Arby's Franchise Costs, Fees & FDD

Year Business Began: 1964

Franchising Since: 1965

Headquarters: Atlanta, Georgia

Estimated Number of Units: 3,615

Franchise Description: The franchisor is Arby’s Franchisor, LLC. The franchisor has two parent companies: Arby’s Restaurant Group, Inc. and Inspire Brands, Inc. Franchisees operate a restaurant under the name “Arby's” and featuring a variety of Arby’s deli inspired sandwiches and complementary side items and desserts. There are two franchise offerings:

1. Traditional: Full-menu, limited service Arby’s restaurants, which are either freestanding, convenience stores, travel plazas, truck stops, travel plaza/convenience store combos, end cap and inline locations, and malls. The vast majority of which include a drive-thru window.
   
2. Non-traditional: Limited menu, limited size and reduced service restaurants, which generally occupy a smaller retail space, offers no or very limited seating and may cater to a captive audience, may have a limited menu and may possibly feature reduced services, labor, storage and different hours of operation. Non-Traditional Arby’s restaurant categories include but are not limited to locations in airports, military bases, hospitals, toll plazas, stadiums, theme/amusement parks and arenas which have no seating or shared seating, casinos, colleges, universities, and other institutional type facilities which have common area seating.

Training Overview: If franchisees are new, the franchisor requires them to participate in New Franchisee Orientation (NFO). If franchisees are a partnership or corporation, then the franchisor requires that a partner or approved shareholder participate in the NFO. The NFO is a brief overview of the Arby's system and the administrative corporate support provided. The NFO is a one or two-day orientation program in a presentation/classroom setting. For the first and second restaurants, franchisees must at all times employ three managers (six total) who have completed (to Arby's satisfaction) and are certified in the Arby's Restaurant Management Training Program (MTP), or a comparable training program approved by the franchisor in its sole judgment. One of these people may be the franchisee, if he/she will be participating in the direct operation of the restaurant. In addition to the NFO and the MTP, the franchisor utilizes its “Revitalization Roadmap” to ensure successful executions for new restaurants openings, for the first and second restaurants opened by a franchisee. For the first restaurant opened, the training includes the services of two people to assist with the needed pre-opening and post-opening crew training at the restaurant for 10 calendar days. For the second restaurant opened, the training includes the services of one person to assist with the needed pre-opening and post-opening crew training at the restaurant for six calendar days. The franchisor reserves the right, in its sole judgment, to specify additional training requirements, including, but not limited to, supplemental or refresher training programs for franchisees, their managers and/or employees.

Territory Granted: Under each Franchise Agreement franchisees will operate one restaurant at a specified location that the franchisor has accepted. The franchisor may, in its sole judgment, grant franchisees a specific and limited protected area surrounding the restaurant. During the term of the Franchise Agreement, the franchisor will not operate or license others to operate an Arby’s restaurant using the licensed trademarks and offering deli inspired sandwiches for sale to consumers within the protected area, if any. If the restaurant is a free-standing structure and the franchisor grants a protected area, it will typically delineate the protected area by a one-mile radius from the location or by boundary streets or highways (excluding malls, college, and university campus locations and other similar institutional type facilities, toll plazas, military bases, hospitals, theme/amusement parks, airports, casinos, special location activity centers such as sports arenas and sovereign nations). If franchisees operate a non-traditional restaurant, the franchisor will not grant any protected area.

Obligations and Restrictions: Franchisees must at all times faithfully, honestly, and diligently perform their obligations under the Franchise Agreement, continuously exert their best efforts to promote and enhance the Arby's restaurant, and not engage in any other business or activity that conflicts with their obligations to operate the Arby's restaurant in compliance with the Franchise Agreement. Franchisees may only sell those food and non-alcoholic beverage products designated in the manual as being included in the standard Arby's menu and meeting the quality standards (including product specifications and sources, cleanliness and sanitation, customer service and hours of operation) in the manual or as otherwise designated in writing.

