U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt franchise: cost, fees & unit track record
Opening a U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt franchise takes $360,000 – $466,000 all-in, per its franchise disclosure filings (data as of 2026-05). The initial franchise fee is $9,000 – $25,000. Ongoing, franchisees pay a royalty of 6% on sales plus an ad-fund contribution of up to 2%. To qualify, U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt asks for $50,000 in liquid cash. Anything the filings do not state is marked "Not disclosed" below — never estimated.
U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt franchise costs and fees
| Verification mark | Cost item | Low | High | Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise feeOne-time, paid to the franchisor at signing | $9,000 | $25,000 | $9,000 to $25,000 | |
| Initial investment (all-in)FDD Item 7-derived range: build-out, equipment, opening costs | $360,000 | $466,000 | $360,000 to $466,000 | |
| 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) | $360,000 | $466,000 | $360,000 to $466,000 | |
- 1 "Not disclosed" means U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt's filings do not state this figure. We publish the gap instead of estimating it.
| RoyaltyOngoing, % of sales | 6% |
|---|---|
| Ad fundOngoing, % of sales | Up to 2% |
| Initial termLength of the first franchise agreement | 5 years |
See the full U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt cost breakdown — what's in that number and what isn't
How U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt's cost compares
A dollar figure means more with a yardstick. Here is where U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt's disclosed cost sits against the Food & Beverage category:
- Minimum startup cost of $360,000 — about 1.3× the Food & Beverage median of $282,500.
- Initial franchise fee of $9,000 — about 74% 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
Free info kit — costs, fees, and unit track record. You choose who may follow up.
Figures look outdated? Report outdated info.
How U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt's units have held up
Openings and closures from FDD Item 20-style unit history, 2012–2016: began the window at 35 units; 186 units opened, 112 closed, ending at 202 units.
What about earnings?
We don't publish per-brand earnings figures — for U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt 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 U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt 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 U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt 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 U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt 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 U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt 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 U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt franchise
U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt is a food & beverage franchisor with 202 units at the end of 2016 (FDD Item 20-style unit history). Between 2012 and 2016, it began the window at 35 units; its filings record 186 unit openings and 112 closures, ending at 202 units. Its parent company is U-Swirl International, 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
U-Swirl International, Inc. offers franchises for the operation of self-service frozen yogurt stores under the marks “U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt”, “Yogurtini” and “CherryBerry”, which stores may also offer beverages and other frozen dessert products.
U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt franchise: quick answers
- How much does a U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt franchise cost?
- $360,000 – $466,000 all-in to open, per U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt's franchise disclosure filings (data as of 2026-05).
- How many U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt units are there?
- 202 units at the end of 2016 (FDD Item 20-style unit history).
- How have U-Swirl Frozen Yogurt's units held up?
- 59.2% of units at risk between 2014 and 2016 did not close, per our metric recomputed from FDD Item 20-style unit history (methodology published on our verification page).