Subway franchise
A franchisee operates a Subway restaurant from a single approved location, preparing and selling foot-long and six-inch sandwiches, salads, wraps, breakfast items and other food for retail sale.
Manager-run permitted Disclosed
- Source
- 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document — Doctor's Associates LLC (Subway)
- Document
- FDD 2026, issued 2026-04-30
- Item
- Item 15 — Item 15
- Page
- PDF p. 83
- Obtained
- Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions — Franchise Registration Search, file 641453
Your restaurant shall at all times be under your direct, on-premises supervision or that of a trained and competent employee acting as full-time manager.
The restaurant must be under the franchisee's direct on-premises supervision or that of a trained, competent full-time manager. Where the franchisee owns more than one restaurant or does not work full time in the business, the franchisor may require one or more trained Designated Managers. A Designated Manager need not hold equity, and the franchisor may deal with that manager on day-to-day operations. The FDD adds that it strongly recommends the owner personally devote substantial time to the business.
What stands out
- Standard initial franchise fee $15,000; total estimated initial investment for a new traditional restaurant $263,000 to $630,000, or $227,000 to $458,000 for a non-traditional location (Item 7).
- Continuing fees are 8% of gross sales royalty plus 4.5% advertising, drafted weekly, on top of a $75 monthly technology fee, about $57 a month for POS hardware and a required 1.9% Sub Club loyalty fee.
- No Item 19 financial performance representation: the FDD discloses no sales, cost or profit figures for Subway restaurants.
5 more observations
- Franchised outlets fell from 20,576 to 18,773 over 2023 to 2025, a net loss of 1,803, with the annual decline widening each year; there were no company-owned outlets at any year end.
- About 56% of the 499 outlets reported as opened in 2025 were reopenings of temporarily closed locations, and 792 locations were temporarily closed at December 31, 2025.
- No exclusive territory is granted, and the franchisor reserves unlimited rights to compete and to license others nearby (Item 12).
- Twenty-year term with one 20-year renewal; disputes are arbitrated in Connecticut under Florida law, and principal owners must sign a personal guaranty.
- Required purchases are estimated at 29.5% to 37.5% of annual operating costs; supplier contributions and discounts tied to them were about 14.75% of the franchisor's 2025 revenues.
Things to verify
- With no Item 19, ask the franchisor for the actual sales records of the specific restaurant under consideration and verify them against POS reports.
- Ask why net franchised outlets have fallen in each of the last three years and what the closure rate looks like in the specific state or market being considered, using the state-level rows of Item 20 Table No. 3.
- Ask how many of the 792 temporarily closed locations at December 31, 2025 are still counted as open outlets, and how temporary closures are treated in the counts.
5 more questions
- Ask what the required Fresh Forward 2.0 remodel costs and on what timetable existing and newly transferred restaurants must complete it.
- Confirm total weekly deductions from the bank draft, since royalty, advertising, loyalty, technology, payment and lease charges are collected together.
- If the site will be subleased from a franchisor affiliate, ask whether the sublease rent exceeds the master lease rent and what happens to the franchise if the sublease alone is terminated.
- Ask for the current list of reductions and rebates on the initial franchise fee, royalty and advertising rates, and get any multi-unit development incentives in writing, since the FDD says they may be modified or discontinued at any time.
- Review Exhibit L in full and ask about any pending matters involving U.S. franchisees, and about the confidentiality clauses Item 20 says restrict some franchisees from speaking openly.
Economics: No calculator is offered because no annual average unit sales disclosed in Item 19. Model availability
Evidence confidence: High. This describes source support, not investment quality. AI-extracted and machine-verified where stated; no human line-by-line review. Source and review record.
Read the full research overview
A Subway franchisee operates a quick-service sandwich restaurant from one approved site, selling foot-long and six-inch sandwiches, salads, wraps and a required breakfast menu. The franchisor is Doctor's Associates LLC of Shelton, Connecticut, ultimately owned by funds managed by Roark Capital Management; it has franchised Subway restaurants since 1974 and, in this document, offers only franchises for the United States and its territories.
The standard initial franchise fee is $15,000, with a $7,500 reduced fee for qualifying veterans, existing franchisees and certain non-traditional operators. Item 7 estimates the total investment for one new traditional restaurant at $263,000 to $630,000, assuming a leased or subleased site and three months of additional funds; a non-traditional location is estimated at $227,000 to $458,000. Ongoing fees are 8% of gross sales in royalty and 4.5% in advertising, both drafted weekly, plus a $75 monthly restaurant technology fee, roughly $57 a month for POS hardware, and a required 1.9% loyalty programme fee on Sub Club transactions. Required purchases are estimated at 29.5% to 37.5% of annual operating costs, and the franchisor reported that supplier contributions and discounts tied to those purchases came to about 14.75% of its 2025 revenues.
There is no Item 19. The document contains no average or median unit sales, no cost or margin data, and no distribution of outlet performance; the franchisor says it will only share the actual records of a specific restaurant a buyer is purchasing. Item 20 also notes confidentiality clauses signed with some current and former franchisees that restrict what they can say about their experience, so a buyer has fewer independent reference points than usual.
