7-Eleven franchise: cost, fees & unit track record
Opening 7-Eleven franchise takes $142,150 – $1,627,710 all-in, per its franchise disclosure filings (data as of 2026-05). The initial franchise fee is not disclosed in the filings we cover. To qualify, 7-Eleven asks for $50,000 in liquid cash. Anything the filings do not state is marked "Not disclosed" below — never estimated.
7-Eleven's franchise fee is set per store — published figures run from $0 to roughly $1.1M depending on the store's sales history and market — so no single fee is comparable across locations. That is why no fee renders in the table above.
There is no percentage-of-sales royalty: 7-Eleven splits the store's gross profit with the franchisee (roughly half each, varying by program and store). In exchange, 7-Eleven provides the store, land, and equipment, and pays building rent — the model is closer to an operating partnership than a standard franchise.
7-Eleven advertises financing (up to 65% of the initial investment, if qualified) and a veteran franchise-fee discount (published between 10% and 20%, capped at $50,000 on a first store) — confirm current terms with the franchisor directly.
Editorially reviewed 2026-07-07 (APEX editorial lane) — sources: franchise.7-eleven.com · franchisegator.com · vettedbiz.com
7-Eleven franchise costs and fees
| Verification mark | Cost item | Low | High | Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise feeOne-time, paid to the franchisor at signing | Not disclosed1 | Not disclosed1 | ||
| Initial investment (all-in)FDD Item 7-derived range: build-out, equipment, opening costs | $142,150 | $1,627,710 | $142,150 to $1,627,710 | |
| Net worth requiredFranchisor's stated qualification minimum | Not disclosed1 | Not disclosed1 | ||
| Liquid cash requiredFranchisor's stated qualification minimum | $50,000 | $50,000 | $50,000 | |
| Cash to open (all-in range) | $142,150 | $1,627,710 | $142,150 to $1,627,710 | |
- 1 "Not disclosed" means 7-Eleven's filings do not state this figure. We publish the gap instead of estimating it.
| RoyaltyOngoing, % of sales | Not disclosed |
|---|---|
| Ad fundOngoing, % of sales | Up to 0.5% |
| Initial termLength of the first franchise agreement | 10 years |
See the full 7-Eleven cost breakdown — what's in that number and what isn't
How 7-Eleven's cost compares
A dollar figure means more with a yardstick. Here is where 7-Eleven's disclosed cost sits against the Retail category:
- Minimum startup cost of $142,150 — about in line with the Retail median of $165,000.
Category medians are computed from the Retail brands in our data that disclosed each figure — a benchmark for scale, not a quality judgment. See all Retail franchises
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How 7-Eleven's units have held up
Openings and closures from FDD Item 20-style unit history, 2012–2017: began the window at 5,438 units; 2,755 units opened, 308 closed, ending at 7,169 units.
What about earnings?
We don't publish per-brand earnings figures — for 7-Eleven or anyone else. The only primary source is Item 19 of the brand's own franchise disclosure document (FDD), and no law requires a franchisor to publish one, so the "average owner income" numbers circulating elsewhere are usually unsourced or survivorship-biased. Ask 7-Eleven for its current FDD and read Item 19 yourself — and if there is no Item 19, that silence is information too.
What this data can't tell you
Everything on this page comes from disclosure filings — fees, ranges, and unit counts. Four questions that matter just as much are not in any filing we can source, so we say so instead of guessing:
- The hours and the labor
- No dataset field says whether 7-Eleven is a manage-from-a-laptop business or a 60-hour week in disguise. Item 15 of the FDD states whether you're obligated to run the business personally, and Item 11 lists what the franchisor actually does for you — then ask current owners what their week looks like (validation calls), not the sales team.
- How hands-on the ownership really is
- "Semi-absentee" is a pitch, not a filing field. Treat any hands-off claim as unverified until it's consistent with Item 15 and with what multiple current franchisees tell you — what absentee ownership actually means.
- Your territory — whether it's protected, and whether it's open
- Two territory questions sit outside our data. Whether 7-Eleven grants a protected or exclusive area is set in Item 12 of the FDD and varies brand to brand — some grant none, and the carve-outs (online sales, national accounts) matter as much as the map. And filing data can't say what's open in your market this month; only 7-Eleven can confirm current availability. Ask both before you inquire, and get the answer in writing.
- What owners earn
- Covered honestly above: our dataset has no earnings fields, the only primary source is the brand's own Item 19, and here is how to read that evidence.
About the 7-Eleven franchise
7-Eleven is a retail franchisor with 7,169 units at the end of 2017 (FDD Item 20-style unit history). Between 2012 and 2017, it began the window at 5,438 units; its filings record 2,755 unit openings and 308 closures, ending at 7,169 units. Its parent company is Seven & i Holdings Co., Ltd.. The filings indicate financing options are available; terms come from the franchisor, not from us.
No franchise-related lawsuits reported in the disclosure data we hold (FDD Item 3, as of 2026-05) — an absence in our sources, not a guarantee; confirm against the brand's current FDD.
From the franchisor's materials
The franchisee will operate an extended-hour retail convenience store under the tradename and service mark “7-Eleven®” which sells groceries, take-out foods and beverages, dairy products, nonfood merchandise, specialty items and selected services. The stores generally operate every day of the year (except, at the franchisee’s option, Christmas Day), usually 24 hours a day.
7-Eleven franchise: quick answers
- How much does 7-Eleven franchise cost?
- $142,150 – $1,627,710 all-in to open, per 7-Eleven's franchise disclosure filings (data as of 2026-05).
- How many 7-Eleven units are there?
- 7,169 units at the end of 2017 (FDD Item 20-style unit history).
- How have 7-Eleven's units held up?
- 98% of units at risk between 2015 and 2017 did not close, per our metric recomputed from FDD Item 20-style unit history (methodology published on our verification page).
- Is 7-Eleven a franchise?
- Yes, but an unusual one. 7-Eleven provides the store, land, and equipment and pays the building rent, then splits the store's gross profit with the franchisee — roughly half each — instead of charging a percentage-of-sales royalty. That makes it closer to an operating partnership than a standard franchise.