1-800-GOT-JUNK? Franchise
Cost, fees, owner earnings, closure rate and litigation for a 1-800-GOT-JUNK? franchise — pulled from the franchisor's own public FDD (2026), not its sales material.
Disclosure honesty
1-800-GOT-JUNK? discloses earnings (Item 19) — but the grade is how honestly. We graded it C.
What their own earnings claim actually says
Gross revenue data for 138 U.S. franchisees by years operating. 81% earned over $1M in 2025. Includes per-subterritory averages. No net income disclosed; does not reflect operating expenses.
What a 1-800-GOT-JUNK? franchise actually costs to run
| Fee | Disclosed | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $65,000 | Item 5 — paid up front, before you open |
| Royalty | 8% of gross sales | Item 6 — charged on revenue, not profit |
| Advertising fund | 8% of gross sales | Item 6 — brand marketing, spent at the franchisor's discretion |
| Total recurring fees | 16% of gross sales | Before rent, labor, food or debt service |
| Total initial investment | $182,300 – $303,500 | Item 7 — franchisor's own low/high estimate |
8% royalty + 8% ad/tech fee = 16% ongoing. Minimum royalty $1,200–$4,000/subterritory/year. Transfer fee $10K; renewal $7.5K.
Royalty and ad-fund percentages are charged on gross sales — an owner pays them whether or not the location is profitable.
1-800-GOT-JUNK? system size and owner turnover
| Total outlets | 138 |
| Ceased operations | 15 |
| Terminated by franchisor | 0 |
| Transferred to new owners | 16 |
| Closure rate | 10.9% of outlets |
92 franchised units; 15 ceased operations in 2025; 41% turnover since 2023.
From Item 20 of the FDD 2026. Terminations and ceased operations are the franchisor's own count of owners who stopped — the number the sales pitch leaves out.
Is 1-800-GOT-JUNK? worth it? — how it compares to 85 similar franchises
| Ongoing fees | 16% of sales | steeper than 94% of home & trade services franchises |
| Startup cost | from $182,300 | pricier than 87% of peers |
| Disclosure honesty | Grade C | less honest than most of the category |
| Closure rate | 10.9% of outlets | worse than 87% of peers |
| Disclosed lawsuits | 0 | fewer than most |
Benchmarked against every home & trade services franchise we've graded from public FDDs — the context the franchisor's pitch never gives you.
Owner take-home for a 1-800-GOT-JUNK?
The franchisor's framing: Gross revenue data for 138 U.S. franchisees by years operating. 81% earned over $1M in 202… We reconstruct what an owner actually keeps, from their own FDD.
- Reconstructed owner P&L — net take-home after royalty, ad fund, rent, labor & debt
- Break-even timeline + cash-on-cash ROI
- Full fee stack + required-purchase markups
- Decoded real failure / closure rate
- How it ranks vs comparable franchises
- Validation-call playbook — the exact questions to ask
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1-800-GOT-JUNK? franchise — frequently asked
- How much does a 1-800-GOT-JUNK? franchise cost?
- The FDD lists a total initial investment of about $182,300–$303,500, including a $65,000 initial franchise fee.
- How much do 1-800-GOT-JUNK? franchise owners make?
- Gross revenue data for 138 U.S. franchisees by years operating. 81% earned over $1M in 2025. Includes per-subterritory averages. No net income disclosed; does not reflect operating expenses. We grade this disclosure C for honesty.
- What are the 1-800-GOT-JUNK? franchise fees?
- 1-800-GOT-JUNK?'s FDD discloses a $65,000 initial franchise fee, a 8% royalty on gross sales, a 8% advertising-fund contribution, for roughly 16% of gross sales in recurring fees before rent, labor, or debt service. 8% royalty + 8% ad/tech fee = 16% ongoing. Minimum royalty $1,200–$4,000/subterritory/year. Transfer fee $10K; renewal $7.5K.
- What is the 1-800-GOT-JUNK? franchise profit margin?
- 1-800-GOT-JUNK? does not publish a franchisee net-profit margin — almost no franchisor does. What Item 19 actually shows: Gross revenue data for 138 U.S. franchisees by years operating. 81% earned over $1M in 2025. Includes per-subterritory averages. No net income disclosed; does not reflect operating expenses. Recurring fees alone take about 16% of gross sales, before rent, labor, food or debt service. Margin has to be reconstructed from the disclosure, not read off it.
- What is the 1-800-GOT-JUNK? franchise failure rate?
- 92 franchised units; 15 ceased operations in 2025; 41% turnover since 2023.
- How many 1-800-GOT-JUNK? locations are there?
- 1-800-GOT-JUNK?'s FDD reports 138 total outlets, with 15 that ceased operations in the most recent reporting year and 16 transferred to new owners. Item 20 is where system health shows up before the marketing does.
- Does 1-800-GOT-JUNK? have complaints or lawsuits?
- 1-800-GOT-JUNK? discloses no material litigation in Item 3 of the filing we reviewed. That's a positive signal, though it covers only what the franchisor is required to report.
- Is a 1-800-GOT-JUNK? franchise worth it?
- It depends on the numbers, not the pitch. 1-800-GOT-JUNK? scores C on disclosure honesty, carries about 16% of sales in ongoing fees. Get the real owner take-home before you sign.
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Source: WI DFI Franchise Registration (2026). FranchiseValidate is independent and not affiliated with 1-800-GOT-JUNK? or its franchisor. Figures are extracted from the franchisor's own public disclosure document; verify against the current FDD before any decision.