How Much Does a Burger Franchise Cost in 2026?
In 2026, A Jack in the Box franchise costs between $1,910,500 and $4,032,100. This number includes items such as building improvements, furniture,...
How Much Does a Jack in the Box Franchise Cost?
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A Jack in the Box franchise costs between $1,910,500 and $4,032,100. This number includes items such as building improvements, furniture, fixtures, equipment, IT equipment and installation, operating cash, your franchise fee and much more. You can find this information detailed in the FDD(franchise disclosure document. You can find more information here.
When engaging with us in the process of buying a Jack in the Box franchise, questions around cost are the most common we receive – especially after someone tries our curly fries.
There are several parts that make up the costs of opening a Jack in the Box Restaurant and it’s important to understand what they are.
How much does it cost to open a Jack in the Box franchise? Hi. My name is Dustin, and I'm a member of our franchise development team here at Jack in the Box. In this video, I'm gonna answer that question as well as several other key aspects of owning a Jack in the Box franchise, such as what are the Jack in the Box franchise royalties? What is the Jack in the Box franchise fee? What is the estimated initial investment of owning a Jack in the Box? Does Jack in the Box offer any incentives? And what does it take to get started with Jack in the Box? We've got a busy video and a lot to cover. So let's go ahead and get started. So getting started, the first thing we're gonna cover is our franchise fee here at Jack in the Box. Our traditional franchise fee is fifty thousand dollars for each franchise location. The notable exception to this is for non traditional locations, and that franchise fee is twenty five thousand per location. If you have a question about what makes a location nontraditional or traditional, a member of our sales team will kind of walk you through that and help you understand the difference and how we define a traditional and non traditional location here at Jack in the Box. Another important thing to note is that franchise fees are only paid once. They're paid when you sign your development agreement or your franchise agreement they last for the term of the agreement which at Jack in the Box is twenty years. The second thing we're gonna cover is our Jack in the Box franchise royalties. We have a marketing fee of five percent of gross sales, and we also have a royalty that is also five percent of gross sales. Continuing along, our third thing that we're going to cover is the estimated initial investment of a Jack in the Box franchise. Now keep in mind, you could find this broken down within the item seven of our franchise disclosure document. And at the end of this video, you'll have an opportunity to inquire and speak to a member of our franchise development team, and we can send you a copy you the FDD or franchise disclosure document, if you'd like to see these items broken down. But the estimated initial investment of a Jack in the Box franchise is one point eight million to two point eight million. And this does exclude land cost, financing, and other certain costs of doing business. The fourth thing we're gonna cover in this video is franchise incentives and yes Jack in the Box does offer franchise incentives. Now these incentives are only available to those signing up for at least three or more locations, within their development agreement. Now we give you two options for your franchise incentives. Option a is a tiered franchise royalty. So earlier in the video, I mentioned that our royalty is five percent. Well, option a, we reduce that five percent to one percent royalty in year one, two percent in year two, three percent in year three, four percent in year four, and then in year five, it returns to five percent for the remainder of the term of your franchise agreement. Option b, is a one hundred and fifty thousand dollar interest free loan that goes towards the development of your Jack in the Box franchise. Now, the terms of this can be seen on this page and it can can be also found within our franchise disclosure document. The next thing we're going to cover are the financial requirements to become a Jack in the Box franchisee. We look for our potential franchisees to have access to a minimum of five hundred thousand in liquidity and one point five million in net worth. And there are multiple potential sources of liquidity that we look for, things such as cash, stocks, bonds, utilizing a part of your home equity or even a 401k rollover. And it's also very common to see people pull together resources and go in via partnerships. Another potential franchise incentive is our veteran incentive. Jack in the Box partners with VetFran, and we offer twenty five percent off the initial franchise fee for your first store That's twelve thousand five hundred off the franchise fee. Which would bring down your fifty thousand dollar franchise fee for store one to thirty seven thousand five hundred. I hope this video was helpful for you in understanding what it takes to open a Jack in the Box and what are the costs involved with opening a Jack in the Box franchise. If you're ready to take the next step, Please complete the form at the top of this page and a member of our development team will reach out to you directly. I hope you have a wonderful day. Thank you.
In this article, we’re going to cover:
- Jack in the Box Franchise Fee
- Jack in the Box Franchise Royalties
- How Much Does a Jack in the Box Franchise Cost
- Does Jack in the Box Offer Incentives?
- Jack in the Box Development Incentive Program
- What are the Jack in the Box Financial Requirements?
- Jack in the Box Franchising Veterans Program
Jack in the Box Franchise Fee
When you sign the Franchise Agreement, you must pay the Company an Initial Franchise Fee.
The Initial Franchise Fee at Jack in the Box is $50,000 for each franchised restaurant, plus any tax or other fee imposed upon the Company due to the collection of the Initial Franchise Fee. It’s important to note there are some notable exceptions to this rule.
If your franchise term is for less than the standard 20 years, the Initial Franchise Fee is $2,500 for each year or partial year exceeding six months.
If you will be offering a nontraditional location, the Initial Franchise Fee is $25,000 for each unit, plus any taxes and fees imposed on the Company due to collection of the Initial Franchise Fee.
The Initial Franchise Fee is fully earned on the date it is received by the Company and is nonrefundable.
