Chick-Fil-A

Chick-Fil-A Franchise FDD, Costs & Fees (2025)

Chick-Fil-A is a fast-food franchise known for its chicken sandwiches, nuggets, and waffle fries.

Chick-fil-A is a notable player in the fast-food sector, best known for its iconic chicken sandwich. The company was founded by S. Truett Cathy, who launched the first restaurant in Hapeville, Georgia, in 1946. A distinctive feature of Chick-fil-A is its practice of closing on Sundays, a policy instituted by Cathy to give employees time for rest, family, and worship, underscoring the company's commitment to work-life balance and its values.

Chick-fil-A entered the franchising arena in 1967 with its inaugural outlet in the food court of Greenbriar Mall in Atlanta, Georgia. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, the brand is recognized for its exceptional customer service and unique menu. Beyond the signature chicken sandwich, the menu includes waffle potato fries, salads, and a variety of sides and beverages, appealing to diverse tastes.

The company’s focus on high-quality ingredients and fresh food preparation has cemented its reputation for excellent food and service. Innovation is central to Chick-fil-A’s success, from the invention of the original chicken sandwich to the design of its restaurants and customer service initiatives like upstream ordering.

Initial investment

Here's what you would need to invest if you were to start this franchise. These costs are provided by the franchisor in the Franchise Disclosure Document.

Type of Expenditure Amount
Initial Franchise Fee $10,000
Opening Inventory $22,000 to $84,000
First Month’s Rental of Equipment $750 to $5,000
First Month’s Lease/Sublease of Premises $2,725 to $96,285
First Month’s Insurance Expense $260 to $10,240
Additional Funds $391,000 to $2,134,000
Total Estimate of Initial Investment $426,735 to $2,339,525

Franchise Disclosure Document

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Competitors

Below are some of

Chick-Fil-A

key competitors in the

Chicken

sector.

Started franchising
Franchisees

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Franchise fee

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Royalty fee

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Investment

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Revenue (AUV)

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Gross Profit

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EBITDA

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Home-based

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Passive investment

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FDD
Chick-Fil-A
1986
2629
+
12%
12%
$10,000
n.a.

$427,000

-

$2,340,000

n.a.

$8,742,000

Upgrade

n.a.

n.a.

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n.a.

n.a.

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2022
2
+
n.a.
n.a.
$30,000
5.00%

$478,000

-

$834,000

Upgrade

n.a.

$1,073,000

n.a.

n.a.

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n.a.

n.a.

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Upgrade
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2023
0
+
n.a.
n.a.
$50,000
6.00%

$418,000

-

$1,000,000

Upgrade

n.a.

$1,854,000

n.a.

n.a.

Upgrade

n.a.

n.a.

Upgrade
Upgrade
Upgrade
2002
38
+
-19%
-19%
$35,000
5% - 8%

$192,000

-

$795,000

Upgrade

n.a.

$0

n.a.

n.a.

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n.a.

n.a.

Upgrade
No
Upgrade
No
No
Upgrade
No
2022
5
+
n.a.
n.a.
$40,000
6.00%

$206,000

-

$688,000

Upgrade

n.a.

$0

n.a.

n.a.

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n.a.

n.a.

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No
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No
No
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No
2004
30
+
-3%
-3%
$40,000
5.00%

$408,000

-

$1,233,000

Upgrade

n.a.

$1,802,000

63.4%

n.a.

Upgrade

14.9%

n.a.

Upgrade
No
Upgrade
No
Yes
Upgrade
Yes
2010
21
+
0%
0%
$25,000
5.00%

$358,000

-

$2,699,000

Upgrade

n.a.

$0

n.a.

n.a.

Upgrade

n.a.

n.a.

Upgrade
Upgrade
Upgrade

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Total investment

?

Revenue (AUV)

?

Revenue growth (last 3 years)

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Profit margin

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Franchise Disclosure Documents
Advanced filtering and sorting
Watchlist

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Priority support

?

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Training 

Chick-fil-A provides comprehensive training for its franchisees, conducted by its professional training team. The program covers a wide range of topics, including orientation to Chick-fil-A's business model, ServSafe® certification, People Strategy, Brand, Marketing & Public Relations, and Menu Education.

Training comprises both classroom sessions at Chick-fil-A’s corporate headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia, and hands-on training at company-operated and franchised restaurants.

Franchisees must also ensure that any managerial staff they hire receive proper training to assist in running their Chick-fil-A restaurant. For this purpose, they can utilize Chick-fil-A’s proprietary operations and training manuals and materials.

Territory Protection

Franchisees are granted the right to operate a Chick-fil-A restaurant at a specific location designated by the company. This right is confined to the franchised business location and any additional locations specified under an Additional Business Amendment to the Franchise Agreement.

If Chick-fil-A provides an opportunity to operate a food truck as an extension of the restaurant, the food truck can only operate at locations that are registered and approved by Chick-fil-A.

This means that while franchisees have a specific location to run their business, they do not have exclusive rights to a broader territory, and their operations are restricted to the designated and approved sites.

Number of units

2025
Franchised units

2338

2494

2629

Company-owned units

73

58

55

Total units

2411

2552

2684

Competitors

Chuck's Hot Chicken

Franchisees

?

2
+
n.a.
n.a.
Investment

?

$478,000 - $834,000

Angry Chickz

Franchisees

?

0
+
n.a.
n.a.
Investment

?

$418,000 - $1,000,000

WOW American Eats

Franchisees

?

38
+
-19%
-19%
Investment

?

$192,000 - $795,000

HCK Hot Chicken

Franchisees

?

5
+
n.a.
n.a.
Investment

?

$206,000 - $688,000

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