Start a Burger King Franchise in 2024

2024 Franchise 500 Rank: #38 Ranked #23 last year

Initial investment: $2M - $4.7M

Units as of 2024: 19,384 4.1% over 3 years

Burger King Franchise

Whether you’re a fan of fast food or not, odds are you’ve heard of the Burger King restaurant chain. Indeed, Burger King is one of the most popular fast food brands ever launched. So it’s no wonder many entrepreneurs want to start their own Burger King franchised restaurants.

Burger King, the New York-based company, began as a basic burger fast food joint called Insta-Burger King in 1953. However, the company expanded in 1967 when it gained its new Burger King name, and further over the following decades.

Today, Burger King is one of the most well-known restaurant chains, with locations in North America and worldwide. It offers hamburgers (the most famous being the Whopper), sodas and a variety of other foods.

If you think you’ve got what it takes to start a Burger King franchise, read on. We’ll break down startup costs from this franchisor and the benefits of creating a Burger King franchise.

Why should you start a Burger King franchise?

If you've ever wanted to start a drive-thru and enter the fast-food industry, you already know why a Burger King franchise could be the way to go. There are tons of benefits to beginning your own Burger King franchise location, including:

Getting access to extensive financial assistance. Burger King participates in the International Franchise Association’s “DiversityFran” program. This franchise education and research program is intended to increase the diversity in franchising. If you’re a minority entrepreneur, take advantage of this to get the startup cash you need ASAP.
Burger King fully embraces the franchise model. Compared to McDonald's, which currently retains about 20% ownership of its restaurants, Burger King has many more franchise opportunities. This gives Burger King franchise owners much more personal control over their franchise agreements so they can run their stores more efficiently.
Enjoying the full support of Burger King’s franchise team. Franchise support managers help Burger King franchisees, construction and design managers, preferred real estate brokerages and many other management tools that they can use to ensure long-term success. They also get support for remodels and quick-service stores.
Leveraging brand-name recognition. At this time, Burger King serves nearly 16 million customers and sells well over 2 billion burgers worldwide each year. It’s much easier to start a Burger King restaurant and immediately get access to a built-in customer base wherever you happen to live. That brand-name recognition will help you make money more quickly than starting an independent burger joint chain. New stores in Ohio, Virginia, Illinois and other hotspots of the Burger King corporation are particularly successful.

Starting a Burger King franchise is one of the best and smartest ways to make money if you’ve ever wanted to be a fast-food restaurant owner.

What are the different types of Burger King franchises?

It’s also important to note that Burger King allows franchise owners to start different types of restaurants.

There are four primary types of Burger King franchise operations you can run:

Traditional Burger King restaurant facilities are self-contained and full-sized restaurants. These are located and operated as freestanding buildings or within larger structures like shopping malls. Notably, they don’t share common areas with other businesses.
Nontraditional Burger King facilities can be located at other sites, like retail sites, gas stations and convenience stores.
Institutional Burger King locations are restaurants in government buildings, medical facilities, airports and corporate campuses. They’re connected to and often share common areas with the institutions they operate in.
Delivery Burger King restaurants are operated at food prep and cooking facilities within other structures. These include larger restaurants, and they serve limited menus in most cases.

What resources does Burger King offer for new franchisees?

All franchise owners for Burger King benefit from a variety of resources.

For example, you can access a corporate newsletter and grand opening support for your first week of operations. As a franchise owner, you’ll attend Burger King meetings and conventions to refine and improve your operations.

Want to set up your store in a specific spot? Burger King allows franchise partners to have some input in site selection and security and safety procedures.

On top of that, Burger King franchisees can access comprehensive marketing support, including co-op advertising, ad templates, regional and national media advertising, social media advertising support and email marketing assistance.

Your Burger King franchise location can use the corporate loyalty program and app to keep customers returning.

Luckily, you’ll learn about these resources and tools through the in-depth training program you’ll have to complete to become a Burger King franchisee.

How much does starting a Burger King franchise cost?

If you want to start a Burger King franchise with the Restaurant Brands Internationalrestaurant group, you need to go in with your eyes open regarding fees and startup costs.

Firstly, you’ll need to pay an initial franchise fee of $50,000 when you sign your term contract. This is on top of the initial investment required, usually between approximately $1.8 million and $4.2 million.

In addition, Burger King only accepts franchise offers from those with an approximate net worth of $1 million. You’ll need to be able to front $500,000 in liquid assets to prove your net worth, too.

The potential for success with a Burger King franchise location should make these startup costs more than acceptable for many entrepreneurs.

After starting your location, keep in mind that Burger King does take a royalty fee of 4.5%. Burger King marketing ad royalty fees total 4% in general.

The plus? Once you sign a contract with Burger King, your agreement can last up to 20 years. The franchise term is renewable, but the first 20 years of operations should be plenty of time to determine whether you want to keep running your Burger King franchise or look for another opportunity after it expires.

Does Burger King provide financial assistance?

As noted above, Burger King provides financial assistance for minority franchise owners. If you're an aspiring entrepreneur but have needed help securing financing for your ambitions in the past, Burger King might give you the means to acquire the capital you need to succeed.

What does Burger King’s training include?

Burger King Corporation, the parent company, requires each new franchise owner to complete a comprehensive training module, which includes up to 64 hours of classroom training and up to 320 hours of on-the-job training.

