The Counter franchise
A The Counter franchisee operates a restaurant serving custom burgers, sandwiches, salads, shakes and alcoholic beverages. At the end of 2025 there were 8 The Counter locations in the US, 6 franchised and 2 company-owned.
- Cost to open
- $713K–$1.99M
- Franchise fee
- $35,000
- Royalty
- 6% + surcharge
- Locations, 2025
- 8−12 in 3 yrs
Compare with similar brands Estimate your costs
Company snapshot
- SBA loans
- On the SBA Franchise Directory
From MTY Franchising USA, Inc’s 2026 filing; SBA status from the SBA Franchise Directory, October 28, 2026.
How much a The Counter franchise costs
Opening one traditional restaurant costs an estimated $713,133 to $1,988,750. That covers the franchise fee and everything else needed to open, through the first months of working capital.
Source: MTY Franchising USA, Inc, 2026 filing, page 47
The Counter franchise fee
The franchise fee is $35,000. You pay it when you sign the franchise agreement.
Source: MTY Franchising USA, Inc, 2026 filing, page 34
Royalty and ongoing fees
| Royalty | 6% of weekly gross sales, plus a surcharge of up to $10 per week. |
|---|
The typical franchise royalty is 6% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. See franchise fees and royalties to compare.
Source: MTY Franchising USA, Inc, 2026 filing, page 37
Sales and earnings
Shares figures The Counter publishes sales or earnings figures for its locations: gross sales of existing US franchised stores during December 2024–November 2025. The full tables, with notes on which locations are counted, are in its filing.
Source: MTY Franchising USA, Inc, 2026 filing, page 102
Locations opened and closed
| Year | Franchised | Company-owned | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 13 (−5) | 2 | 5 |
| 2024 | 8 (−5) | 3 | 5 |
| 2025 | 6 (−2) | 2 | 2 |
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.
Source: MTY Franchising USA, Inc, 2026 filing, page 104
How The Counter compares
Of the 18 burger franchises on this site, The Counter is the 7th cheapest to open and the 17th largest by number of locations.
| Measure | The Counter | Typical burger |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, low end | $713K | $1.03M |
| Royalty | 6% | 5% |
| Closed or left per year | 30.4% | 2% |
| Change in franchised locations, 3 yrs | −66.7% | −2.8% |
| Shares earnings figures | Yes | 12 of 18 |
Typical is the median across the 18 brands in burger franchises.