Item 20 shows a contracting system. Franchised outlets fell from 20,576 at the start of 2023 to 18,773 at the end of 2025, a net loss of 1,803, with annual net change of -443, -631 and -729. Openings held roughly steady at 455, 453 and 499, but about 56% of the 2025 figure were reopenings of temporarily closed sites, and closures recorded as ceased operations for other reasons rose from 733 to 1,026. Franchisor terminations were negligible. Transfers between franchisees ran at 1,307 in 2025, about 7% of the system. There were no company-owned restaurants at any year end; the franchisor reacquired 148 outlets in 2025 and resold all of them. On the legal side, Item 3 discloses 47 actions plus 10 franchisor-initiated actions in Exhibit L, and Item 4 discloses a Chapter 11 filing by a former employer of the current chief financial officer. Franchisees receive no territorial protection, must arbitrate in Connecticut under Florida law, and their principal owners must personally guarantee the agreement.
View ratings and their supporting evidence
Transparent ratings
How these are computedEach dimension is scored 1–5 from published formulas. Missing data yields “Not enough evidence to rate”, never a low score. There is no composite score by design.
How the system has performed, computed from the disclosed Items 7, 19 and 20. Figures a documented material source inconsistency puts in doubt are excluded, and the dimension shows “Not rated”.
Inputs
- Franchised outlets 20576 → 18773 (Item 20, Table 3)
- Thresholds: ≥15% → 5; 5–15% → 4; 0–5% → 3; −5–0% → 2; below −5% → 1
Inputs
- Attrition = (terminations + non-renewals + reacquisitions + ceased-other) ÷ start-of-year franchised units, averaged over 3 fiscal years
- Thresholds: <2% → 5; 2–4% → 4; 4–6% → 3; 6–10% → 2; >10% → 1
Inputs
- No annual average unit sales disclosed
How much this brand’s FDD discloses, and how well-supported our data on it is. This measures transparency, not business performance — a strong business that discloses little scores low here and stays unrated above.
Inputs
- Item 19 not present
Details
- Missing: Item 19 present, Annual AUV
- Franchisor Track Record
- Franchising 52 years (since 1974) · 18,773 outlets · Item 3: 57 matter(s) disclosed · Item 4: bankruptcy disclosure present
- Multi-Unit Scalability
- Qualified franchisees may operate multiple restaurants under a Development Agreement together with one or more Franchise Agreements or a Multi-Unit Franchise… · Manager-run permitted
- Operational Intensity
- Manager-run permitted
Initial investment
FDD Items 5 and 7Format shown: Traditional single new Subway restaurant on a leased or subleased site
$263,000–$630,000 total initial investment. Excludes real estate purchase. Includes 3 months of additional funds.
View full investment breakdown — Items 5 & 7
| Initial franchise fee (the named Item 5 fee only) | $15,000 Disclosed
Disclosed as 'Standard Franchise Fee'. Reduced $7,500 fees apply to qualifying existing/affiliate franchisees, honorably discharged U.S. veterans, and qualified non-traditional locations - discounts, not the standard new-franchisee price. |
|---|---|
| Other required initial payments to the franchisor (Item 5) |
|
| Total Item 5 payments to franchisor/affiliates | $18,000 Disclosed
Cover page: total investment 'includes an estimated $18,000 to $27,000 (including an initial franchise fee of $15,000) that must be paid to us or our affiliate.' $27,000 Disclosed
Cover page: total investment 'includes an estimated $18,000 to $27,000 (including an initial franchise fee of $15,000) that must be paid to us or our affiliate.' |
| Total initial investment — low | $263,000 Disclosed
Item 7 also publishes a mid-point estimate of $430,000. |
| Total initial investment — high | $630,000 Disclosed
|
| Midpoint of range | $446,500 Derived
|
| Real estate purchase included? | No — assumes a leased site |
| Additional funds assumed | 3 months |
| Required liquid capital | Not disclosed in the reviewed source Not disclosedNot disclosed in the reviewed source. We did not find this value in 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document — Doctor's Associates LLC (Subway); we do not fill gaps with estimates or third-party figures. Neither the cover pages nor Items 1, 5, 7 or 11 state a minimum liquid-capital requirement for franchisees. The only net-worth figure in the reviewed text is a $10 million audited net worth used as one qualifying test for a corporate operator to receive a reduced non-traditional franchise fee under Item 5, which is not a general financial qualification. |
| Required net worth | Not disclosed in the reviewed source Not disclosedNot disclosed in the reviewed source. We did not find this value in 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document — Doctor's Associates LLC (Subway); we do not fill gaps with estimates or third-party figures. No general minimum net worth for franchisees is stated in the reviewed source. |
The main Item 7 table is for one new traditional restaurant and assumes a leased or subleased site; buying the real estate is only permitted in limited circumstances and the FDD says costs would then be substantially higher. Additional funds cover three months of start-up expenses and expressly exclude royalty, advertising fees, food costs and owner's draw; the FDD states the three-month period is not a representation of when a restaurant will break even. Digital menu boards ($8,000 to $14,000 to buy, or $155 per month leased) are excluded from the table, as are municipal impact fees ($5,000 to $25,000), grease-trap work ($10,000 to $15,000 where required), key money and extensive exterior renovation. The published totals do not foot exactly to the line items: the traditional column sums to about $263,500 low and $631,500 high against published totals of $263,000 and $630,000, and the non-traditional column sums to about $224,500 against a published $227,000, so the FDD appears to round its totals. Values recorded here are the totals as printed. Separate small tables add $2,610 (soup) or $5,200 (omelet) for optional Marketwide Option Program menu items.
