California Pools franchise: cost, fees & unit track record
Opening a California Pools franchise takes $8,000 – $95,000 all-in, per its franchise disclosure filings (data as of 2026-05). The initial franchise fee is Up to $25,000. Ongoing, franchisees pay a royalty of 4% on sales plus an ad-fund contribution of up to 1%. Anything the filings do not state is marked "Not disclosed" below — never estimated.
California Pools franchise costs and fees
| Verification mark | Cost item | Low | High | Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise feeOne-time, paid to the franchisor at signing | n/d | $25,000 | Up to $25,000 | |
| Initial investment (all-in)FDD Item 7-derived range: build-out, equipment, opening costs | $8,000 | $95,000 | $8,000 to $95,000 | |
| Net worth requiredFranchisor's stated qualification minimum | Not disclosed1 | Not disclosed1 | ||
| Liquid cash requiredFranchisor's stated qualification minimum | Not disclosed1 | Not disclosed1 | ||
| Cash to open (all-in range) | $8,000 | $95,000 | $8,000 to $95,000 | |
- 1 "Not disclosed" means California Pools's filings do not state this figure. We publish the gap instead of estimating it.
| RoyaltyOngoing, % of sales | 4% |
|---|---|
| Ad fundOngoing, % of sales | Up to 1% |
| Initial termLength of the first franchise agreement | 10 years |
See the full California Pools cost breakdown — what's in that number and what isn't
How California Pools's cost compares
A dollar figure means more with a yardstick. Here is where California Pools's disclosed cost sits against the Professional Services category:
- Minimum startup cost of $8,000 — about 91% below the Professional Services median of $84,700.
Category medians are computed from the Professional Services brands in our data that disclosed each figure — a benchmark for scale, not a quality judgment. See all Professional Services franchises
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How California Pools's units have held up
Openings and closures from FDD Item 20-style unit history, 2015–2020: began the window at 19 units; 18 units opened, 13 closed, ending at 23 units. (partial records: 2018 is not in the source data — totals span the reported years only.)
What about earnings?
We don't publish per-brand earnings figures — for California Pools 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 California Pools 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 California Pools 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 California Pools 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 California Pools 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 California Pools franchise
California Pools is a professional services franchisor with 23 units at the end of 2020 (FDD Item 20-style unit history). Between 2015 and 2020, it began the window at 19 units; its filings record 18 unit openings and 13 closures, ending at 23 units (partial records: 2018 is not in the source data — totals span the reported years only). Its parent company is California Pools Franchise 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
As a franchisee, you will operate a swimming pool and spa construction and remodeling business under the name California Pools.
California Pools franchise: quick answers
- How much does a California Pools franchise cost?
- $8,000 – $95,000 all-in to open, per California Pools's franchise disclosure filings (data as of 2026-05).
- How many California Pools units are there?
- 23 units at the end of 2020 (FDD Item 20-style unit history).
- How have California Pools's units held up?
- 69.4% of units at risk between 2017 and 2020 did not close, per our metric recomputed from FDD Item 20-style unit history (methodology published on our verification page).