Have you ever wanted to own your own business? How about your own fast food restaurant? It can be a good business idea – there’s a McDonald’s on every corner for a reason.
But how much does it cost to get that franchise off the ground and running?
If you’ve ever kicked around the idea of opening one of these joints, here’s what you need to know.
McDonald’s
You need to have a net worth of at least $500,000, and you’ll need to put down 40% of the total cost of a new Mickey D’s or 25% of an existing restaurant.
The corporate folks at McDonald’s also add, “There are limited opportunities to enter the program with less cash available (primarily in rural or urban areas), and, in some situations, the financial requirements may be substantially higher depending on the specifics of the transaction.”
Chick-fil-A
The popular chicken joint requires a down payment of $10,000 and there’s no net worth requirement specified.
You have to be free of other active business ventures and assure the higher-ups that you’re going to run the restaurant full time with a hands-on approach.
And here’s a heads-up: they’re pretty selective.
Taco Bell
Oh yeah! I’d be down for owning one of these babies! You need an initial down payment of $45,000 and a net worth of $1.5 million with $750,000 personal liquidity. Okay, I’m out. But maybe you aren’t!
Also, franchisees need to operate the business day-to-day.
KFC
Ahhhh, good old KFC.
A staple of every town and city across the land. To get in on the Colonel’s action, you need a $20,000 down payment, a net worth requirement of $1.5 million, with $750,000 in liquid assets.
Pretty steep, friends.
Burger King
BK ain’t playing around.
To get going, you need a $15,000 to $50,000 down payment and a net worth requirement: $3 million, with $1 million in liquid assets. And the interview process is pretty strict as well…
Sonic
As far as I’m concerned, we need more Sonic restaurants across our great nation.
To open a Sonic franchise, you need a down payment of $45,000 and a net worth requirement of $1 million. The restaurant claims you might end up with a total investment of anywhere from $1.22 to $3.53 million, and that doesn’t include the cost of the land.
Subway
Calling all sandwich artists!
You’ll need a down payment of $139,500 to $341,000, but there is no net worth requirement.
The most accessible franchise out there? Possibly.
Arby’s
An Arby’s franchise needs a down payment of $314,550 to $1.8 million and a net worth requirement of $1 million, with at least $500,000 in liquid assets.
There’s a lot of horsey sauce to be purchased, folks.
