Blame for AGENTS.md

# FranchiseDepth FDD Database, 2026 edition: guide for AI assistants and analysts

Read this before querying. It says what every table and column means, the units, what NULL means, and how derived figures are computed.

## Ground rules
- Every figure comes from a franchisor's Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) as filed with a US state registry, or is calculated from those figures by the method stated below.
- NULL means not disclosed, not read, or not a single number. Never treat NULL as 0.
- Money is USD unless the column says otherwise. *_pct columns are percentages (6.5 = 6.5%).

- Join every table on brand_slug. brands has one row per brand.

- brands.edition_note is set when the FDD is not the brand's standard unit-franchise offer (master, regional, area representative, joint venture, license, non-traditional). Exclude those rows from unit-franchise comparisons.

- brands.hand_checked = 1 marks brands whose figures a FranchiseDepth audit checked against the FDD page by page.

- brands.older_fdd = 1 marks brands whose latest FDD on file is from 2022 or earlier. Filter on it when you need current filings, and say so when you cite one.

- Item 19 figures are what the franchisor chose to disclose, for the cohort it chose. Always state the cohort (cohort_label) and outlet_count with a figure. Compare brands with comparable_revenue, which applies one fixed rule.

- Figures are from the FDD year in brands.fdd_year. They describe that FDD, not today.

- This is information, not financial or legal advice. Verify any figure against the FDD before relying on it.



## Tables



### brands (25 rows)

One row per franchise brand: identity, the FDD the data comes from, and verification status.



| column | type | meaning |

|---|---|---|

| brand_slug | TEXT | Primary key used by every table. Also the FranchiseDepth page path: franchisedepth.com/franchise/<brand_slug>/ |

| brand_name | TEXT | Brand name as shown on FranchiseDepth. |

| legal_name | TEXT | Franchisor legal entity as filed. |

| industry | TEXT | FranchiseDepth industry code, e.g. food-quick-service, home-services-cleaning. |

| industry_label | TEXT | Readable industry name. |

| sub_category | TEXT | Narrower category where assigned, else NULL. |

| fdd_year | INTEGER | Issuance year of the FDD all of this brand's figures come from (the latest on file). |

| fdd_filing_state | TEXT | State registry the FDD was retrieved from (WI, MN, or other); NASAA EFD where noted. |

| fdd_effective_date | TEXT | FDD issuance/effective date (YYYY-MM-DD) where printed. |

| fdd_source_url | TEXT | Where the FDD can be looked up: the filing's own URL when known, else the state registry or NASAA EFD search page. |

| franchisedepth_url | TEXT | The brand's FranchiseDepth page, which shows the same figures. |

| hand_checked | INTEGER | 1 if a FranchiseDepth audit compared this brand's figures to the FDD page by page, else 0. |

| corrections_logged | INTEGER | Number of logged corrections applied to this brand's data, each recorded with the FDD page it was checked against. |

| older_fdd | INTEGER | 1 when the latest FDD on file is from 2022 or earlier: its figures may be out of date. Filter on it if you need current filings. |

| edition_note | TEXT | Non-NULL when the FDD on file is not the brand's standard unit-franchise offer (master, regional, area-representative, joint-venture, license, non-traditional or conversion program). Exclude these from unit-franchise comparisons. |



### fees (25 rows)

Item 5, 6 and 7 money figures, one row per brand. NULL = not disclosed or not a fixed number (see fee_notes).



| column | type | meaning |

|---|---|---|

| brand_slug | TEXT | Brand key. |

| initial_fee_low_usd | REAL | Item 5 standard initial franchise fee, low end (discounts are not the range; they are in fee_notes). |

| initial_fee_high_usd | REAL | Item 5 standard initial franchise fee, high end. |

| royalty_pct | REAL | Item 6 royalty as % of gross sales; the first/standard tier where tiered. NULL when the royalty is not a single % (see fee_notes). |

| royalty_min_monthly_usd | REAL | Minimum monthly royalty that applies from opening (steady-state amount where it steps up). With royalty_pct NULL, a fixed monthly royalty. |

| marketing_fee_pct | REAL | Brand/marketing fund contribution as % of gross sales. 0 = fund exists or is reserved but not currently charged. |

| marketing_min_monthly_usd | REAL | Minimum or fixed monthly marketing fund amount, where it applies from opening. |

| tech_fee_monthly_usd | REAL | Sum of fixed mandatory monthly technology/software fees paid to the franchisor or required vendors. |

| total_investment_low_usd | REAL | Item 7 total estimated initial investment, low end (new unit). |

| total_investment_high_usd | REAL | Item 7 total estimated initial investment, high end. |

| liquid_capital_usd | REAL | Minimum liquid capital the franchisor requires, where stated. |

| net_worth_usd | REAL | Minimum net worth the franchisor requires, where stated. |



