Church's Chicken Franchise Cost 2026: Fees, Investment

Church’s Texas Chicken’s FDD, issued May 1, 2026 and amended August 31, 2026, puts a new restaurant at $659,725 to $1,970,300, depending on format, excluding real estate, with a $20,000 initial franchise fee, a $10,000 development fee per restaurant, a 5% royalty on Gross Sales and a 5% advertising fee on Gross Sales. Its franchise site, checked October 14, 2026, says most new territories require a 3+ unit commitment.

Church’s franchise cost from its FDD

The Cajun Global LLC FDD was issued May 1, 2026, amended July 27, 2026, and further amended August 31, 2026. Item 1 identifies Cajun Global LLC as the franchisor of Church’s Chicken and Church’s Texas Chicken restaurants.

FDD disclosure	Amount or requirement
Item 7: Blaze Freestanding Building	$1,252,400 to $1,970,300, excluding real estate
Item 7: Conversion of Existing Freestanding Building	$659,725 to $1,380,300, excluding real estate
Item 7: End Cap Restaurant	$704,366 to $1,357,300, excluding real estate
Cover: amounts paid to Cajun, included in each estimate	$45,500 to $55,000, including $15,500 to $25,000 in Grand Opening Marketing Funds, the $20,000 franchise fee and one $10,000 development fee
Item 5: initial franchise fee	$20,000 per restaurant, due when its franchise agreement is signed
Item 5: development fee	$10,000 multiplied by all restaurants committed under the development agreement, due at signing; a development agreement is required regardless of unit count
Item 6: royalty	5% of Gross Sales, due within five business days after each fiscal week
Item 6: advertising fund	5% of Gross Sales and at least $25,000 per year; Item 6 also lists up to 1% of Gross Sales if a regional co-op is formed, plus the co-op contribution; same due date as royalty
Item 12: development territory and schedule	One or more restaurants in an agreed development area; no minimum area and no exclusive territory. The agreement sets the development schedule and expires when the last restaurant is due to open, with no right to renew or extend.
Item 17: franchise term and renewal	20 years from opening; one 10-year renewal, subject to contractual conditions
Item 20: fiscal year-end 2025 US outlets	722 franchised and 163 company-owned, totaling 885
Applicant net worth and liquid-capital minimums	No fixed applicant dollar minimum found in the FDD text; the home page states $500,000 net worth and $250,000 liquid capital, checked October 14, 2026.

Here, Conversion means a conversion of an existing freestanding building, not a brand conversion. The ranges describe one restaurant and do not include real estate costs.

Item 5’s Diamond Incentive Program changes the standard fees for qualifying developers. It requires a development agreement for three or more restaurants signed by December 31, 2027, the program addendum signed simultaneously, and compliance with the agreements, opening deadlines, approved location and design requirements.

Eligible restaurant	Development fee	Initial franchise fee	Royalty, years 1 / 2 / 3 / 4+	Advertising, years 1 / 2 / 3 / 4+	Opening deadline after development agreement signing
First	$10,000	$0	2% / 3% / 4% / 5%	3% / 4% / 4% / 5%	12 months
Second	$10,000	$0	2% / 3% / 4% / 5%	3% / 4% / 4% / 5%	24 months
Third	$10,000	$0	2% / 3% / 4% / 5%	3% / 4% / 4% / 5%	36 months

These percentages use Gross Sales. The table also offers conditional cash back for qualifying openings before December 31, 2028: $50,000 for a restaurant within or attached to a convenience store, or $150,000 for a ground-up or conversion Blaze-image restaurant in a freestanding or endcap location. Payment is within 30 days of opening if eligible. Royalty changes start in the week after the effective-date anniversary in years 2, 3 and 4; advertising changes start in the week after that anniversary in years 2 and 4. The program cannot be combined with other incentives; these benefits are not automatic deductions from every applicant’s investment budget.

Royalty and advertising fees

Item 6 defines Gross Sales to include “all revenue from the sale of all services and products and all other income of every kind and nature” related to the restaurant. It includes redeemed gift cards, catering and delivery, including payments through third-party delivery providers. It excludes qualifying customer refunds, used-equipment sales outside the ordinary course of business, and qualifying sales taxes collected and remitted to the government.

The standard 5% royalty and 5% advertising contribution therefore apply before food cost, labor, rent or debt service. Their combined percentage is 10% of Gross Sales, subject to the advertising minimum, co-op provisions and any applicable incentive. This is not the full ongoing fee list. The royalty fees explainer and Item 6 guide explain the calculation basis and other recurring charges.

