55 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
Growth and closures
Share of franchised locations, 2025 / 2023–2025. Typical means the median: half of brands are above it, half below.
| Measure | Papa Murphy's | Typical pizza brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| GrowthNet change in franchised locations | −3.6% / −16% | 0% / −3% | +1.2% / +10% |
| ClosuresTerminated, not renewed or stopped operating | 3.9% / 16% | 2.8% / 9.1% | 3.9% / 16% |
| Bought backLocations the franchisor took back | 0.1% / 2.5% | 0% / 0% | 0% / 0% |
Typical pizza brand is the median of the 49 brands in pizza franchises with three years of counts.
How Papa Murphy's compares
Of the 122 pizza franchises on this site, Papa Murphy's is the 83rd cheapest to open and the 7th largest by number of locations.
| Figure | Papa Murphy's | Typical pizza brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, low end | $450K | $349K | $222K |
| Cost to open, high end | $693K | $787K | $477K |
| Franchise fee | $25K | $30K | $40K |
| Royalty | 5% | 5% | 6% |
| Brand fund | 2% | 1.9% | 2% |
| Sales per location | $688K | $1.02M | $794K |
| US locations | 1,014 | 26 | 21 |
| Shares earnings figures | Yes | 63 of 122 | 2,147 of 3,352 |
Typical is the median across the 122 brands in pizza franchises; typical franchise, across every brand here.
Locations opened and closed
| Year | Franchised | Company-owned | Opened | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 1,145 (−67) | 23 | – | – |
| 2023 | 1,119 (−26) | 8 | +19 | −45 |
| 2024 | 1,001 (−118) | 43 | +8 | −126 |
| 2025 | 965 (−36) | 49 | +4 | −40 |
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: pizza franchise costs and franchise failure rates.
Over 4 years, from the start of 2022 to the end of 2025, franchised locations went from 1,212 to 965 (−247, −20%). The earlier years come from the brand's 2025 filing.
Source: PAPA MURPHY’S INTERNATIONAL LLC, 2026 filing, page 67
2022: PAPA MURPHY’S INTERNATIONAL LLC, 2025 filing, page 65
Where Papa Murphy's locations are
At the end of 2025, Papa Murphy's had locations in 35 states. The most are in Washington, California and Oregon.
- Washington143
- California117
- Oregon99
- Minnesota85
- Wisconsin76
- Colorado59
| State | Franchised | Company-owned | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington | 142 | 1 | 143 |
| California | 117 | 0 | 117 |
| Oregon | 99 | 0 | 99 |
| Minnesota | 84 | 1 | 85 |
| Wisconsin | 76 | 0 | 76 |
| Colorado | 59 | 0 | 59 |
| Utah | 55 | 0 | 55 |
| Arizona | 40 | 0 | 40 |
| Idaho | 37 | 0 | 37 |
| Missouri | 30 | 3 | 33 |
All 35 states
Source: PAPA MURPHY’S INTERNATIONAL LLC, 2026 filing, page 70
Who owns Papa Murphy's?
Papa Murphy's franchises are sold by PAPA MURPHY’S INTERNATIONAL LLC. It is a subsidiary of Papa Murphy’s Company.
Papa Murphy's is one of the 26 MTY Food Group brands here. MTY Food Group is a public company based in Saint-Laurent, Quebec. Its shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange as MTY.
From PAPA MURPHY’S INTERNATIONAL LLC’s 2026 filing, page 10; MTY Food Group.
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 22–26. |
|---|---|
| Bankruptcy | No bankruptcy of the franchisor. It discloses that a company one of its executives is a member of filed for bankruptcy in 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: PAPA MURPHY’S INTERNATIONAL LLC, 2026 filing, litigation on pages 22–26, bankruptcy on page 26
Papa Murphy's filings
A franchisor files a new disclosure each year it sells franchises. The figures on this page come from PAPA MURPHY’S INTERNATIONAL LLC’s 2026 filing, issued March 27, 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 27, 2026 | Minnesota | Costs, fees and locations, 2023–2025 |
| 2025 filing | – | Minnesota | Locations, 2022 |
Each link opens the filing as a PDF. See the newest filings across all brands.
Other pizza franchises
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