### fee_notes (25 rows)

Plain-text notes on fees that don't fit a single number: tiers, minimum schedules, discounts, fixed program fees.



| column | type | meaning |

|---|---|---|

| brand_slug | TEXT | Brand key. |

| fee_notes | TEXT | Factual notes taken from Items 5-7 of the FDD. |



### item19_figures (388 rows)

Every Item 19 financial performance figure on file: one row per metric x cohort. Long format; filter by metric and cohort.



| column | type | meaning |

|---|---|---|

| brand_slug | TEXT | Brand key. |

| metric | TEXT | Normalized metric: gross_sales, total_revenue, gross_profit, net_profit, ebitda, average_ticket, transactions, labor_pct, occupancy_pct, other. |

| metric_label | TEXT | The metric's name as printed in the FDD. |

| cohort | TEXT | Normalized cohort: all_franchised, all_company_owned, performance_anchored (top/bottom bands, quartiles), open_24_plus_mo, open_12_24mo, open_lt_12mo, other. |

| cohort_label | TEXT | The cohort as printed in the FDD. |

| outlet_count | INTEGER | Outlets (or owners, where cohort_label says per franchisee) in the cohort. |

| period | TEXT | Reporting period as printed. |

| year | INTEGER | Reporting year. |

| unit_period | TEXT | annual, monthly or weekly: the period each value covers. |

| scope | TEXT | franchisee or company-owned. |

| avg_value | REAL | Average (mean). USD unless metric is a percentage (_pct metrics: percent). |

| median_value | REAL | Median. |

| min_value | REAL | Lowest value printed for the cohort. |

| max_value | REAL | Highest value printed for the cohort. |

| fdd_page | INTEGER | FDD page the figure was read from (PDF page), where recorded. |



### comparable_revenue (25 rows)

One comparable revenue figure per brand that has one, picked by a single fixed rule so brands can be ranked.



| column | type | meaning |

|---|---|---|

| brand_slug | TEXT | Brand key. |

| annual_revenue_usd | REAL | Gross sales or total revenue per outlet, annualized; median where printed, else average. |

| basis | TEXT | Which figure was used: median or average, the cohort and outlet count, and any annualization. |

| rule | TEXT | The selection rule (all-franchised cohort of 5+ outlets; never company-owned, top-performer or ramp-up cohorts). |



### outlets_by_year (219 rows)

Item 20 Table 1: outlets at year end by outlet type, as printed.



| column | type | meaning |

|---|---|---|

| brand_slug | TEXT | Brand key. |

| year | INTEGER | Year (FDD fiscal year). |

| outlet_type | TEXT | franchised, company-owned or total. |

| outlets_start | INTEGER | Outlets at start of year. |

| outlets_end | INTEGER | Outlets at end of year. |



### turnover_by_year (75 rows)

Item 20 Table 3 (and Table 2 transfers): what happened to franchised outlets each year, as printed.



| column | type | meaning |

|---|---|---|

| brand_slug | TEXT | Brand key. |

| year | INTEGER | Year. |

| outlets_start | INTEGER | Franchised outlets at start of year. |

| opened | INTEGER | Outlets opened. |

| terminated | INTEGER | Terminations. |

| non_renewed | INTEGER | Non-renewals. |

| reacquired | INTEGER | Reacquired by the franchisor. |

| ceased_other | INTEGER | Ceased operations for other reasons. |

| transferred | INTEGER | Transfers to new owners (Table 2); NULL where not read. |

| outlets_end | INTEGER | Franchised outlets at end of year. |



### outlets_by_state (2,366 rows)

Item 20 outlets at year end by US state (and territory codes where printed).



| column | type | meaning |

|---|---|---|

| brand_slug | TEXT | Brand key. |

| year | INTEGER | Year. |

| state | TEXT | Two-letter state or territory code. |

| outlets_end | INTEGER | Outlets in that state at year end (all outlet types combined unless the FDD splits them). |



