Wings and Rings franchise
2023 filing · April 30, 2023Shares sales figures
Wings and Rings at a glance
A sports restaurant and bar serving chicken wings, onion rings, burgers, sandwiches and salads, with a full bar. At the end of 2022 there were 62 Wings and Rings locations in the US, 54 franchised and 8 company-owned.
The business
- Franchisor
- Buffalo Wings & Rings, LLC
- The company that sells the franchises
- First location
- 1984
- Franchisor based in
- Loveland, Ohio
- Typical size
- 4,500–5,000 sq ft
What you pay
- Cost to open
- $1.48M–$2M
- A Wings and Rings restaurant
- Franchise fee
- $40,000
- Which may be reduced to $0 under the brand's development incentive program
- Royalty
- Up to 5%
- Up to 5% of net sales, paid weekly; restaurants opened under the development incentive program pay no royalty for their first 12 to 15 months
- Brand fund
- 2%
- 2% of net sales, paid weekly; it can rise to 4%
- Renewal fee
- See terms
- Then current Renewal Fee (currently $5,000)
- Agreement length
- 10 years
- Territory
- Protected
- Protected territory
- Franchisor financing
- None offered
Where it is
- US locations, 2022
- 62
- Franchised and company-owned
- Franchised
- 54
- Company-owned
- 8
- Change in 3 years
- 0
- Franchised locations, 2020–2022
- States
- 12
- Most in Ohio, Texas and Kentucky
From Buffalo Wings & Rings, LLC’s 2023 filing; SBA status from the SBA Franchise Directory, October 28, 2026.
Where it ranks
Wings and Rings among all franchises with the same figure.
| Figure | Wings and Rings | Among all franchises |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, midpointHalfway between the low and high estimate | $1,741,200 | Costs more than 91% of franchises |
| Franchise feePaid once, when you sign | $40,000 | Lower than 46% of franchises |
| RoyaltyShare of sales paid to the franchisor | 5% | Lower than 69% of brands with a set rate |
| US locationsFranchised and company-owned | 62 | More than 68% of franchises |
How much a Wings and Rings franchise costs
Opening a Wings and Rings restaurant costs an estimated $1,482,700 to $1,999,700. That covers the franchise fee and everything else needed to open, through the first months of working capital.
Source: Buffalo Wings & Rings, LLC, 2023 filing, page 22
Wings and Rings franchise fee
The franchise fee is $40,000, which may be reduced to $0 under the brand's development incentive program. You pay it when you sign the franchise agreement.
Source: Buffalo Wings & Rings, LLC, 2023 filing, page 13
Royalty and ongoing fees
| Royalty | Up to 5% of net sales, paid weekly; restaurants opened under the development incentive program pay no royalty for their first 12 to 15 months. |
|---|---|
| Brand or marketing fund | 2% of net sales, paid weekly; it can rise to 4%. |
| Transfer Fee | Then current Transfer Fee (currently $5,000) |
| Renewal Fee | Then current Renewal Fee (currently $5,000) |
| Local Advertising | 1% of Net Sales |
The typical franchise royalty is 6% of sales, plus 2% for marketing. See franchise fees and royalties to compare.
Source: Buffalo Wings & Rings, LLC, 2023 filing, page 17
Other fees as filed, from pages 18–19. The filing lists every fee, including late fees and audit costs.
Sales and earnings
Shares figures Wings and Rings publishes sales or earnings figures for its locations. The full tables, with notes on which locations are counted, are in its filing.
Source: Buffalo Wings & Rings, LLC, 2023 filing, page 51
- 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 Wings and Rings franchisees
Lenders approved 65 SBA-backed loans for Wings and Rings franchisees from 1996 to 2026, $40.6M in all: 55 7(a) loans and 10 504 loans. Of the 50 that have ended, 31 were paid in full and 19 were charged off (38%). The other 15 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 | Wings and Rings | Typical chicken brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| GrowthNet change in franchised locations | −3.6% / 0% | +3.7% / +27% | +1.2% / +10% |
| ClosuresTerminated, not renewed or stopped operating | 8.9% / 11% | 2.4% / 12% | 3.9% / 16% |
| Bought backLocations the franchisor took back | 0% / 0% | 0% / 0% | 0% / 0% |
Typical chicken brand is the median of the 34 brands in chicken franchises with three years of counts.
How Wings and Rings compares
Of the 113 chicken franchises on this site, Wings and Rings is the 104th cheapest to open and the 23rd largest by number of locations.
| Figure | Wings and Rings | Typical chicken brand | Typical franchise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost to open, low end | $1.48M | $407K | $222K |
| Cost to open, high end | $2M | $868K | $477K |
| Franchise fee | $40K | $35K | $40K |
| Royalty | 5% | 5% | 6% |
| Brand fund | 2% | 2% | 2% |
| US locations | 62 | 10 | 21 |
| Shares earnings figures | Yes | 61 of 113 | 2,147 of 3,352 |
Typical is the median across the 113 brands in chicken franchises; typical franchise, across every brand here.
Locations opened and closed
| Year | Franchised | Company-owned | Opened | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 56 (+2) | 6 | +2 | 0 |
| 2021 | 56 (0) | 8 | +1 | −1 |
| 2022 | 54 (−2) | 8 | +3 | −5 |
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: chicken franchise costs and franchise failure rates.
Source: Buffalo Wings & Rings, LLC, 2023 filing, page 60
Where Wings and Rings locations are
At the end of 2022, Wings and Rings had locations in 12 states. The most are in Ohio, Texas and Kentucky.
- Ohio17
- Texas12
- Kentucky9
- Indiana6
- Florida4
- Nebraska3
| State | Franchised | Company-owned | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio | 10 | 7 | 17 |
| Texas | 12 | 0 | 12 |
| Kentucky | 8 | 1 | 9 |
| Indiana | 6 | 0 | 6 |
| Florida | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| Nebraska | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| California | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Illinois | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Mexico | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| North Dakota | 2 | 0 | 2 |
All 12 states
| South Dakota | 2 |
|---|---|
| Kansas | 1 |
Source: Buffalo Wings & Rings, LLC, 2023 filing, page 61
Who owns Wings and Rings?
Wings and Rings franchises are sold by Buffalo Wings & Rings, LLC. Its filing names no parent company.
From Buffalo Wings & Rings, LLC’s 2023 filing, page 9.
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 12–13. |
|---|---|
| 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: Buffalo Wings & Rings, LLC, 2023 filing, litigation on pages 12–13, bankruptcy on page 13
Wings and Rings filings
The figures on this page come from Buffalo Wings & Rings, LLC’s 2023 filing, issued April 30, 2023, on record with the NASAA Electronic Filing Depository.
| Filing | Issued | Registry | On this page |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 filing | April 30, 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 chicken franchises
All chicken franchises
Wings and Rings is also on these lists: restaurant franchises, food franchises.