Term of Agreement and Renewal: The length of the initial franchise term for a traditional restaurant is up to 20 years, but may be less if the franchisee’s lease is shorter than 20 years or the franchisee purchased an existing company-owned restaurant and the franchisor does not own the property; or purchases an existing franchisee’s restaurant, in which case, the franchisee will either receive the balance of the term under the existing agreement or a 20-year term. For non-traditional restaurants, the initial term is equal to the shorter of 10 years or the term of the lease with the applicable airport authority, stadium or arena, or length of the lease for the franchised premises. If franchisees meet the approval criteria, they may receive a Successor Franchise Agreement (which will be the standard form Franchise Agreement [including the Guaranty Agreement] then current as of 12 months prior to the expiration date of the Franchise Agreement and may have materially different terms and conditions than the previous Franchise Agreement).

Financial Assistance: The franchisor does not offer direct or indirect financing. The franchisor does not guaranty a franchisee’s note, lease, or obligation.

Estimated Initial Investment

Name of Fee	Low	High
Development Fee	$6,250	$12,500
License Fee	$0	$37,500
Fees and Expenses while Training	$5,000	$23,400
Lease Deposits and Payments	$12,000	$50,000
Site Costs	$0	$451,000
Landscaping	$0	$45,000
Civil & Architectural Drawings/ Professional Fees	$6,000	$150,000
Zoning/ Permitting Costs	$1,000	$112,000
Building Costs	$236,000	$850,000
Equipment	$225,000	$325,000
Computer Hardware and Software/ POS	$32,000	$55,000
Décor Package	$11,000	$35,000
Signage & Drive Thru	$25,000	$88,000
Pre-Opening Wages	$21,300	$41,200
Opening Inventory	$18,000	$26,000
Insurance	$8,400	$14,400
Working Capital/ Additional Funds	$33,000	$100,000
Rent (one month)	$4,000	$10,000
Business Licenses, Health Permits, Utilities Deposits	$1,000	$25,000
ESTIMATED TOTAL (excluding real estate purchase/lease)	$644,950	$2,451,000

Other Fees

Type of Fee	Amount
Royalty	4% of gross sales for traditional restaurants and 6.2% of gross sales for non-traditional restaurants.
Advertising and Marketing Service Fee	Currently a minimum aggregate expenditure of 4.2% of gross sales comprised of this fee, local market advertising, and local cooperative area advertising (if applicable) for traditional restaurants. Payment made from the royalty for non-traditional restaurants.
Renewal Fees	10% of the then applicable standard initial license fee (excluding discounts, promotions and incentive programs) for traditional restaurants, and then applicable non-traditional restaurant initial license fee for non-traditional restaurants.
Transfer Fee (Ownership)	$17,500 for transfer of first Arby's restaurant; $2,500 if the franchisee is already a party or holds a 50% interest in a party to at least one existing License Agreement.
MTP Learning Path Program Fee	$2,100 per attendee, but no training fee for three managers in the first restaurant, and for one manager in the second restaurant. Franchisees pay the training fee for all their other attendees, and they pay their trainees' expenses.
Learning Management System Fee	Currently $59.22 plus tax per year for each Arby’s restaurant in the franchisee’s portfolio, but may change depending on number of restaurants participating.
Additional Training	The fee ranges from $0 to $2,100. Franchisees pay for their trainees' expenses.
Arby’s Order Ahead Platform Service Fee	Current monthly fee is $25 per restaurant per month. Current per transaction fee is 4% of gross sales on each order placed on the platform.
Audits	The franchisor’s audit expenses, plus interest.
Testing of Samples for Approval	Cost of samples.
Approval of Suppliers	Costs and expenses incurred, which may range from $2,500 to $10,000.
Interest	Up to the highest rate permitted by the law of the state in which the licensed business is located or the laws of the State of Georgia, whichever is higher, but in no event to exceed 18% per year.
Costs and Attorney Fees	Will vary under circumstances.
Taxes, Assessments, Penalties, Interests and Additional Charges	As assessed.
Indemnity	Will vary under circumstances.
Insurance	Insurance carrier sets the premium.

The above information has been compiled from the FDD of Arby's. Year of FDD: 2025.

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