### agreement_terms (11 rows)

Item 17 franchise agreement terms, where extracted with high confidence. Partial coverage.



| column | type | meaning |

|---|---|---|

| brand_slug | TEXT | Brand key. |

| term_years | REAL | Initial term, years. |

| renewal_count | INTEGER | Number of renewal terms. |

| renewal_term_years | REAL | Length of each renewal term, years. |

| renewal_fee | TEXT | Renewal fee as stated. |

| transfer_fee | TEXT | Transfer fee as stated. |

| cure_period_days | INTEGER | Cure period for defaults, days, where stated. |

| noncompete_post_term_years | REAL | Post-term non-compete, years. |

| noncompete_post_term_radius_miles | REAL | Post-term non-compete radius, miles. |

| dispute_resolution | TEXT | Dispute resolution method (arbitration, mediation, litigation). |

| governing_law_state | TEXT | State whose law governs the agreement. |

| fdd_page | INTEGER | FDD page of Item 17, where recorded. |



### brand_metrics (25 rows)

Figures FranchiseDepth calculates from the tables above, one row per brand. Methods in AGENTS.md.



| column | type | meaning |

|---|---|---|

| brand_slug | TEXT | Brand key. |

| total_outlets | INTEGER | Total outlets, latest year: the FDD's Table 1 total row, or franchised + company-owned for that year when the FDD prints no total row. |

| franchised_outlets | INTEGER | Franchised outlets, latest year. |

| company_outlets | INTEGER | Company-owned outlets, latest year. |

| states_count | INTEGER | US states with at least one outlet, latest year. |

| closure_rate_pct | REAL | Closure rate, % (method in AGENTS.md). NULL only when the FDD gives nothing to compute it from; closure_note says why. |

| closures | INTEGER | Terminations + non-renewals + ceased operations counted in closure_rate_pct. |

| closures_not_itemized | INTEGER | Part of closures filled from the table's start, opened and end counts because a cause cell was blank. |

| reacquired | INTEGER | Outlets the franchisor reacquired in the same years. Shown beside the rate, not counted in it (the location stays open). |

| franchised_outlet_years | INTEGER | Franchised outlets at the start of each year, summed over the years used (the denominator). |

| closure_year_from | INTEGER | First year used. |

| closure_year_to | INTEGER | Last year used. |

| closure_ranking_eligible | INTEGER | 1 when the base averages at least 20 franchised outlets a year (FranchiseDepth's ranking floor). |

| closure_note | TEXT | Why closure_rate_pct is NULL, when it is. |

| growth_pct | REAL | Outlet growth, % (method in AGENTS.md). |

| growth_outlets_from | INTEGER | Total outlets at the end of growth_year_from. |

| growth_outlets_to | INTEGER | Total outlets at the end of growth_year_to. |

| growth_year_from | INTEGER | First year-end of the growth window. |

| growth_year_to | INTEGER | Last year-end of the growth window. |

| growth_ranking_eligible | INTEGER | 1 when the window is three year-ends and starts at 20+ outlets. |

| all_in_fee_pct | REAL | Royalty % + marketing-fund % (method in AGENTS.md). |

| all_in_basis | TEXT | 'royalty + marketing fund', or 'royalty only (no marketing-fund % listed)'. |



### alternatives (250 rows)

Up to 10 similar brands per brand, the list FranchiseDepth's alternatives pages use: same industry, same sub-category first, then closest Item 7 investment low end, ties to the larger system. Complete database only.



| column | type | meaning |

|---|---|---|

| brand_slug | TEXT | The brand the alternatives are for. |

| rank | INTEGER | 1 = most similar. |

| alternative_slug | TEXT | The alternative brand (join to brands.brand_slug). |

| alternative_name | TEXT | The alternative's brand name, so the table reads on its own. |

| same_sub_category | INTEGER | 1 when the alternative shares the brand's sub-category. |

| alternative_investment_low_usd | REAL | The alternative's Item 7 total investment, low end. |

| investment_gap_usd | REAL | Absolute difference between the two brands' Item 7 low ends; NULL when either is not disclosed. |

| alternative_total_outlets | INTEGER | The alternative's total outlets, latest year. |



### peer_ranks (171 rows)

Where each brand ranks against its peers on 8 metrics: the table on every FranchiseDepth brand page. Peers = the brand's sub-category when at least 8 peers disclose the metric, else its industry. Edition-only and cut brands are not peers. Complete database only.



