CHOPT® Franchise
Cost, fees, owner earnings, closure rate and litigation for a CHOPT® franchise — pulled from the franchisor's own public FDD (2026), not its sales material.
Disclosure honesty
CHOPT® discloses earnings (Item 19) — but the grade is how honestly. We graded it D.
What their own earnings claim actually says
Gross Sales, Food Cost Margin (29.5% avg), Hourly Labor Margin (17.6% avg) for mature affiliate-owned restaurants. 4 non-traditional locations. No franchisee cost data provided.
What a CHOPT® franchise actually costs to run
| Fee | Disclosed | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $30,000 | Item 5 — paid up front, before you open |
| Royalty | 5% of gross sales | Item 6 — charged on revenue, not profit |
| Total recurring fees | 5% of gross sales | Before rent, labor, food or debt service |
| Total initial investment | $815,250 – $2,575,250 | Item 7 — franchisor's own low/high estimate |
5% weekly royalty on Gross Sales. $30k initial fee waived for one 2025 franchisee. Multiple ancillary fees including training, software, relocation, compliance.
Royalty and ad-fund percentages are charged on gross sales — an owner pays them whether or not the location is profitable.
CHOPT® system size and owner turnover
| Total outlets | 4 |
| Ceased operations | 0 |
| Terminated by franchisor | 0 |
| Transferred to new owners | 0 |
| Closure rate | 0.0% of outlets |
Minimal system scale (1 franchised, 3 company-owned non-traditional outlets). Insufficient franchisee data.
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 CHOPT® worth it? — how it compares to 164 similar franchises
| Ongoing fees | 5% of sales | lower than most (median 8%) |
| Startup cost | from $815,250 | pricier than 78% of peers |
| Disclosure honesty | Grade D | less honest than most of the category |
| Closure rate | 0.0% of outlets | better than most (median 1.3%) |
| Disclosed lawsuits | 0 | fewer than most |
Benchmarked against every quick service restaurants franchise we've graded from public FDDs — the context the franchisor's pitch never gives you.
Owner take-home for a CHOPT®
The franchisor's framing: Gross Sales, Food Cost Margin (29.5% avg), Hourly Labor Margin (17.6% avg) for mature affi… 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
See a full sample report → · 30-day guarantee
CHOPT® franchise — frequently asked
- How much does a CHOPT® franchise cost?
- The FDD lists a total initial investment of about $815,250–$2,575,250, including a $30,000 initial franchise fee.
- How much do CHOPT® franchise owners make?
- Gross Sales, Food Cost Margin (29.5% avg), Hourly Labor Margin (17.6% avg) for mature affiliate-owned restaurants. 4 non-traditional locations. No franchisee cost data provided. We grade this disclosure D for honesty.
- What are the CHOPT® franchise fees?
- CHOPT®'s FDD discloses a $30,000 initial franchise fee, a 5% royalty on gross sales, for roughly 5% of gross sales in recurring fees before rent, labor, or debt service. 5% weekly royalty on Gross Sales. $30k initial fee waived for one 2025 franchisee. Multiple ancillary fees including training, software, relocation, compliance.
- What is the CHOPT® franchise profit margin?
- CHOPT® does not publish a franchisee net-profit margin — almost no franchisor does. What Item 19 actually shows: Gross Sales, Food Cost Margin (29.5% avg), Hourly Labor Margin (17.6% avg) for mature affiliate-owned restaurants. 4 non-traditional locations. No franchisee cost data provided. Recurring fees alone take about 5% 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 CHOPT® franchise failure rate?
- Minimal system scale (1 franchised, 3 company-owned non-traditional outlets). Insufficient franchisee data.
- How many CHOPT® locations are there?
- CHOPT®'s FDD reports 4 total outlets, with 0 that ceased operations in the most recent reporting year and 0 transferred to new owners. Item 20 is where system health shows up before the marketing does.
- Does CHOPT® have complaints or lawsuits?
- CHOPT® 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 CHOPT® franchise worth it?
- It depends on the numbers, not the pitch. CHOPT® scores D on disclosure honesty, carries about 5% of sales in ongoing fees. Get the real owner take-home before you sign.
Own a CHOPT®? Add your real numbers (anonymous)
We publish only aggregated benchmarks — never your name. Contribute and we'll show you how your numbers compare.
Compare CHOPT® to similar franchises
See all franchises ranked by disclosure honesty →
Source: WI DFI Franchise Registration (2026). FranchiseValidate is independent and not affiliated with CHOPT® or its franchisor. Figures are extracted from the franchisor's own public disclosure document; verify against the current FDD before any decision.