Sonny's BBQ franchise
2024 filing · August 21, 2024Fewer locationsShares sales figures
Sonny's BBQ at a glance
A Southern-style barbecue restaurant. At the end of 2023 there were 91 Sonny's BBQ locations in the US, 90 franchised and 1 company-owned.
The business
- Franchisor
- Sonny's Franchise Company
- The company that sells the franchises
- Typical size
- 4,000–6,300 sq ft
What you pay
- Cost to open
- $718K–$1.11M
- Excluding real estate and building costs
- Franchise fee
- $35,000
- Includes a $5,000 application fee
- Royalty
- 4.5%
- 4.5% of gross receipts, paid monthly, plus 2% to the system brand fund and 2% on local advertising
- Brand fund
- 2%
- 2% of gross receipts, paid with the royalty
Where it is
- US locations, 2023
- 91
- Franchised and company-owned
- Franchised
- 90
- Company-owned
- 1
- Change in 3 years
- −5
- Franchised locations, 2021–2023
- States
- 8
- Most in Florida, Georgia and Kentucky
Support and records
From Sonny's Franchise Company’s 2024 filing; revenue and net income from its audited financial statements, page 69; SBA status from the SBA Franchise Directory, October 28, 2026.
Franchisor revenue is the company that sells the franchises (royalties, fees and anything else it earns), not what a location makes.
Where it ranks
Sonny's BBQ among all franchises with the same figure.
| Figure | Sonny's BBQ | Among all franchises |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, midpointHalfway between the low and high estimate | $914,000 | Costs more than 81% of franchises |
| Franchise feePaid once, when you sign | $35,000 | Lower than 61% of franchises |
| RoyaltyShare of sales paid to the franchisor | 4.5% | Lower than 92% of brands with a set rate |
| US locationsFranchised and company-owned | 91 | More than 75% of franchises |
| Sales per locationYearly, as the brand reports it | $3,218,724 | Higher than 96% of brands that share sales figures |
| Sales against cost to openYearly sales over the cost midpoint | 3.5× | Higher than 84% of brands that share sales figures |
How much a Sonny's BBQ franchise costs
Opening excluding real estate and building costs costs an estimated $717,500 to $1,110,500. That covers the franchise fee and everything else needed to open, through the first months of working capital.
The biggest costs are equipment/smallwares ($300,000 to $360,000) and site work ($125,000 to $300,000). Here is every line of the estimate as filed:
| What it pays for | Range | Low | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $35,000 | ||
| Architectural Fees | $35,000 | $60,000 | |
| Equipment/Smallwares | $300,000 | $360,000 | |
| Furniture | $60,000 | $75,000 | |
| Technology | $60,000 | $95,000 | |
| Pre-Opening Advertising | $10,000 | $15,000 | |
| Insurance | $11,500 | $14,000 | |
| Opening Inventory | $10,000 | $20,000 | |
| Site Work | $125,000 | $300,000 | |
| Signage | $30,000 | $50,000 | |
| Additional Funds | $41,000 | $86,500 | |
| Total | $717,500 | $1,110,500 | |
Source: Sonny's Franchise Company, 2024 filing, page 16
Sonny's BBQ franchise fee
The franchise fee is $35,000, includes a $5,000 application fee. You pay it when you sign the franchise agreement.
Source: Sonny's Franchise Company, 2024 filing, page 11
Royalty and ongoing fees
| Royalty | 4.5% of gross receipts, paid monthly, plus 2% to the system brand fund and 2% on local advertising. |
|---|---|
| Brand or marketing fund | 2% of gross receipts, paid with the royalty. |
| Technology Fee | $250 per month |
| Local Advertising Expenditure | 2% of Gross Receipts |
The typical franchise royalty is 6% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. See franchise fees and royalties to compare.
Source: Sonny's Franchise Company, 2024 filing, page 12
Other fees as filed, from pages 12–13. The filing lists every fee, including late fees and audit costs.