Item 7 line items (15)
| Expenditure | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee — Payable in a lump sum when the Franchise Agreement is signed. | $15,000 | $15,000 |
| Real property (two months' rent deposit) — Estimated typical rent runs $1,000 to $6,000 per month; this line is a deposit, not the cost of buying land or a building. | $3,000 | $12,000 |
| Leasehold improvements — Non-traditional locations are shown at $42,000 to $80,000. Fresh Forward 2.0 decor is required for new builds. | $75,000 | $250,000 |
| Equipment, furniture and decor | $110,000 | $210,000 |
| Optional security system — Excludes monitoring. | $2,500 | $4,000 |
| Freight charges — Non-traditional locations are shown at $5,000 to $11,000. | $8,000 | $15,000 |
| Exterior signage — Non-traditional locations are shown at $2,000 to $10,000; does not apply to school lunch locations. | $5,000 | $12,000 |
| Opening inventory | $7,500 | $15,000 |
| Insurance | $1,500 | $7,500 |
| Supplies and smallwares | $5,000 | $9,000 |
| Training expenses — Travel, lodging, meals and wages; no training fee is charged for the first two attendees. | $4,500 | $6,500 |
| Legal and accounting | $1,000 | $6,000 |
| Grand opening advertising — A grand opening sale is required within four to eight weeks of opening, relocation, remodel or transfer. | $2,500 | $4,500 |
| Miscellaneous expenses — Permits, licences, utilities and lease recording costs; municipal impact fees are separately estimated at $5,000 to $25,000. | $8,000 | $20,000 |
| Additional funds — 3 months — Excludes royalty, advertising fees, food costs and any owner's draw. | $15,000 | $45,000 |
Source for every row: the Item 7 estimated-initial-investment table of 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document — Doctor's Associates LLC (Subway) (table begins PDF p. 51) — rows inherit the table's citation rather than carrying fifteen identical ones.
Other formats disclosed in Item 7 (3)
| Format | Low | High | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Non-traditional location — single restaurant | $227,000 | $458,000 | $15,000 |
| Multi-unit development program, 2–10 restaurants, traditional (per restaurant) | $246,123 | $604,245 | — |
| Multi-unit development program, 2–10 restaurants, non-traditional (per restaurant) | $206,635 | $471,245 | — |
Ongoing fees
FDD Item 6Royalty
8% of gross sales Disclosed
- Source
- 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document — Doctor's Associates LLC (Subway)
- Document
- FDD 2026, issued 2026-04-30
- Item
- Item 6 — Other Fees table — Royalty; Note 1
- Page
- PDF p. 36
- Obtained
- Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions — Franchise Registration Search, file 641453
8% of total gross sales
Eight percent of total gross sales, payable weekly and due on or before the Friday after the business week closes. Gross sales exclude state and local sales taxes. Reduced rates of 6.5% to 8% may apply at airport, train station and captive travel plaza locations, and 7.5% to 8% for certain multi-unit franchisees signing a Development Agreement. The franchisor may pay up to one third of collected royalties to third parties such as Business Developers.
Brand advertising fund
4.5% of gross sales Disclosed
- Source
- 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document — Doctor's Associates LLC (Subway)
- Document
- FDD 2026, issued 2026-04-30
- Item
- Item 6 — Other Fees table — Advertising; Note 2
- Page
- PDF p. 36
- Obtained
- Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions — Franchise Registration Search, file 641453
Four and a half percent of gross sales, payable weekly at the same time as royalty, deposited into the Subway Franchisee Advertising Fund Trust. Reduced contributions of 0.5% to 2% may apply to certain satellite and non-traditional restaurants and qualified food service providers, and 2% to 3.5% for certain multi-unit developers. Item 6 notes that legacy franchise agreements covering more than two thirds of restaurants allow franchisees to vote to raise the percentage among themselves, but the current form fixes the contribution at 4.5%.
Local marketing
Not disclosed in the reviewed source Not disclosed
Not disclosed in the reviewed source. We did not find this value in 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document — Doctor's Associates LLC (Subway); we do not fill gaps with estimates or third-party figures.
The reviewed source does not state a required ongoing local advertising spend. The only local marketing obligation identified is a one-time grand opening sale required within four to eight weeks of opening, relocation, remodel or transfer, budgeted at $2,500 to $4,500 in Item 7 with a recommendation to spend at least $2,000.
Core requirements shown separately; caps, credits and conditions may overlap. Check the full schedule for technology, cooperative, transfer and other charges.
