The Great American Bagel franchise: cost, fees & unit track record
Opening The Great American Bagel franchise takes $192,350 – $488,000 all-in, per its franchise disclosure filings (data as of 2026-05). The initial franchise fee is $7,500 – $30,000. Ongoing, franchisees pay a royalty of 6% on sales plus an ad-fund contribution of up to 4%. To qualify, The Great American Bagel asks for $100,000 in liquid cash and a $250,000 net worth. Anything the filings do not state is marked "Not disclosed" below — never estimated.
The Great American Bagel franchise costs and fees
| Verification mark | Cost item | Low | High | Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise feeOne-time, paid to the franchisor at signing | $7,500 | $30,000 | $7,500 to $30,000 | |
| Initial investment (all-in)FDD Item 7-derived range: build-out, equipment, opening costs | $192,350 | $488,000 | $192,350 to $488,000 | |
| Net worth requiredFranchisor's stated qualification minimum | $250,000 | $250,000 | $250,000 | |
| Liquid cash requiredFranchisor's stated qualification minimum | $100,000 | $100,000 | $100,000 | |
| Cash to open (all-in range) | $192,350 | $488,000 | $192,350 to $488,000 |
| RoyaltyOngoing, % of sales | 6% |
|---|---|
| Ad fundOngoing, % of sales | Up to 4% |
| Initial termLength of the first franchise agreement | 10 years |
See the full The Great American Bagel cost breakdown — what's in that number and what isn't
How The Great American Bagel's cost compares
A dollar figure means more with a yardstick. Here is where The Great American Bagel's disclosed cost sits against the Food & Beverage category:
- Minimum startup cost of $192,350 — about 32% below the Food & Beverage median of $282,500.
- Initial franchise fee of $7,500 — about 79% below 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 The Great American Bagel's units have held up
Openings and closures from FDD Item 20-style unit history, 2012–2015: began the window at 66 units; 4 units opened, 12 closed, ending at 58 units.
What about earnings?
We don't publish per-brand earnings figures — for The Great American Bagel 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 The Great American Bagel 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 The Great American Bagel 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 The Great American Bagel 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 The Great American Bagel 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 Great American Bagel franchise
The Great American Bagel is a food & beverage franchisor with 58 units at the end of 2015 (FDD Item 20-style unit history). Between 2012 and 2015, it began the window at 66 units; its filings record 4 unit openings and 12 closures, ending at 58 units. Its parent company is Kahala Franchising LLC.
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
You will own and operate a Great American Bagel store which offers bagels,bagel sandwiches, delicatessen meats and cheeses, soups, salads and items. Franchises are offered for both “Production Stores” (with baking facilities) and “Satellite Stores” (without baking facilities).
The Great American Bagel franchise: quick answers
- How much does The Great American Bagel franchise cost?
- $192,350 – $488,000 all-in to open, per The Great American Bagel's franchise disclosure filings (data as of 2026-05).
- How many The Great American Bagel units are there?
- 58 units at the end of 2015 (FDD Item 20-style unit history).
- How have The Great American Bagel's units held up?
- 86.6% of units at risk between 2013 and 2015 did not close, per our metric recomputed from FDD Item 20-style unit history (methodology published on our verification page).