Free for IFA members
Understand any franchise, straight from its FDD.
Every brand files a Franchise Disclosure Document. AskIFA turns those filings into plain English: what each Item means, what this brand’s numbers actually say, and the document itself when you want to read it.
- 3,881
- brands
- 9,629
- FDDs on file
- 1.42M
- pages, searchable
- 2,155
- current-year filings
One library, three audiences
The IFA chooses what each member type sees first. Select an audience to see the view.
Know what you are signing before you sign it.
- What the initial investment really covers, and what it leaves out
- The fees you owe after opening: royalty, ad fund, technology, transfer
- How many outlets opened, closed and changed hands in the last three years
- Whether the brand discloses financial performance, and what it discloses
Panels on this view
- Item 7 investment rangeon
- Item 6 ongoing feeson
- Item 20 openings and closureson
- Item 19 disclosureon
Panels are configurable. The IFA can turn any metric on, rename it, or add one drawn from the filings.
Start with the six Items that decide the deal
An FDD has 23 Items. These six answer most questions a member brings to the IFA.
Initial fees
What you pay to sign, and whether it is refundable.
Item 6Other fees
Royalty, ad fund, technology, transfer, renewal — everything that recurs.
Item 7Estimated initial investment
The low-to-high range to open, item by item.
Item 12Territory
What is protected, and what the franchisor can still do near you.
Item 19Financial performance
The only place a brand may state what outlets earn — if it chooses to.
Item 20Outlets and franchisee information
Openings, closures, transfers and the roster of who to call.
What it costs, by category
Median initial investment and franchise fee, from Items 5 and 7 of the current filing of every brand in the category.
| Category | Brands | Median investment | Median franchise fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food: Quick-Service Restaurants | 1,101 | $294,000 – $656,500 | $35,000 |
| Health & Wellness | 346 | $203,369 – $480,580 | $49,000 |
| Maintenance | 319 | $107,824 – $203,950 | $45,000 |
| Children's Businesses | 235 | $119,000 – $249,290 | $40,000 |
| Personal-Care Businesses | 222 | $193,485 – $419,900 | $49,000 |
| Services | 208 | $89,515 – $236,000 | $35,000 |
| Home Improvement | 200 | $119,900 – $231,830 | $50,000 |
| Food: Full-Service Restaurants | 199 | $535,900 – $1,436,500 | $40,000 |
| Business Services | 199 | $78,300 – $147,760 | $42,500 |
| Pets | 87 | $195,650 – $464,712 | $49,250 |
| Financial Services | 61 | $60,050 – $109,900 | $30,000 |
| Food: Retail Sales | 54 | $190,000 – $475,500 | $40,000 |
Medians across brands whose current FDD discloses the figure. As of September 16, 2026.
Growing fastest right now
Unit counts, 2024 to 2025, among systems with 100+ outlets.
What sits behind it
9,629 Franchise Disclosure Documents covering 3,881 brands and 543,973 outlets, read page by page. 2,155 brands already have their current-year filing on file; the rest arrive as states publish them, and every figure on this site moves with the document.
- 2,148
- brands disclose Item 19
- 22,069
- signed, not yet open, across 800 brands