Food & Beverage

Church's Texas Chicken Franchise

A fried-chicken quick-service chain built around a single 1952 San Antonio restaurant, franchising since 1964 under its current name Church's Texas Chicken (also operating as Church's Chicken in some markets). Offered today in three formats -- a standard freestanding "Blaze Freestanding Building" prototype, a converted existing building, or an End Cap format -- with the standard freestanding format used here as the single-unit figure. Franchised unit count declined in 2023 and 2024 before a small rebound in 2025, while company-owned locations grew slightly every year.

Opening more locationsFounded 1952HQ: Atlanta, GA

Every franchisor has to file a document called an FDD before they can legally sell you a franchise. Buried in it are the two things a sales rep won't volunteer: what you'll actually spend to open, and whether existing locations are opening or closing. That's what's below, pulled straight from Church's Texas Chicken's own filing.

What it costs to open

From the filing's investment breakdown -- not a "starting at" number a sales rep quoted you.

Franchise fee

$20,000

Total to open

$1,202,400–$1,886,300

Ongoing royalty

5% of gross sales

What you'd actually spend, over time

The upfront cost is only part of it. Plug in what you expect a location to bring in, and see the real total once royalties over a few years are added on top.

Your estimated annual revenue

Defaulted to a rough food & beverage industry average, not a figure from Church's Texas Chicken's own FDD -- change it to your own estimate.

Years of ownership

Total cost of ownership over 5 years

$1,452,400 – $2,136,300

Startup investment

$1,202,400–$1,886,300

Royalty per year (5%)

$50,000

Total royalty, 5yr

$250,000

When would you break even?

Revenue alone doesn't tell you this -- it depends on what's left after rent, labor, and everything else. Church's Texas Chicken's FDD doesn't disclose a reliable profit figure (most franchisors don't), so this starts from a typical food & beverage profit margin (~8%) and applies it to the revenue you entered above -- adjust the percentage to your own realistic estimate.

Estimated profit margin (% of revenue)

%≈ $80,000/year

Defaulted to a general food & beverage industry benchmark, not a figure from Church's Texas Chicken's own filing -- this is a starting point to adjust, not a promise about what franchisees actually make.

At that profit, you'd break even in about

15.0–23.6 years

Weigh that payback period against what you already know: Church's Texas Chicken is opening more locations. A long payback period on a shrinking brand is a very different bet than the same payback period on a growing one.

Is Church's Texas Chicken actually growing?

Franchisors have to report, every year, how many locations opened, closed, or changed hands. Most franchise sites never show you this. Here it is:

Locations opened vs. closed, by year

Growing

From Item 20 of Church's Texas Chicken's FDD, the section franchisors use to disclose real openings and closings.

-23

-30

202320242025

Year	Franchised units, start	Franchised units, end	Net change
2023	767	744	-23
2024	744	714	-30
2025	714	722	+8

Most recent year (2025): gained 8 franchised units, ending the year at 722 total.

What you're actually signing up for

The cost and growth numbers above are only part of the picture. These three FDD items are the ones a prospective franchisee tends to weigh most heavily once they're past the sticker price.

Training & ongoing support (Item 11)

Initial training centers on the Manager-in-Training Program for the franchisee and up to 4 designated management employees, plus the Pathways to Excellence Training Program materials Cajun lends out for ongoing use. Cajun charges no fee for the first two trainees but bills for additional attendees, and further or refresher training is billed at Cajun's then-current training-program cost.

Territory protection (Item 12)

Under the Development Agreement you get a defined Development Area, but not an exclusive one -- you may still face competition from other Church's franchisees or company outlets. Within that Development Area, Cajun agrees not to develop or license other Church's restaurants for the length of the Development Term, but that protection expires with the Development Term itself, which carries no right to renew or extend.

Renewal & termination terms (Item 17)

20-year franchise term with one 10-year renewal option, contingent on notice, good standing, a new Franchise Agreement (which may carry higher royalty or advertising rates), a general release, refurbishment, and a renewal fee. Confidentiality and non-compete covenants survive termination, and disputes are resolved through the Franchise Agreement's Governing Law, Forum and Limitations provisions, with arbitration or mediation as the stated path.

How Church's Texas Chicken compares to other Food & Beverage franchises

Across the 52 food & beverage franchises we've hand-verified so far, the typical range to open runs $860,899–$2,165,095, with royalties averaging around 5.6% of gross sales (based on the 48 of them that charge a flat %-of-revenue royalty).

Dave's Hot Chicken

$617,800–$2,170,000 · 6% royalty

Slim Chickens

$1,188,900–$4,944,000 · 5% royalty

Ziggi's Coffee

$315,830–$2,093,361 · 6% royalty

Crumbl

$848,566–$1,472,533 · 8% royalty

Little Caesars

$376,500–$1,769,200 · 6% royalty

Jamba

$480,850–$941,300 · 6% royalty

Tropical Smoothie Cafe

$300,000–$720,500 · 6% royalty

Playa Bowls

$188,675–$636,458 · 6% royalty

Kona Ice

$114,730–$228,601 · non-%-of-revenue royalty

Firehouse Subs

$166,671–$950,351 · 6% royalty

Wingstop

$310,400–$1,048,500 · 6% royalty

Jersey Mike's Subs

$436,176–$1,162,228 · 6.5% royalty

Dunkin'

