Home › Compare

McAlister's Deli vs Firehouse Subs — which franchise is the better buy?

Side by side from the public FDDs — no franchisor spin.

	McAlister's Deli	Firehouse Subs
Disclosure honesty	B	F
Investment from	$910,175	$405,350
Total fees	7%	11%
Outlets	572	1,291
Lawsuits	4	12

McAlister's Deli: what their numbers say

Net sales by quartile for 477 traditional franchises FY2025. Top quartile averaged $2.75M; 44% of franchises met/exceeded system average of $1.87M. Excludes non-traditional locations, express formats, affiliate-owned.

Firehouse Subs: what their numbers say

Item 19 not provided in FDD excerpts. No earnings claims or net income estimates disclosed.

Get the real owner take-home for either — $149

Full net-profit math, financing, red flags. See a sample →