View all recurring fees and conditions
| Royalty | 8% of gross sales Disclosed
Eight percent of total gross sales, payable weekly and due on or before the Friday after the business week closes. Gross sales exclude state and local sales taxes. Reduced rates of 6.5% to 8% may apply at airport, train station and captive travel plaza locations, and 7.5% to 8% for certain multi-unit franchisees signing a Development Agreement. The franchisor may pay up to one third of collected royalties to third parties such as Business Developers. Eight percent of total gross sales, payable weekly and due on or before the Friday after the business week closes. Gross sales exclude state and local sales taxes. Reduced rates of 6.5% to 8% may apply at airport, train station and captive travel plaza locations, and 7.5% to 8% for certain multi-unit franchisees signing a Development Agreement. The franchisor may pay up to one third of collected royalties to third parties such as Business Developers. |
|---|---|
| Advertising / brand fund | 4.5% of gross sales Disclosed
Four and a half percent of gross sales, payable weekly at the same time as royalty, deposited into the Subway Franchisee Advertising Fund Trust. Reduced contributions of 0.5% to 2% may apply to certain satellite and non-traditional restaurants and qualified food service providers, and 2% to 3.5% for certain multi-unit developers. Item 6 notes that legacy franchise agreements covering more than two thirds of restaurants allow franchisees to vote to raise the percentage among themselves, but the current form fixes the contribution at 4.5%. Four and a half percent of gross sales, payable weekly at the same time as royalty, deposited into the Subway Franchisee Advertising Fund Trust. Reduced contributions of 0.5% to 2% may apply to certain satellite and non-traditional restaurants and qualified food service providers, and 2% to 3.5% for certain multi-unit developers. Item 6 notes that legacy franchise agreements covering more than two thirds of restaurants allow franchisees to vote to raise the percentage among themselves, but the current form fixes the contribution at 4.5%. |
| Required local marketing | Not disclosed in the reviewed source Not disclosedNot disclosed in the reviewed source. We did not find this value in 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document — Doctor's Associates LLC (Subway); we do not fill gaps with estimates or third-party figures. The reviewed source does not state a required ongoing local advertising spend. The only local marketing obligation identified is a one-time grand opening sale required within four to eight weeks of opening, relocation, remodel or transfer, budgeted at $2,500 to $4,500 in Item 7 with a recommendation to spend at least $2,000. |
| Technology / software | $75/month Disclosed
Restaurant Technology Fee of approximately $75 per month, subject to annual change, covering SubwayPOS and other restaurant technology. Separate technology charges apply, including the POS hardware-as-a-service package at about $57 per month, payment terminal lease and switching fees, and a reserved right to add a Digital Technology Fee in future. Restaurant Technology Fee of approximately $75 per month, subject to annual change, covering SubwayPOS and other restaurant technology. Separate technology charges apply, including the POS hardware-as-a-service package at about $57 per month, payment terminal lease and switching fees, and a reserved right to add a Digital Technology Fee in future. |
| Advertising cooperative | Not disclosed in the reviewed source Not disclosedNot disclosed in the reviewed source. We did not find this value in 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document — Doctor's Associates LLC (Subway); we do not fill gaps with estimates or third-party figures. No regional advertising cooperative with a separate mandatory contribution was identified in Items 6 or 11; advertising contributions go to a single national fund administered by SFAFT, which occasionally uses funds for local and regional promotions. |
| Transfer fee | $7,500 one-time Disclosed
Stated as 50% of the then-current franchise fee, currently $7,500, plus $3,000 for any satellite restaurant. Item 6 lists reductions that may apply: $3,200 for standard transfers to new or existing franchisees, $200 for transfers to next of kin on death or permanent disability and transfers arising from divorce, and $2,000 for additions, deletions, entity conversions and immediate family transfers. A cancelled transfer that is later reactivated costs an extra $1,500 per restaurant. Stated as 50% of the then-current franchise fee, currently $7,500, plus $3,000 for any satellite restaurant. Item 6 lists reductions that may apply: $3,200 for standard transfers to new or existing franchisees, $200 for transfers to next of kin on death or permanent disability and transfers arising from divorce, and $2,000 for additions, deletions, entity conversions and immediate family transfers. A cancelled transfer that is later reactivated costs an extra $1,500 per restaurant. |
| Renewal fee | $3,750 one-time Disclosed
Stated as 25% of the then-current franchise fee, currently $3,750, for a standard renewal; $1,250 for a satellite renewal and $1,000 for a short-term satellite renewal. School lunch locations renew in five-year terms with no renewal fee. Franchisees may also buy additional term at $187.50 per year, up to ten years. Stated as 25% of the then-current franchise fee, currently $3,750, for a standard renewal; $1,250 for a satellite renewal and $1,000 for a short-term satellite renewal. School lunch locations renew in five-year terms with no renewal fee. Franchisees may also buy additional term at $187.50 per year, up to ten years. |
| Royalty + ad fund (% of sales) | 12.5% Derived
|
Fee schedule (30 fees; 26 verified against the source, 4 single-pass)
Every recurring, conditional and one-time fee found in this FDD's Item 6 table (plus mandatory recurring costs disclosed in Items 7/11), each cited to its page and carrying its verification status: verified means two independent readings agreed or a tie-break re-inspection of the page decided it; single-pass means one reading captured it and it has not been independently confirmed (permitted only for fees that cannot move modeled economics — see the materiality rule). Amounts marked “not stated” are charged at then-current rates the FDD does not quantify and are never modeled as $0.