| column | type | meaning |

|---|---|---|

| brand_slug | TEXT | Brand key. |

| metric | TEXT | inv_low (Item 7 low end, USD), fee_low (Item 5 initial fee low end, USD), royalty (%), allin (royalty + marketing fund, %), liquid (liquid capital required, USD), outlets (total), growth (outlet growth %, brand_metrics method), closure (closure rate %, brand_metrics method). |

| value | REAL | The brand's value on the metric. |

| rank | INTEGER | 1 = best end of the peer group: lowest for cost, fee and closure metrics, highest for outlets and growth (see rank_order). |

| peers | INTEGER | Brands in the peer group with the metric disclosed, the brand included. |

| peer_median | REAL | Median of the peer group. |

| rank_order | TEXT | 'lowest first' or 'highest first'. |

| peer_group | TEXT | The sub-category name, or the industry when the sub-category has fewer than 8 peers. |



### value_ratios (25 rows)

Revenue relative to cost, the figures behind FranchiseDepth's revenue-to-investment and revenue-per-royalty-point rankings. Revenue is comparable_revenue (not profit). Complete database only.



| column | type | meaning |

|---|---|---|

| brand_slug | TEXT | Brand key. |

| comparable_annual_revenue_usd | REAL | comparable_revenue.annual_revenue_usd. |

| investment_midpoint_usd | REAL | Midpoint of the Item 7 total investment range ((low + high) / 2). |

| revenue_to_investment | REAL | comparable_annual_revenue_usd / investment_midpoint_usd. NULL when the Item 7 low end is under $50,000 (home-based and agent models). |

| royalty_pct | REAL | fees.royalty_pct. |

| revenue_per_royalty_point_usd | REAL | comparable_annual_revenue_usd / royalty_pct: revenue per percentage point of royalty. NULL without both figures or with a 0% royalty. |



### closure_by_year (75 rows)

Closure rate per brand per year, on the same method as brand_metrics.closure_rate_pct.



| column | type | meaning |

|---|---|---|

| brand_slug | TEXT | Brand key. |

| year | INTEGER | Fiscal year. |

| franchised_outlets_start | INTEGER | Franchised outlets at the start of the year (summed over programs or state rows where the FDD prints several). |

| closures | INTEGER | Terminations + non-renewals + ceased operations. |

| closures_not_itemized | INTEGER | Part of closures filled from the year's start, opened and end counts. |

| closure_rate_pct | REAL | closures / franchised_outlets_start x 100. |



## Views

- v_brand_summary: one row per brand with fees, outlets, closure rate, outlet growth, all-in fee and comparable revenue.

- v_closure_history: closure rate per brand per year, with the printed Table 3 columns beside it.

- v_state_footprint: outlets by state, latest year per brand.

- v_fee_burden: all-in fee (royalty + marketing % of sales) per brand.



## Methods (the same formulas every FranchiseDepth page uses)

- Closure rate = franchised terminations, non-renewals and ceased operations ÷ franchised outlets at the start of each year, over the latest three years of Item 20. Where a cause is blank, it is filled from the table's start, opened and end counts. Transfers and reacquisitions are not closures. closure_rate_pct is reported whenever it can be calculated; closure_ranking_eligible marks an average of 20+ franchised outlets a year.

- Outlet growth = change in total outlets (franchised + company-owned) between the first and last year-end of the latest three years of Item 20. growth_ranking_eligible marks a full three-year window starting at 20+ outlets.

- All-in fee = royalty % + marketing-fund % of gross sales (Item 6). A blank marketing-fund % counts as 0 and is labelled royalty only.

- alternatives, peer_ranks and value_ratios (complete database) use the same rules as FranchiseDepth's alternatives pages, brand-page peer tables and revenue rankings; the table descriptions give each rule.

- comparable_revenue: gross sales or total revenue for an all-franchised cohort of 5+ outlets; median where printed, else average; weekly or monthly figures annualized; company-owned, top-performer, ramp-up and per-transaction figures excluded.

- outlets_by_year and turnover_by_year are the FDD's own Item 20 tables as printed. Where an FDD's tables disagree with each other, both are kept as printed.



## The database documents itself

- SELECT * FROM table_docs; -- every table with its description and row count

- SELECT * FROM column_docs WHERE table_name = 'fees'; -- every column with its meaning

- SELECT * FROM meta; -- edition, build date, licence