You must complete this training program before opening your restaurant, and it must be held in Miami, Florida, or some other location, depending on what Burger King specifies. For your on-the-job training, you must visit different restaurants in your local area or Miami.

Once you've learned the ins and outs of running a Burger King location, you'll also benefit from periodic workshops and seminars for managers. These include updating your operational skills and management courses.

What about the initial days of running your Burger King? Burger King’s corporate office offers restaurant opening and pre-opening assistance when needed. For instance, if you don’t quite have enough staff to cover customer orders for the first week, you can expect some assistance and training help for the first week or so of your operations.

With all of this training support, you'll always feel like you are supported. Burger King has a vested interest in ensuring its franchise owners succeed, so it ensures you’re set up for consistency and quality from day one.

Start a Burger King franchise today

Starting a Burger King franchise could be the best way to launch your business dreams and thrive as a business owner in no time. Given Burger King's extensive resources and market dominance, there's no reason not to look into a franchise opportunity.

Check out Entrepreneur’s other guides and resources for more information about Burger King and other franchise opportunities.

Company Overview

About Burger King

Industry	Food
Related Categories	Hamburgers, Food: Quick Service
Founded	1954
Parent Company	Restaurant Brands Int'l.
Leadership	Chris Elias, Sr. Director, Business Development & Franchising
Corporate Address	5707 Blue Lagoon Dr. Miami, FL 33126
Social	Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram

Business Overview

Franchising Since	1961 (63 years)
# of employees at HQ	387
Where seeking	This company is offering new franchises throughout the US. This company is offering new franchises worldwide.
# of Units	19,384 (as of 2024)

Information for Franchisees

Here's what you need to know if you're interested in opening a Burger King franchise.

Financial Requirements & Ongoing Fees

Here's what you can expect to spend to start the business and what ongoing fees the franchisor charges throughout the life of the business.

Initial Franchise Fee Definition: The initial fee paid to a franchisor to join their system What you need to know: Found in Item 5 of the FDD, this may be a flat fee, or may vary based on territory size, experience, or other factors.The franchise fee is an up-front (one-time) cost that a new franchisee pays to the franchisor. This fee is usually due at the signing of the franchise agreement and covers the right to use the franchisor's trademarks, name, and related business systems.	$50,000
Initial Investment Definition: The total amount necessary to begin operation of the franchise What you need to know: The initial investment includes the franchise fee, along with other startup expenses such as real estate, equipment, supplies, business licenses, and working capital. This is outlined in a chart in Item 7 of the FDD, showing a range of possible costs from low to high.	$2,010,600 - $4,670,900
Net Worth Requirement Definition: The minimum net worth you must have in order to qualify to become a franchisee of this company What you need to know: Net worth is the value of a person's assets minus liabilities. Assets include cash, stocks, retirement accounts, and real estate. Liabilities include items like mortgages, car payments, and credit card debt.	$1,000,000
Cash Requirement Definition: The minimum liquid capital you must have available in order to qualify to become a franchisee of this company.	$500,000
Royalty Fee Definition: A ongoing fee paid to the franchisor on a regular basis. What you need to know: Most franchisors require franchisees to pay an ongoing royalty fee, which is detailed in Item 6 of the FDD. This fee is typically a percentage of weekly or monthly gross sales, but may also be a flat weekly, monthly, or annual fee.	4.5%
Ad Royalty Fee Definition: An going fee paid to the franchisor on a regular basis to support advertising or marketing efforts. What you need to know: This may also be called advertising fee, marketing fee, brand fund fee, and more, but the basic purpose is the same-- to support promotion of the brand systemwide. As with the royalty fee, it is detailed in Item 6 of the FDD, and can be a percentage of weekly or monthly gross sales or a weekly, monthly, or annual fee.	4%
Term of Agreement Definition: The length of time your franchise agreement will last. What you need to know: Franchise terms are typically anywhere from 5 to 20 years in length, but are sometimes instead dependent on factors such as the term of your lease. Once your term is up, you may have the option to renew your agreement, typically for a smaller fee than the original franchise fee.	20 years
Is franchise term renewable?	Yes

Training & Support Offered

Franchisors offer initial training programs and a variety of ongoing support options to help franchisees run their businesses.

On-The-Job Training	Up to 320 hours
Classroom Training	Up to 64 hours
Ongoing Support	Purchasing Co-ops Newsletter Meetings & Conventions Grand Opening Online Support Security & Safety Procedures Field Operations Site Selection Proprietary Software Franchisee Intranet Platform
Marketing Support	Co-op Advertising Ad Templates National Media Regional Advertising Social Media Email Marketing Loyalty Program/App

Operations

Additional details about running this franchise.

Is absentee ownership allowed?	No
Can this franchise be run from home/mobile unit? Definition: The business can be run from your home and/or a vehicle, and it is not necessary to have a retail facility, office space, or warehouse.	No
Can this franchise be run part time? Definition: This business can be run by the owner on a part-time basis (less than 40 hours per week) and/or as a side business; it is not necessary for the business to be open/run full-time.	No
Are exclusive territories available? Definition: An exclusive territory is a fixed area in which you are given the right to operate and in which no other units of the same franchise may be opened. What you need to know: Territory size may be based on factors such as radius, population size, zip codes, and more. Details can be found in Item 12 of the FDD.	No