| Fee | Amount | Frequency | Mandatory | Verification | Cite | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Royalty | 8% of gross sales | weekly | Yes | verified (2-pass) | Item 6, p. 36 | Reduced to 6.5%-8% for airport/train-station/captive-travel-plaza locations; 7.5%-8% for certain multi-unit Development Agreement franchisees. |
| Advertising (National Fund) | 4.5% of gross sales | weekly | Yes | verified (2-pass) | Item 6, p. 36 | Reduced to 0.5%-2% for certain satellite/non-traditional restaurants, qualified food service providers, and franchisees paying ad fees under their lease; 2%-3.5% for multi-unit developers. |
| Audit Fee (Overdue Amount) | Not stated | varies | No | single-pass | Item 6, p. 36 | Charged only if a franchisor audit finds gross sales under-reported by more than 2%. [Listed by one verification pass only (A); not independently confirmed.] |
| Fees for Unpaid Balances | Not stated | varies | No | verified (2-pass) | Item 6, p. 36 | Applies only when payment is more than one week late. |
| Renewal Fee | 25% of fixed | one time | No | single-pass | Item 6, p. 36 | Paid only upon renewal. [Listed by one verification pass only (A); not independently confirmed.] |
| Transfer Fee | 50% of fixed | one time | No | single-pass | Item 6, p. 37 | Paid only upon transfer. [Listed by one verification pass only (A); not independently confirmed.] |
| Location Rent/License Fee | $1,000–$6,000 | monthly | Yes | verified (tie-break) | Item 6, p. 37 | Varies by location and lease form; a security deposit/advance fee is also due on signing of the Intent to Sublease or when the landlord requires it. Both passes read the same $1,000-$6,000 monthly range; only amount_type and page differed. |
| Insurance | $1,000–$6,000 | annual | Yes | verified (tie-break) | Item 6, p. 37 | Note 7: cost varies with location, construction, insurance market and claims history; payment by EFT directly to the carrier. Both passes read the same range; only amount_type and page differed. |
| Co-Brand Continuing Fee | 0%–8% of gross sales | weekly | No | verified (tie-break) | Item 6, p. 38 | Applies only at co-brand locations. Fees charged by the third-party co-brand franchisor are separate and are collected by Subway as agent. The conflicts file paired this entry against Pass B's Sub Club row; that is a pairing artifact, not a disagreement. |
| Optional Restaurant Listing Service | $100 | per event | No | verified (tie-break) | Item 6, p. 38 | Only if the franchisee lists the restaurant for sale; the franchisor may waive the fee. Exit-related, not an operating cost. |
| Restaurant Technology Fee | $75 | monthly | Yes | verified (2-pass) | Item 6, p. 38 | |
| Terminal Software Fee (P400 Payment Terminal - Adyen) | $2 | monthly | Yes | verified (tie-break) | Item 6, p. 39 | Required until the franchisor gives notice that only the Ingenico terminal is required; both terminals must be maintained concurrently until then. The Adyen acquirer, network/interchange and chargeback fees printed in the same row are carried in the separate card-processing-fees entry. |
| Ongoing Monthly Fees for Ingenico Payment Terminal (FreedomPay) | $20 | monthly | Yes | verified (tie-break) | Item 6, p. 40 | Required until the franchisor gives notice that only the Ingenico terminal is required; both the P400 and Ingenico terminals must be obtained and paid for until then. Per-transaction acquirer and network/interchange fees from this row are carried once in card-processing-fees. Citation audit 2026-09-04: page corrected 39 -> 40 (value verified on p. 40). |
| Subway Gift Card Redemption Fee | 2.5% of other | varies | Yes | verified (2-pass) | Item 6, p. 40 | Applies only on gift-card redemption transactions; required program (waivable). |
| SVS Monthly Maintenance Fee | $3 | monthly | No | verified (tie-break) | Item 6, p. 40 | Currently applies only to non-traditional restaurants required to use an SVS issued/configured gift-card terminal (initial terminal fee $320). The FDD states the fee 'currently ... only applies to non-traditional Restaurants'. |
| Sub Club Program | 1.9% of gross sales | weekly | Yes | verified (tie-break) | Item 6, p. 40 | Participation required for all new and existing restaurants (including AAFES, NEXCOM and MCCS) unless the franchisor grants a waiver. Note 15 gives the worked example: a $10 member purchase costs the franchisee up to $0.19. |
| POS System Hardware-as-a-Service Fee | $57 | monthly | Yes | verified (2-pass) | Item 6, p. 41 | |
| Digital Menu Board Hardware-as-a-Service Fee | $155 | monthly | No | verified (tie-break) | Item 6, p. 41 | Optional today; the alternative is the CapEx purchase option. Note 15 lists digital menu boards among initiatives the franchisor may require in future. |
| Digital Menu Board CapEx Option | $39 | monthly | No | verified (tie-break) | Item 6, p. 41 | For franchisees who do not qualify for credit terms or who choose to purchase rather than lease; alternative to the $155/month HaaS option. |
| Kount Fraud Protection Fee | $0 | monthly | Yes | verified (tie-break) | Item 6, p. 41 | Subject to increase if the vendor raises prices. |
| Other Technology and Digital Initiatives | Not stated | varies | Yes | verified (tie-break) | Item 6, p. 42 | The franchisor may require implementation of listed initiatives (cloud storage, kiosks, guest WiFi, biometric devices, e-learning, digital menu boards and others) at the franchisee's expense within timeframes it sets; the list is not exhaustive. |
| ServSafe Certification | $50 | varies | No | verified (2-pass) | Item 6, p. 42 | Currently optional; franchisor may require it for franchisee/employee in the future. |
| Catering | Tiered (base 7.75%) | weekly | No | verified (tie-break) | Item 6, p. 43 | No fee for the basic catering program; charged only if the franchisee participates in the online catering program powered by ezCater. |
| Restaurant Excellence Visits Revisit Fee | $145 | per event | No | verified (tie-break) | Item 6, p. 43 | Periodic visits are free; the fee is charged only when a restaurant receives a 'Fail' score, and for every revisit until a passing score is achieved. |
| Legacy Support Fee | $200 | monthly | No | verified (tie-break) | Item 6, p. 43 | Charged only while the franchisee fails to comply with technology standards - failure to return hardware, upgrade systems or allow timely access, installing unauthorized software, or attempting to hack or circumvent the franchisor's software. |
| Costs for required online training courses | Not stated | varies | Yes | verified (tie-break) | Item 6, p. 42 | Payable when the employee attends the course; part of the Training Fee and Costs row, which separately charges $1,500 for any person trained beyond the first two. |
| Fees for Unpaid balances | 12% of other | per event | No | single-pass | Item 6, p. 36 | Applies when payment is more than one week late. [Listed by one verification pass only (B); not independently confirmed.] |
| Acquirer, Network and Interchange Fees | Not stated | varies | Yes | verified (tie-break) | Item 6, p. 39 | Charged on all card-present and card-not-present transactions; the franchisee must accept Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express unless waived. The franchisor may receive a referral fee. Same network/interchange range is printed in both the P400 and the Ingenico rows; a transaction is processed on one rail, so the charge is counted once. |
| Additional Term | $188 | per event | No | verified (tie-break) | Item 6, p. 36 | Available if the franchise agreement expires within 10 years, or on purchase of an existing restaurant with under 10 years remaining; approval requires signing the then-current franchise agreement and addendum. |
| Restaurant Design Charge | $1,000 | per event | No | verified (tie-break) | Item 6, p. 42 | The $1,000 charge is waived if a remodel is completed within 6 months (12 months for a new build or relocation) of the date the last floor plan was provided; additional revision charges are never waived. |
Fees are collected weekly by pre-authorised draft against the franchisee's bank account. Beyond royalty and advertising, Item 6 lists a long schedule of technology, payment-processing, loyalty and compliance charges, most payable to affiliates or designated third parties. Contractual damages provisions include $15,000 per competing business plus 8% of its gross sales for a non-compete breach and $250 per day for a trademark violation. Under-reporting gross sales by more than 2% triggers an audit charge covering the unpaid fees, costs, interest and late fees.