What the franchise site says (October 14, 2026)

The home page and investment page, checked October 14, 2026, match the FDD’s standard franchise fee, development fee and investment range. The cost and requirements articles below were checked October 1, 2026. Their differing figures do not replace the FDD, which governs this cost comparison.

Field	Home page	Investment page	Other site articles, checked October 1, 2026	FDD (May 1, 2026, as amended)
Franchise fee	$20,000 plus $10,000 development fee	$20,000 plus $10,000 development fee	Cost article: $15,000 plus $10,000 development fee	$20,000 plus $10,000 development fee per restaurant, before conditional incentives
Total investment	$659,725 to $1,970,300	$659,725 to $1,970,300, excluding real estate	Cost article: $648,886 to $1,896,300	$659,725 to $1,970,300 across three formats, excluding real estate
Minimum liquid capital	$250,000	$250,000 for one unit, checked October 1, 2026	Requirements article: $5 million in capital, not identified as a liquid-capital minimum	No fixed applicant liquid-capital minimum found in the text
Minimum net worth	$500,000	$500,000 for one unit, checked October 1, 2026	Not stated in the cited requirements-article figures	No fixed applicant net-worth minimum found in the text
Development commitment	Capital to open three locations over three years	At least three restaurants in three years, checked October 1, 2026	Requirements article: five restaurants within five years	One or more under an agreed schedule; Diamond requires three or more and has 12-, 24- and 36-month opening deadlines

The requirements article’s $5 million and five-in-five-years statements differ from the FDD’s agreement-specific development terms and the site’s current three-unit messaging. The signed agreements govern the franchise relationship.

For another chicken-brand budget, Zaxby’s franchise cost breakdown lists $1,460,000 to $3,810,500 to open per its April 24, 2026 FDD.

For peer cost breakdowns, see Bojangles, Wingstop, Wing Snob and the chicken franchise comparison.

Single unit or three? The site now says three

The multi-unit page, checked October 14, 2026, says most new franchise territories require a 3+ unit commitment. The home page, checked the same day, describes candidates with the capital to open three locations over three years. The FAQ, checked October 1, 2026, says some markets require at least three locations within three years. The requirements article, checked October 1, 2026, instead describes $5 million in capital and five restaurants within five years.

The FDD permits a development agreement for one or more restaurants; it does not promise single-unit availability in every market. Item 12 makes the development area and schedule agreement-specific. Item 5’s Diamond program separately requires three or more restaurants. Budget for the full agreed development schedule, including the $10,000 development fee for every committed restaurant at signing, rather than treating one restaurant’s Item 7 estimate as the entire commitment.

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Territory and franchise term

The available-markets page, checked October 1, 2026, lists:

• Texas, New Mexico and Louisiana: limited availability per the available-markets page, checked October 1, 2026.
• Oklahoma: territories available.
• Hawaii, Montana and 13 other states: future growth, described as not currently available for new development, with a multi-unit development agreement required once a market opens.

State-level availability does not establish whether a particular site is available. Item 12 describes a protected area typically, but not necessarily, equal to the lesser of a one-mile radius or an area encompassing 50,000 people. Existing restaurants and alternative venues are excluded, and the FDD expressly says the territory is not exclusive.

Item 20 reports 722 franchised and 163 company-owned US restaurants at fiscal year-end 2025, a total of 885; Item 1 dates that snapshot December 28, 2025. Item 17 sets a 20-year franchise term from opening and one 10-year renewal, subject to conditions including notice, compliance, a new agreement that may change fees, continued possession of the location, refurbishment, a release and a renewal fee.

SBA Franchise Directory: Church’s Texas Chicken appears in the SBA’s Franchise Directory file effective October 9, 2026 (SBA Franchise Identifier Code S8513; franchisor certification marked received). A listing is what a lender checks for brand eligibility; it is not an endorsement, and your own eligibility as a borrower is assessed separately. See how to check the SBA Franchise Directory. The file notes a sublease condition when real estate secures the loan.

Questions to ask Church’s Texas Chicken before you sign

• Which Item 7 format applies to the proposed site, and what real estate costs must be budgeted separately?
• What restaurant count and opening deadlines will the development agreement require in this market?
• Will this development qualify for Diamond incentives, and which conditions and deadlines will appear in the signed addendum?
• How will the advertising minimum and any regional co-op contributions apply to this restaurant?
• What existing restaurants, alternative venues and reserved distribution rights affect the proposed protected area?
• What refurbishment, renewal fee and new-agreement terms would apply to the conditional 10-year renewal?
• Will a franchise attorney and an accountant review the full FDD and proposed agreements before signing?