Sales and earnings
Shares figures Sonny's BBQ publishes sales or earnings figures for its locations. The full tables, with notes on which locations are counted, are in its filing.
- Average sales
- $3,218,724
- Median sales
- $3,108,723
Yearly figures for 2023, covering franchised restaurants in 2023 (89 locations). The average is about 3.5 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: Sonny's Franchise Company, 2024 filing, page 41
SBA loans to Sonny's BBQ franchisees
Lenders approved 5 SBA-backed loans for Sonny's BBQ franchisees from 2018 to 2022, $4.06M in all: 2 7(a) loans and 3 504 loans. All 2 that have ended were paid in full; none was charged off. 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
Growth and closures
Share of franchised locations, 2023 / 2021–2023. Typical means the median: half of brands are above it, half below.
| Measure | Sonny's BBQ | Typical restaurant brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| GrowthNet change in franchised locations | −3.2% / −5.3% | 0% / +3% | +1.2% / +10% |
| ClosuresTerminated, not renewed or stopped operating | 3.2% / 13% | 2.5% / 13% | 3.9% / 16% |
| Bought backLocations the franchisor took back | 0% / 0% | 0% / 0% | 0% / 0% |
Typical restaurant brand is the median of the 301 brands in restaurant franchises with three years of counts.
How Sonny's BBQ compares
Of the 813 restaurant franchises on this site, Sonny's BBQ is the 610th cheapest to open and the 143rd largest by number of locations.
| Figure | Sonny's BBQ | Typical restaurant brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, low end | $718K | $408K | $222K |
| Cost to open, high end | $1.11M | $866K | $477K |
| Franchise fee | $35K | $35K | $40K |
| Royalty | 4.5% | 5% | 6% |
| Brand fund | 2% | 2% | 2% |
| Sales per location | $3.22M | $1.3M | $794K |
| US locations | 91 | 14 | 21 |
| Shares earnings figures | Yes | 474 of 813 | 2,147 of 3,352 |
Typical is the median across the 813 brands in restaurant franchises; typical franchise, across every brand here.
Locations opened and closed
| Year | Franchised | Company-owned | Opened | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 92 (−3) | 1 | +2 | −5 |
| 2022 | 93 (+1) | 1 | +5 | −4 |
| 2023 | 90 (−3) | 1 | 0 | −3 |
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: Sonny's Franchise Company, 2024 filing, page 42
Where Sonny's BBQ locations are
At the end of 2023, Sonny's BBQ had locations in 8 states. The most are in Florida, Georgia and Kentucky.
- Florida64
- Georgia14
- Kentucky7
- Mississippi2
- Alabama1
- Louisiana1
| State | Franchised | Company-owned | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Florida | 63 | 1 | 64 |
| Georgia | 14 | 0 | 14 |
| Kentucky | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| Mississippi | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Alabama | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Louisiana | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| North Carolina | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| South Carolina | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Source: Sonny's Franchise Company, 2024 filing, page 43
Who owns Sonny's BBQ?
Sonny's BBQ franchises are sold by Sonny's Franchise Company.
From Sonny's Franchise Company’s 2024 filing.
Lawsuits and bankruptcy
| Lawsuits and regulatory actions | None. The filing says no litigation has to be disclosed. |
|---|---|
| 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: Sonny's Franchise Company, 2024 filing, litigation on page 11, bankruptcy on page 11
Sonny's BBQ filings
The figures on this page come from Sonny's Franchise Company’s 2024 filing, issued August 21, 2024, on record with the NASAA Electronic Filing Depository.
| Filing | Issued | Registry | On this page |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 filing | August 21, 2024 | NASAA depository | Costs, fees and locations, 2021–2023 |
Each link opens the filing as a PDF. See the newest filings across all brands.
Other restaurant franchises
All restaurant franchises
Sonny's BBQ is also on these lists: food franchises.