Financial performance (Item 19)
What the franchisor actually disclosedNo financial performance representation. The 2026 FDD does not disclose sales, costs or profits for any outlet (Item 19). Any revenue or profit figure you see for Subway elsewhere did not come from the franchisor’s disclosure document. We do not estimate an AUV where none is disclosed. Subway's 2026 FDD makes no financial performance representation. A prospective franchisee gets no systemwide average or median unit volume, no cost or margin data, and no distribution of outlet sales from this document. The only performance-related information the franchisor offers is the actual historical records of a specific existing restaurant, and only if the buyer is purchasing that restaurant. Anyone evaluating this brand has to build revenue expectations from outside the FDD.
System health (Item 20)
Outlets, openings, exits and transfers by fiscal year · U.S. onlyView detailed Item 20 tables and source notes
| Fiscal year | Start | Opened | Terminated | Not renewed | Reacquired | Ceased — other | End | Transfers | Company-owned (end) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 20,576 | 455 | 3 | 19 | 98 | 733 | 20,133 | 1,764 | 0 |
| 2024 | 20,133 | 453 | 4 | 30 | 90 | 881 | 19,502 | 1,416 | 0 |
| 2025 | 19,502 | 499 | 4 | 46 | 148 | 1,026 | 18,773 | 1,307 | 0 |
Disclosed 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document — Doctor's Associates LLC (Subway), Item 20, Tables 1–3 (PDF p. 94). The system contracted every reported year: franchised outlets fell from 20,576 at the start of 2023 to 18,773 at the end of 2025, a net loss of 1,803, with net change of -443, -631 and -729. Closures sit almost entirely in 'ceased operations — other reasons' (733, 881, 1,026), not terminations (3, 4, 4). About 56% of the 499 outlets reported opened in 2025 were reopenings of temporarily closed sites. Transfers ran 1,307 in 2025, roughly 7% of outlets, and 64 outlets changed hands more than once. All 148 outlets reacquired in 2025 were resold to franchisees the same year. Table No. 3 does not foot: start plus openings less closures gives 20,178, 19,581 and 18,777 against printed year-ends of 20,133, 19,502 and 18,773, partly because reacquired outlets also appear in Table No. 4. Figures are recorded exactly as printed.
Source data notes (12) — inconsistencies found in the FDD itself during verification
Our verification re-reads every table. Where the FDD's own printed tables disagree, we document the discrepancy rather than silently "fixing" it. Classes: B = arithmetic error in the source's derived column; C = the printed tables genuinely disagree; D = a legitimate definitional difference (e.g., transfers netted, explained by a footnote); E = unresolved ambiguity. Figures a material C/E issue puts in doubt are excluded from our derived metrics, scores and rankings.
