Big Boy franchise: cost, fees & unit track record
Opening a Big Boy franchise takes $943,000 – $3,685,500 all-in, per its franchise disclosure filings (data as of 2026-05). The initial franchise fee is $30,000 – $68,750. Ongoing, franchisees pay a royalty of 4% on sales plus an ad-fund contribution of up to 3%. To qualify, Big Boy asks for $250,000 in liquid cash and a $500,000 net worth. Anything the filings do not state is marked "Not disclosed" below — never estimated.
Big Boy franchise costs and fees
| Verification mark | Cost item | Low | High | Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise feeOne-time, paid to the franchisor at signing | $30,000 | $68,750 | $30,000 to $68,750 | |
| Initial investment (all-in)FDD Item 7-derived range: build-out, equipment, opening costs | $943,000 | $3,685,500 | $943,000 to $3,685,500 | |
| Net worth requiredFranchisor's stated qualification minimum | $500,000 | $500,000 | $500,000 | |
| Liquid cash requiredFranchisor's stated qualification minimum | $250,000 | $250,000 | $250,000 | |
| Cash to open (all-in range) | $943,000 | $3,685,500 | $943,000 to $3,685,500 |
| RoyaltyOngoing, % of sales | 4% |
|---|---|
| Ad fundOngoing, % of sales | Up to 3% |
| Initial termLength of the first franchise agreement | 20 years |
See the full Big Boy cost breakdown — what's in that number and what isn't
How Big Boy's cost compares
A dollar figure means more with a yardstick. Here is where Big Boy's disclosed cost sits against the Food & Beverage category:
- Minimum startup cost of $943,000 — about 3.3× the Food & Beverage median of $282,500.
- Initial franchise fee of $30,000 — about in line with the Food & Beverage median of $35,000.
Category medians are computed from the Food & Beverage brands in our data that disclosed each figure — a benchmark for scale, not a quality judgment. See all Food & Beverage franchises
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How Big Boy's units have held up
Openings and closures from FDD Item 20-style unit history, 2012–2019: began the window at 109 units; 15 units opened, 27 closed, ending at 58 units. (partial records: 2017, 2018 are not in the source data — totals span the reported years only.)
Not enough history to compute a survival figure — we need at least three years of unit data, and we don't extrapolate.
What about earnings?
We don't publish per-brand earnings figures — for Big Boy 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 Big Boy 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 Big Boy 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 Big Boy 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 Big Boy 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 Big Boy franchise
Big Boy is a food & beverage franchisor with 58 units at the end of 2019 (FDD Item 20-style unit history). Between 2012 and 2019, it began the window at 109 units; its filings record 15 unit openings and 27 closures, ending at 58 units (partial records: 2017, 2018 are not in the source data — totals span the reported years only). Its parent company is Elias Brothers Restaurants, Inc..
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
Big Boy Franchise Management LLC offers franchises to develop, own and operate a fast casual restaurant “Big Boy’s Burgers and Shakes Restaurant” that sell to the public Big Boy Burgers and Shakes™ signature items, including the “Super Big Boy Double Deck Cheeseburger™” hamburger, specialty sandwiches, as well as a selection of other fast casual restaurant items.
Big Boy franchise: quick answers
- How much does a Big Boy franchise cost?
- $943,000 – $3,685,500 all-in to open, per Big Boy's franchise disclosure filings (data as of 2026-05).
- How many Big Boy units are there?
- 58 units at the end of 2019 (FDD Item 20-style unit history).