40+ Franchise Statistics You’ll Want To Know for 2025
Get insights into the franchise marketplace with this compilation of franchise statistics spanning the sector, ownership, fast food, and more.
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insights from 100,000+ hours of franchise marketing experience
- How large is the franchise industry in the United States? The franchise industry employs over 8.5 million people and generates $827 billion in economic output, with over 3,000 unique franchises operating across the country and a new franchise opening every 8 minutes during business days.
- What are the typical costs and terms of franchise ownership? Franchise agreements typically last 10–20 years with royalty percentages of 5%–6%, though initial investment costs vary widely—from $10,000 for Chick-fil-A to $1–2 million for McDonald’s locations.
- Who are the typical franchise owners? The average franchise owner is 44 years old, 69% are men, 67% are White, and 62% hold a bachelor’s degree, with 53% of all franchises owned by multi-unit operators who manage multiple locations.
- How dominant is fast food in the franchise industry? Quick service restaurants account for $276 billion in franchise economic output, with McDonald’s leading as the world’s largest franchise at $23 billion in annual revenue and 93% of its restaurants operating as franchises.
- What other industries are growing in franchising? Beyond food services, the healthcare franchise industry is expected to generate $100 billion in revenue by 2024 and reach $6.2 trillion in expenditure by 2028, while the urgent care sector alone is worth $30 billion annually with projected 9% growth.
When looking into franchises, there’s a lot to understand, from who typically owns one to how much revenue they drive. If you’ve found this list of franchise statistics, you likely want to know everything there is to know about owning and operating a franchise.
On this page, we’ll cover over 40 franchise statistics that provide you with insight into the various facets of the franchise industry!
- General franchise statistics
- Franchise industry data on owners
- Fast food franchising statistics
- Other franchising statistics
Keep reading to learn more!
*Page last updated March 4, 2024.
General franchise industry statistics
Every 8 minutes
a new franchise opens in a single business day.
Source: Appsthatdeliver.com
First on this list of franchise statistics for 2025, let’s look at some general statistics on franchises:
- Over 8.5 million people are employed by a franchise.
- There are over 3000 unique franchises in the U.S.
- 300 companies begin franchising operations each year.
- 10–20 years is the typical length of a franchise agreement.
- The U.S. has over 70 of the world’s top 100 franchises.
- A new franchise opens every 8 minutes during a single business day.
- $827 billion is the economic output of franchises across the U.S.
- 80% of franchises are local or regional brands.
- 53% of franchises are owned by multi-unit franchise owners.
- 37% of franchises are classified under “food-related” — the rest of the franchises are spread across 28 other sectors.
- 16% of franchises are national or global franchises.
- 10% of all businesses in the U.S. are franchises.
- 5%–6% is the royalty percentage of a franchise.
Franchise statistics on owners
69% of franchise owners
are men.
Source: Zippia.com
Want a better understanding of who runs franchises? Here’s a list of franchising statistics regarding owners:
- 44 years old is the average age of a franchise owner.
- 83% of franchise owners work for a private company.
- 69% of franchise owners are men.
- 67% of franchise owners are White.
- 62% of franchise owners hold a bachelor’s degree.
- 31% of franchise owners are women.
- 24% of franchise owners stay at their franchise for 1–2 years
- 21% is how many franchise owners stay at their franchise for 3–7 years.
- 19% of franchise owners work in the hospitality industry.
- 15% of franchise owners are Latino.
- 14% of franchise owners work for public companies.
- 13% of franchise owners work in the professional industry.
- 11% of franchise owners work in manufacturing.
- 9% of franchise owners work in retail.
- 6% of franchise owners are Asian.
- 6% of franchise owners are Black.
Fast food franchise statistics
37% of Americans
consume fast food every day.
Source: Zippia.com
When you think of franchises, the first thing that typically comes to mind is fast-food restaurants. People visit these popular franchises every day to grab a quick bite to eat, making them a desirable franchise option.
Here are some franchise industry data on fast-food establishments:
- Quick service restaurants account for $276 billion dollars in economic output for the franchise industry.
- The market size of the pizza chain industry in the U.S. is $65 billion.
- The gross annual sales of the largest pizza chain — Domino’s — is $17 billion.
- It costs $1–$2 million to invest in a McDonald’s franchise location.
- There are 192,000 franchised fast-food establishments in the U.S.
- With $23 billion in annual revenue, McDonald’s is the largest franchise in the world.
- It costs $10,000 to set up a Chick-fil-A franchise.
- Over 35,000 pizza restaurants are chain restaurants.
- Subway is the most franchised store, with over 20,000 locations across the U.S.
- 93% of McDonald’s restaurants were franchises as of 2019.
- 82% of quick service restaurants are owned by multi-unit franchise owners.
- 59% of the pizza market share is held by chain stores.
- 37% of Americans consume fast food every day.
Other franchising statistics
To wrap up this list of franchising statistics, let’s look at some stats about other sectors within the franchise industry:
- The pack-and-ship franchise industry is worth $3 billion.
- The market size for sports franchises is $34 billion.
- There are 969 businesses in the sports franchise industry.
The number of sports franchises shows the popularity of this business model around the world - The healthcare franchise expenditure is expected to reach $6.2 trillion by 2028.
- The healthcare franchise industry is expected to generate $100 billion in revenue by 2024.
- The annual worth of the urgent care health franchise is $30 billion.
- The urgent care franchising industry is projected to grow by 9% in the next five years.
Go beyond these franchise statistics for 2025
Knowing these franchise statistics is a great way to keep your finger on the industry’s pulse. But staying informed is only a fraction of the job — you need to focus on running your operation and driving more customers to your business.
With franchise digital marketing services from WebFX, you can. Our team of 750 marketing experts will help you get your franchise in front of more interested people so you can increase customers and revenue.
To learn more about what franchise marketing can do for you, contact us online or call us today at 888-601-5359 to speak with a strategist!
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