Subway Franchise
Cost, fees, owner earnings, closure rate and litigation for a Subway franchise — pulled from the franchisor's own public FDD (2025), not its sales material.
Disclosure honesty
Subway discloses little or no owner-earnings data (Item 19) — the franchisor won't put real profit in writing.
What their own earnings claim actually says
No financial performance representations made. Franchisor does not disclose past/projected franchisee income or outlet financial performance.
Subway system size and owner turnover
| Total outlets | 19,502 |
| Ceased operations | 881 |
| Terminated by franchisor | 4 |
| Transferred to new owners | 1,416 |
| Closure rate | 4.5% of outlets |
631 net outlet decline in 2024; 881 ceased operations; significant outlet contraction trend.
From Item 20 of the FDD 2025. Terminations and ceased operations are the franchisor's own count of owners who stopped — the number the sales pitch leaves out.
Is Subway worth it? — how it compares to 22 similar franchises
| Disclosure honesty | Grade F | less honest than most of the category |
| Closure rate | 4.5% of outlets | worse than 65% of peers |
| Disclosed lawsuits | 84 | more litigious than 96% of peers |
Benchmarked against every sandwich & sub shops franchise we've graded from public FDDs — the context the franchisor's pitch never gives you.
Owner take-home for a Subway
The franchisor's framing: No financial performance representations made. Franchisor does not disclose past/projected… 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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Subway franchise — frequently asked
- How much does a Subway franchise cost?
- Subway's current FDD excerpt doesn't clearly state a total investment range — ask for Item 7 directly.
- How much do Subway franchise owners make?
- Subway discloses little or no earnings data (Item 19) — meaning the franchisor won't put real owner profit in writing. That's a red flag worth questioning.
- What are the Subway franchise fees?
- Subway's FDD excerpt doesn't clearly itemise the fee structure — ask for Items 5 and 6 directly.
- What is the Subway franchise profit margin?
- Subway discloses no Item 19 earnings representation, so no profit margin can be derived from the FDD at all. Any margin figure quoted elsewhere is an estimate, not a disclosure.
- What is the Subway franchise failure rate?
- 631 net outlet decline in 2024; 881 ceased operations; significant outlet contraction trend.
- How many Subway locations are there?
- Subway's FDD reports 19,502 total outlets, with 881 that ceased operations in the most recent reporting year and 1,416 transferred to new owners. Item 20 is where system health shows up before the marketing does.
- Does Subway have complaints or lawsuits?
- Subway discloses 84 legal matters in Item 3 of its FDD. Item 3 covers the franchisor's litigation history, which is the closest thing to a public record of how it treats franchisees — read the case descriptions, not just the count.
- Is a Subway franchise worth it?
- It depends on the numbers, not the pitch. Subway scores F on disclosure honesty, and discloses 84 legal matters. Get the real owner take-home before you sign.
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Compare Subway to similar franchises
See all franchises ranked by disclosure honesty →
Source: MN CARDS 34006-202504-06 (Clean FDD 2025). FranchiseValidate is independent and not affiliated with Subway or its franchisor. Figures are extracted from the franchisor's own public disclosure document; verify against the current FDD before any decision.