- [C/minor] Table 3 2023: TOTAL row does not foot: 20,576 + 455 - 3 - 19 - 98 - 733 = 20,178, but the printed end-of-year total is 20,133 (gap of 45 outlets). Same warning raised by Pass A, Pass B and the validator. — Verified against the rendered page image of page 102: the printed TOTAL row is an exact column-wise sum of the printed state rows in all nine columns for all three years, so this is not an extraction or transcription error. 75 of the 165 printed state rows fail to foot, in both directions (e.g. California 2023 2,018+48-0-2-9-103=1,952 vs printed 1,934; Alabama 2024 380+10-0-0-1-7=382 vs printed 383), and the net of those state-row errors (-45 / -79 / -4) is exactly the TOTAL-row gap in each year. The document's own flow columns are therefore internally inconsistent. Start and end totals stand: Table No. 1 (page 94) prints franchised outlets 20,576 -> 20,133 -> 19,502 -> 18,773 with each year's start equal to the prior year's end, matching Table No. 3 Columns 3 and 9 exactly; Exhibit B (pag
- [C/minor] Table 3 2024: TOTAL row does not foot: 20,133 + 453 - 4 - 30 - 90 - 881 = 19,581, but the printed end-of-year total is 19,502 (gap of 79 outlets). Same warning raised by Pass A, Pass B and the validator. — Verified against the rendered page image of page 102: the printed TOTAL row is an exact column-wise sum of the printed state rows in all nine columns for all three years, so this is not an extraction or transcription error. 75 of the 165 printed state rows fail to foot, in both directions (e.g. California 2023 2,018+48-0-2-9-103=1,952 vs printed 1,934; Alabama 2024 380+10-0-0-1-7=382 vs printed 383), and the net of those state-row errors (-45 / -79 / -4) is exactly the TOTAL-row gap in each year. The document's own flow columns are therefore internally inconsistent. Start and end totals stand: Table No. 1 (page 94) prints franchised outlets 20,576 -> 20,133 -> 19,502 -> 18,773 with each year's start equal to the prior year's end, matching Table No. 3 Columns 3 and 9 exactly; Exhibit B (pag
- [C/minor] Table 3 2025: TOTAL row does not foot: 19,502 + 499 - 4 - 46 - 148 - 1,026 = 18,777, but the printed end-of-year total is 18,773 (gap of 4 outlets). Same warning raised by Pass A, Pass B and the validator. — Verified against the rendered page image of page 102: the printed TOTAL row is an exact column-wise sum of the printed state rows in all nine columns for all three years, so this is not an extraction or transcription error. 75 of the 165 printed state rows fail to foot, in both directions (e.g. California 2023 2,018+48-0-2-9-103=1,952 vs printed 1,934; Alabama 2024 380+10-0-0-1-7=382 vs printed 383), and the net of those state-row errors (-45 / -79 / -4) is exactly the TOTAL-row gap in each year. The document's own flow columns are therefore internally inconsistent. Start and end totals stand: Table No. 1 (page 94) prints franchised outlets 20,576 -> 20,133 -> 19,502 -> 18,773 with each year's start equal to the prior year's end, matching Table No. 3 Columns 3 and 9 exactly; Exhibit B (pag
- [C/minor] Table 3 vs Table 4: Footnote 3 to Table No. 3 states that Column 7 (Reacquired By Franchisor) 'is also represented in both Column 5 and Column 7 of Table No. 4', but the Table 3 totals are 98 / 90 / 148 while the Table 4 totals (Outlets Reacquired from Franchisee, and Outlets Sold to Franchisee) are 79 / 139 / 148. The two tables agree only for 2025. — The printed tables genuinely disagree. Table 3 TOTAL, page 102: 'TOTAL 2023 20,576 455 3 19 98 733 20,133' and 2024 '... 90 881 19,502'. Table 4 TOTAL, page 107: 'TOTAL 2023 0 0 79 0 79 0' and 2024 '... 139 ... 139 ...'. Footnote 3 (page 102) requires them to be the same number, so at least one figure is wrong for 2023 and 2024; nothing in the document corroborates either. Neither figure disturbs the year-end totals, which are corroborated: Table No. 1 (page 94) prints franchised outlets 20,576 -> 20,133 -> 19,502 -> 18,773 with each year's start equal to the prior year's end, matching Table No. 3 Columns 3 and 9 exactly; Exhibit B (page 386) independently states 'UNITED STATES 18,773 Open Restaurants'.
- [D/minor] Table 1 vs Table 3: Pass B observation: Table No. 1 and Table No. 3 carry forward cleanly and agree with each other - franchised (and total) outlets run 20,576 -> 20,133 -> 19,502 -> 18,773, each year's start equal to the prior year's end. — Confirmed, and this is corroboration rather than a discrepancy. Table No. 1 (page 94) prints franchised outlets 20,576 -> 20,133 -> 19,502 -> 18,773 with each year's start equal to the prior year's end, matching Table No. 3 Columns 3 and 9 exactly; Exhibit B (page 386) independently states 'UNITED STATES 18,773 Open Restaurants'. This is the basis for grading every other Item 20 issue as minor: the totals the site uses are sound.
- [D/minor] Table 1 vs Table 4: Company-owned outlets are reported as 0 at both the start and the end of all three years in Table No. 1, yet Table No. 4 shows 79 (2023), 139 (2024) and 148 (2025) outlets reacquired from franchisees with an identical number sold back to franchisees in the same year. — Legitimate definitional result, explained by the document. Footnote 3 to Table No. 3 (page 102): outlets in Column 7 are 'reacquired from a franchisee and then immediately (usually within one or two days) to another franchisee'. Table No. 4 footnote 1 (page 107) adds 'We do not currently intend to open any company-operated restaurants but reserve the right to do so in the future.' The franchisor holds these outlets for days, so a December 31 snapshot correctly shows zero company-owned units. Table No. 4 Columns 3 and 8 are 0 in every row, consistent with that.
- [D/minor] Table 3 2025: Footnote 1 to Column 4 (Outlets Opened) says the figures include restaurants closed temporarily in a previous year and reopened, and that for the most recent fiscal year reopens are approximately 56% of the column. Genuinely new 2025 openings are therefore roughly 220, not the printed 499. — Footnote as printed on page 102: 'Numbers provided in Column 4 include restaurants that were closed temporarily in a previous year and reopened in the applicable fiscal year. For the most recent fiscal year, reopens account for approximately 56% of outlets reported in this column.' 499 x 44% = 220 new openings. The printed 499 is correct for the column as the FDD defines it; the footnote, not the number, is what a reader needs. The 2023 and 2024 columns carry no reopen percentage, so no equivalent adjustment can be made for those years.