$532,400–$1,832,500 · 5.9% royalty

Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen

$1,222,045–$3,923,245 · 5% royalty

Del Taco

$1,461,200–$3,313,500 · 5% royalty

Blaze Pizza

$757,000–$1,297,100 · 5% royalty

MOD Pizza

$924,732–$1,220,633 · 5% royalty

Twin Peaks

$2,959,000–$5,734,000 · 5% royalty

McDonald's

$1,470,500–$2,642,000 · 5% royalty

Subway

$263,000–$630,000 · 8% royalty

Taco Bell

$1,859,750–$4,312,200 · 5.5% royalty

Domino's Pizza

$231,450–$743,500 · 5.5% royalty

KFC

$2,107,575–$4,155,000 · 5% royalty

Burger King

$2,039,200–$4,730,600 · 4.5% royalty

Chick-fil-A

$317,521–$3,463,155 · non-%-of-revenue royalty

Penn Station

$507,500–$858,750 · non-%-of-revenue royalty

Nekter Juice Bar

$243,155–$647,160 · 6% royalty

Jimmy John's

$366,200–$733,500 · 6% royalty

Sonic Drive-In

$1,485,200–$2,522,900 · 5% royalty

Papa John's

$281,485–$890,267 · 5% royalty

Hungry Howie's Pizza & Subs

$238,982–$697,322 · 5.5% royalty

Jack in the Box

$1,909,500–$4,041,500 · 5% royalty

Wendy's

$1,523,957–$2,992,000 · 4% royalty

Marco's Pizza

$286,477–$811,186 · 5.5% royalty

Pizza Hut

$846,000–$2,130,000 · 6% royalty

Chicken Salad Chick

$777,000–$998,500 · 5% royalty

Teriyaki Madness

$392,667–$1,121,405 · 6% royalty

Cold Stone Creamery

$390,675–$680,775 · 6% royalty

Scooter's Coffee

$1,163,650–$1,345,750 · 6% royalty

Nothing Bundt Cakes

$475,200–$994,100 · 6% royalty

Five Guys

$977,850–$1,375,750 · 6% royalty

Tim Hortons

$427,500–$3,312,500 · 6% royalty

7 Brew

$940,500–$2,283,500 · non-%-of-revenue royalty

Swig

$608,400–$1,718,000 · 7% royalty

Culver's

$3,406,350–$10,294,100 · 4% royalty

Dairy Queen

$1,516,200–$2,543,050 · 4% royalty

Paris Baguette

$727,515–$1,860,550 · 5% royalty

Jollibee

$1,614,568–$4,589,057 · 5% royalty

Smoothie King

$329,850–$683,215 · 6% royalty

IHOP

$380,550–$3,735,850 · 4.5% royalty

Cinnabon

$256,950–$703,500 · 6% royalty

Church's Texas Chicken Franchise FAQ

How much does it cost to franchise a Church's Texas Chicken?

Based on Church's Texas Chicken's own FDD, total initial investment to open one location runs $1,202,400–$1,886,300, including the $20,000 franchise fee. California DFPI Registration Application (Initial/Late Renewal), App ID APP00005612, filed 5/6/2026, effective 9/10/2026. FDD issued May 1, 2026 ("Church's Texas Chicken FDD"). Item 5: $20,000 Initial Franchise Fee plus a $10,000 Development Fee per Restaurant, both due at signing. Item 6: 5% royalty; Advertising Fund Contribution 5% of gross sales (at least $25,000/year), plus up to an additional 1% for a Regional Co-Op if one forms. Item 7: three formats disclosed -- this entry uses the standard freestanding "Blaze Freestanding Building" prototype total, $1,202,400-$1,886,300, excluding real estate (the name is Church's own building-prototype designation, unrelated to the Blaze Pizza brand); a Conversion of Existing Freestanding Building totals $609,725-$1,296,300 and an End Cap Restaurant totals $654,366-$1,273,300. Item 20 Table 1 franchised outlets.

What is the Church's Texas Chicken franchise fee and royalty rate?

The initial franchise fee is $20,000, and the ongoing royalty is 5% of gross sales, per the filing on record.

Is the Church's Texas Chicken franchise growing or shrinking?

Growing. Across 2023–2025, Church's Texas Chicken added a net -45 franchised locations, per its own annual FDD filings.

Keep going

Church's Texas Chicken and Slim Chickens are both food & beverage franchises; Slim Chickens's total investment starts about $13,500 lower than Church's Texas Chicken's. Slim Chickens Franchise
Church's Texas Chicken and Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen are both food & beverage franchises; Church's Texas Chicken's total investment starts about $19,645 lower than Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen's. Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen Franchise

Where this came from: California DFPI Registration Application (Initial/Late Renewal), App ID APP00005612, filed 5/6/2026, effective 9/10/2026. FDD issued May 1, 2026 ("Church's Texas Chicken FDD"). Item 5: $20,000 Initial Franchise Fee plus a $10,000 Development Fee per Restaurant, both due at signing. Item 6: 5% royalty; Advertising Fund Contribution 5% of gross sales (at least $25,000/year), plus up to an additional 1% for a Regional Co-Op if one forms. Item 7: three formats disclosed -- this entry uses the standard freestanding "Blaze Freestanding Building" prototype total, $1,202,400-$1,886,300, excluding real estate (the name is Church's own building-prototype designation, unrelated to the Blaze Pizza brand); a Conversion of Existing Freestanding Building totals $609,725-$1,296,300 and an End Cap Restaurant totals $654,366-$1,273,300. Item 20 Table 1 franchised outlets. You can pull the same filing yourself from the California DFPI's public franchise search. Filed 2026-05-06. None of this is investment advice -- get the franchisor's current FDD and talk to a real attorney or accountant before you sign anything.

If you see a different unit count elsewhere: franchisors only have to refile their FDD annually, so the numbers here can run 6–18 months behind a franchisor's own real-time marketing claims -- which often aren't independently verified, and sometimes count signed-but-not-yet-open locations. A gap isn't necessarily an error on either side; it's two different snapshots in time from two different sources.