Tacos 4 Life franchise
2023 filing · June 7, 2023Growing
Tacos 4 Life at a glance
A fast-casual restaurant serving tacos, nachos, quesadillas and salads that donates a meal for each meal sold. At the end of 2022 there were 25 Tacos 4 Life locations in the US, 13 franchised and 12 company-owned.
The business
- Franchisor
- Tacos 4 Life Licensing, LLC
- The company that sells the franchises
- Franchisor based in
- Conway, Arkansas
What you pay
- Cost to open
- $1.45M–$2.02M
- A stand-alone building the franchisee builds
- Franchise fee
- $35,000
- Paid once, when you sign
- Royalty
- 5%
- 5% of net sales, paid weekly, plus $0.25 for each taco, salad, quesadilla, nacho or bowl sold to the Meal 4 Meal program
- Brand fund
- 1%
- 1% of weekly net sales, paid weekly
Where it is
- US locations, 2022
- 25
- Franchised and company-owned
- Franchised
- 13
- Company-owned
- 12
- Change in 3 years
- +10
- Franchised locations, 2020–2022
- States
- 7
- Most in Arkansas, Missouri and Oklahoma
From Tacos 4 Life Licensing, LLC’s 2023 filing; SBA status from the SBA Franchise Directory, October 28, 2026.
Where it ranks
Tacos 4 Life among all franchises with the same figure.
| Figure | Tacos 4 Life | Among all franchises |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, midpointHalfway between the low and high estimate | $1,733,500 | Costs more than 91% of franchises |
| Franchise feePaid once, when you sign | $35,000 | Lower than 61% of franchises |
| RoyaltyShare of sales paid to the franchisor | 5% | Lower than 69% of brands with a set rate |
| US locationsFranchised and company-owned | 25 | More than 53% of franchises |
How much a Tacos 4 Life franchise costs
Opening a stand-alone building the franchisee builds costs an estimated $1,449,000 to $2,018,000. That covers the franchise fee and everything else needed to open, through the first months of working capital.
Source: Tacos 4 Life Licensing, LLC, 2023 filing, page 1
Tacos 4 Life franchise fee
The franchise fee is $35,000. You pay it when you sign the franchise agreement.
Source: Tacos 4 Life Licensing, LLC, 2023 filing, page 9
Royalty and ongoing fees
| Royalty | 5% of net sales, paid weekly, plus $0.25 for each taco, salad, quesadilla, nacho or bowl sold to the Meal 4 Meal program. |
|---|---|
| Brand or marketing fund | 1% of weekly net sales, paid weekly. |
| Technology Fee | $100 |
| Transfer in the event of a sale of the Franchisee Restaurant | $5,000 plus any broker fees or commissions we incur. |
| Onsite Training | $200 per day, per Trainer plus each Trainer’s hourly rate |
The typical franchise royalty is 6% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. See franchise fees and royalties to compare.
Source: Tacos 4 Life Licensing, LLC, 2023 filing, page 11
Other fees as filed, from pages 12–13. The filing lists every fee, including late fees and audit costs.
Sales and earnings
No figures Tacos 4 Life 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: Tacos 4 Life Licensing, LLC, 2023 filing, page 52
- Estimate Estimated yearly sales per location
- $1.4M–$2.5M
Estimated from the sales that 292 comparable franchises file, matched on industry, format, cost to open, fees and size.
SBA loans to Tacos 4 Life franchisees
Lenders approved 10 SBA-backed loans for Tacos 4 Life franchisees from 2018 to 2024, $8.85M in all: 9 7(a) loans and 1 504 loan. Of the 6 that have ended, 5 were paid in full and 1 was charged off. The other 4 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, 2022 / 2020–2022. Typical means the median: half of brands are above it, half below.
| Measure | Tacos 4 Life | Typical Mexican food brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| GrowthNet change in franchised locations | +86% / +333% | −2% / +2.3% | +1.2% / +10% |
| ClosuresTerminated, not renewed or stopped operating | 0% / 0% | 3.3% / 11% | 3.9% / 16% |
| Bought backLocations the franchisor took back | 0% / 0% | 0% / 0% | 0% / 0% |
Typical Mexican food brand is the median of the 16 brands in mexican food franchises with three years of counts.
How Tacos 4 Life compares
Of the 55 Mexican food franchises on this site, Tacos 4 Life is the 52nd cheapest to open and the 23rd largest by number of locations.
| Figure | Tacos 4 Life | Typical Mexican food brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, low end | $1.45M | $457K | $222K |
| Cost to open, high end | $2.02M | $946K | $477K |
| Franchise fee | $35K | $35K | $40K |
| Royalty | 5% | 5% | 6% |
| Brand fund | 1% | 2% | 2% |
| US locations | 25 | 15 | 21 |
| Shares earnings figures | No | 38 of 55 | 2,147 of 3,352 |
Typical is the median across the 55 brands in mexican food franchises; typical franchise, across every brand here.
Locations opened and closed
| Year | Franchised | Company-owned | Opened | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 5 (+2) | 13 | +2 | 0 |
| 2021 | 7 (+2) | 13 | +2 | 0 |
| 2022 | 13 (+6) | 12 | +6 | 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: franchise failure rates.
Source: Tacos 4 Life Licensing, LLC, 2023 filing, page 53
Where Tacos 4 Life locations are
At the end of 2022, Tacos 4 Life had locations in 7 states. The most are in Arkansas, Missouri and Oklahoma.
- Arkansas11
- Missouri3
- Oklahoma3
- Tennessee3
- North Carolina2
- Texas2
| State | Franchised | Company-owned | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arkansas | 0 | 11 | 11 |
| Missouri | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Oklahoma | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Tennessee | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| North Carolina | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Texas | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Kansas | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Source: Tacos 4 Life Licensing, LLC, 2023 filing, page 54
Who owns Tacos 4 Life?
Tacos 4 Life franchises are sold by Tacos 4 Life Licensing, LLC. It is a subsidiary of Tacos 4 Life, LLC.
From Tacos 4 Life Licensing, LLC’s 2023 filing, page 7.
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: Tacos 4 Life Licensing, LLC, 2023 filing, litigation on page 9, bankruptcy on page 9
Tacos 4 Life filings
The figures on this page come from Tacos 4 Life Licensing, LLC’s 2023 filing, issued June 7, 2023, on record with the NASAA Electronic Filing Depository.
| Filing | Issued | Registry | On this page |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 filing | June 7, 2023 | NASAA depository | Costs, fees and locations, 2020–2022 |
Each link opens the filing as a PDF. See the newest filings across all brands.
Other Mexican food franchises
All Mexican food franchises
Tacos 4 Life is also on these lists: restaurant franchises, food franchises.