Culver's franchise: what it costs
Opening a Culver's restaurant runs from $3,406,350 up to $10,294,100, according to the 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD). That packet is what the brand must hand over before you buy.
Culver's franchise costs, broken down by item
- Total cost of opening
- From $3,406,350 up to $10,294,100 Item 7, 2026 FDD
- Franchise fee you pay one time at the start
- $45,000 to $65,000 Item 5, 2026 FDD
- Royalty, your ongoing payments to the brand
- You pay 4% of gross sales Item 6, 2026 FDD
- Marketing fund, which covers shared advertising
- The rate is 2.5%, calculated on gross sales Item 6, 2026 FDD
- Figures on sales or earnings
- $4,142,737 a year on average across 988 locations it counts, before costs Item 19, 2026 FDD
- Location count when 2025 ended
- Franchise owners ran 1,034 and the company ran 7 Item 20, 2026 FDD
Every figure above comes from the 2026 Culver's Franchise Disclosure Document, filed with the Minnesota Department of Commerce by Culver Franchising System, LLC and dated March 30, 2026. Each small label points to the numbered part of the FDD where that figure sits.
Sales and earnings figures from the Culver's FDD
Culver's provides figures in Item 19, the FDD section where a brand may tell you what its locations earn or sell. Average yearly sales of $4,142,737 are the key figure, covering 988 franchised restaurants that were open throughout 2025. It is money the store takes in, not profit, because rent, wages and every other cost get paid from it.
Our guide helps you read Item 19 before you count on a number from it.
Culver's beside other restaurant franchises
Culver's has the highest opening cost of the restaurant franchises on this site.
| Brand | Total cost to opentotal, lowest to highest | Upfront feeone-time fee | Royaltyongoing, usually a % of sales | Sales or earnings showndoes the brand show sales figures | Year filed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Subway | $263K to $630K | $15,000 | 8% | No | 2026 |
| Jimmy John's | $366K to $734K | $35,000 | 6% | Yes | 2026 |
| Firehouse Subs | $405K to $876K | $20,000 | 6% | Yes | 2026 |
| Jersey Mike's | $436K to $1.16M | $20,000 | 6.5% | Yes | 2026 |
| Arby's | $869K to $2.46M | $37,500 | 4% | Yes | 2026 |
| Five Guys | $928K to $1.38M | $25,000 | 6% | No | 2026 |
| Panera Bread | $1.34M to $4.57M | $50,000 | 5% | Yes | 2026 |
| McDonald's | $1.47M to $2.64M | $45,000 | 5% (plus rent) | Yes | 2024 |
| Sonic Drive-In | $1.49M to $2.52M | $15,000 | 5% | Yes | 2026 |
Before you buy, a brand has to hand over its Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD); the brand's latest one is where every figure comes from. You keep paying the brand a royalty after you open: a share of sales, or a set amount. "Sales or earnings shown" tells you whether the brand says what its locations bring in. A K stands for thousand, an M for million. The filing year is the year that FDD was listed with the Minnesota Department of Commerce.
The number of Culver's locations
At the end of 2025, the United States had 1,041 Culver's locations, with franchise owners running 99% of them (Item 20). In that same part of the FDD, you get phone numbers for owners still running stores and ones who left. Your best way to learn how these costs play out in real life is to call a few of them.
Get the Culver's FDD read by a franchise attorney
Before you sign, one franchise attorney can go through the Culver's FDD and franchise agreement with you.