Jack in the Box Franchise Royalties
Like most franchises, you’ll notice Jack in the Box has ongoing royalty fees. Our royalties at Jack in the Box are:
- 5% Royalty of Gross Sales
- 5% Marketing Fee of Gross Sales
These royalties ensure you have the best possible resources to run your business and bring customers to your location.
How Much Does a Jack in the Box Franchise Cost?
The estimated initial investment for a Jack in the Box Franchise is $1,910,500 - $4,032,100 excluding land, financing, and certain other costs. We provide a breakdown of this number in our Item 7 found in our Franchise Disclosure Document.
Your initial investment includes virtually everything it takes to start a new restaurant:
- One-time initial franchise fee, up to $50k
- Building improvements, up to $785k
- Initial inventory, up to $20k
- Three months of operating funds
These initial investment figures are based on franchised and Company restaurant development costs to open MK12 prototypical buildings in fiscal years 2023 to 2024.
The cost of land will vary widely, depending upon size and location of the property and whether you purchase/own the land or enter into a lease arrangement.
Does Jack in the Box Offer Incentives?
Currently, Jack in the Box only offers incentives for those who agree to open three or more stores. We’ll discuss this incentive below.
Multi-Unit Franchise Incentive
Yes, Jack in the Box does offer an incentive for multi-unit franchisees who choose to sign up for three or more stores under our Development Incentive Program.
To help incentivize growth in key markets, Jack in the Box offers qualifying multi-unit investors two different incentive options.
Development Incentive Program:
We offer an incentive to qualified developers. Under our current Development Incentive Program, if you sign a Development Agreement for a minimum of three (3) restaurants to be developed and opened under the development schedule during the time frames specified in the Development Agreement, and certain other requirements are met, you may be eligible for the following incentive, at our sole discretion:
If you open the Restaurant on or before the required date in the development schedule, we will loan you $150,000 at 0% interest to be used solely for development costs associated with that restaurant. The loan will be repaid by crediting 100% of the royalty payments for that restaurant otherwise due until the loan is paid in full (i.e., payments will be made by crediting the appropriate portion of royalty payments toward the principal balance outstanding). If the particular restaurant is sold or permanently closed and the loan has not been fully repaid, the remaining principal balance is due in full.
If you close a restaurant and then open a replacement restaurant, it will not be eligible for this incentive. The Company may discontinue or modify this Development Incentive Program at any time.
Select Market Incentive Program:
We offer an incentive to certain franchisees who have signed a Multi-Unit Development Agreement pursuant to which they have committed to open at least three (3) Restaurants in a ”Select Market.” For the purposes hereof, a “Select Market” is one in which food or other operating costs for franchisees are higher than average costs for other franchisees, due to supply chain conditions, as determined from time to time by us in our sole discretion. If we, in our sole discretion, determine that any Restaurants opened pursuant to such Multi-Unit Development Agreement qualify for this incentive, your Royalty for each qualifying Restaurant (which is currently 5% of Gross Sales) will be reduced to 2% of Gross Sales for the first five years after the subject qualifying Restaurant opens.
Jack in the Box Financial Requirements
Due to the cost of opening a restaurant with Jack in the Box, we have three minimum financial requirements all our potential franchisees must meet.
- Minimum Liquidity: $500,000
- Minimum Net Worth: $1.5MM
- Franchise Fee: $50k per Location
If you’re unable to meet these requirements, there are many potential sources of liquidity that may be overlooked. For example:
- Business Partners
- Stocks & Bonds
- 401k Rollovers
These are just a few of the options you may like to consider in order to meet our financial requirements.
Does Jack in the Box Offer an Incentive to Veterans?
We currently participate in the International Franchise Association’s Veterans Transition Franchise Initiative (“VetFran”) to provide franchise opportunities to qualifying veterans.
Under the Veterans Program, we reduce the Initial Franchise Fee for the first new Restaurant by 25% or $12,500. Accordingly, the Initial Franchise Fee paid to us is $37,500.
This incentive may not be combined with any other incentive program.
To qualify for the Veterans Program, a prospective franchisee must:
- Request the Veterans Program at the time of application.
- Meet our then-current qualifications for new franchisees.
- Be at least 51% legally and beneficially owned by persons meeting our qualifying veteran status.
- Not have previously received a similar incentive from us.
The Company may discontinue or modify this Veterans Program at any time.
Check Out These Additional Resources
We hope this article gave you a better understanding of how much a Jack in the Box Franchise costs.
At Jack in the Box, we work with our franchisees every step of the way in order to get their restaurants up and running.
Here are some additional online resources you may like to check out:
- Jack in the Box Available Markets
- 5 Benefits of Multi-Unit Franchising with Jack in the Box
- How Much Does a Jack in the Box Make?
If you have any questions, please contact our franchise sales and support team.
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How Many Jack in the Box Restaurants Are Company-Owned?
Jack : 5/13/25 9:45 AM
Are you interested in learning how many Jack in the Box restaurants are company-owned as of this year?
Is Jack in the Box Opening in Florida?
Jack : 5/13/25 2:30 PM
Yes, Jack in the Box is coming to Florida! Jack in the Box will open its first stores in Orlando, FL and Longwood, FL in 2026.