- [D/minor] Table 3 2025: Footnote 2 says Columns 5 and 8 include locations that may have been closed only temporarily at fiscal year end, and that 792 locations were temporarily closed as of December 31, 2025. Pass B read this as meaning year-end outlet counts include stores not currently trading. — Footnote as printed on page 102: 'Numbers provided in Columns 5 and 8 include locations that may have been closed temporarily as of the fiscal year end. Many of these locations will re-open in a subsequent fiscal year. As of December 31, 2025, there were 792 locations that were temporarily closed.' As printed the footnote attaches to Columns 5 (Terminations) and 8 (Ceased Operations - Other Reasons), i.e. the exit columns, not to Column 9. Read with footnote 1, the cycle is consistent: a temporary closure is booked as a cease, and a later reopening is booked as an opening. Pass B's gloss that the 18,773 year-end count itself includes non-trading stores is not what the footnote says and is not corroborated.
- [D/minor] Table 2: For outlets that changed ownership more than once in a fiscal year, Table No. 2 counts only the transfer that occurred last in time, so the TOTAL of 1,764 / 1,416 / 1,307 understates gross ownership changes. Exhibit B-1 separately lists 64 franchisees whose 2025 transfer was followed by one or more subsequent transfers. Raised by both passes. — Explained by the note printed under the table on page 98: 'For outlets that changed ownership two or more times during the same fiscal year, the table above counts only transfer that occurred last in time.' The same note lists what counts as a transfer, including owner additions/deletions, divorce and inheritance, so the totals are broader than arm's-length sales in one respect and narrower in another. The printed totals are internally consistent with that definition and need no correction; the 64 Exhibit B-1 franchisees put a floor of about 5% on the 2025 undercount.
- [D/minor] Table 3: Pass B observation on scale: 'Ceased Operations - Other Reasons' dominates exits (733 / 881 / 1,026) and dwarfs terminations (3 / 4 / 4) and non-renewals (19 / 30 / 46); the U.S. system lost 1,803 outlets, about 8.8%, across the three years. — Arithmetic confirmed against the printed TOTAL rows on page 102: 20,576 - 18,773 = 1,803, which is 8.8% of 20,576. Not a discrepancy - correct commentary on the printed figures. It should be read alongside footnote 2: part of the 'ceased' column is temporary closure, not permanent exit.
- [D/minor] Table 5: Pass B observation: Table No. 5 shows 93 franchise agreements signed but not open and 100 projected new franchised openings for the next fiscal year, against 1,026 outlets that ceased operating in 2025. — Confirmed against the Table No. 5 TOTAL row on page 108: '93 100 0' (the third column, projected company-owned openings, is 0). 100 / 1,026 = 9.7%. Not a discrepancy - correct commentary. Note the comparison is not exactly like-for-like: per footnote 1 to Table 3 the 2025 opened column is roughly 56% reopens, and reopens are not franchise-agreement signings.
- [D/minor] Item 20 (all tables): Pass B observation: Item 20 covers only U.S. outlets and territories (Exhibit B is the U.S. list); there is no international table, so these counts are not comparable with the global franchisee base referenced elsewhere in the document. — Confirmed: every Item 20 table is stated by state/territory (including Guam, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands) and the text on page 108 says Exhibit B lists 'all operating franchisees in the United States and its territories as of December 31, 2025'; Exhibit B itself is headed 'UNITED STATES 18,773 Open Restaurants' (page 386). This is the FTC-required scope, not an omission. Label all Item 20 metrics as U.S.-only.
Company-owned outlets (Table 4)
| Year | Start | Opened | Reacquired from franchisee | Closed | Sold to franchisee | End |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 0 | 0 | 79 | 0 | 79 | 0 |
| 2024 | 0 | 0 | 139 | 0 | 139 | 0 |
| 2025 | 0 | 0 | 148 | 0 | 148 | 0 |
Read: How to read Item 20.
Ownership and operations
Items 11, 12, 15, 17Manager-run permitted Disclosed
- Source
- 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document — Doctor's Associates LLC (Subway)
- Document
- FDD 2026, issued 2026-04-30
- Item
- Item 15 — Item 15
- Page
- PDF p. 83
- Obtained
- Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions — Franchise Registration Search, file 641453
Your restaurant shall at all times be under your direct, on-premises supervision or that of a trained and competent employee acting as full-time manager.
The restaurant must be under the franchisee's direct on-premises supervision or that of a trained, competent full-time manager. Where the franchisee owns more than one restaurant or does not work full time in the business, the franchisor may require one or more trained Designated Managers. A Designated Manager need not hold equity, and the franchisor may deal with that manager on day-to-day operations. The FDD adds that it strongly recommends the owner personally devote substantial time to the business.
View operating requirements, territory and contract term
| Owner involvement (Item 15) | Manager-run permitted Disclosed
The restaurant must be under the franchisee's direct on-premises supervision or that of a trained, competent full-time manager. Where the franchisee owns more than one restaurant or does not work full time in the business, the franchisor may require one or more trained Designated Managers. A Designated Manager need not hold equity, and the franchisor may deal with that manager on day-to-day operations. The FDD adds that it strongly recommends the owner personally devote substantial time to the business. The restaurant must be under the franchisee's direct on-premises supervision or that of a trained, competent full-time manager. Where the franchisee owns more than one restaurant or does not work full time in the business, the franchisor may require one or more trained Designated Managers. A Designated Manager need not hold equity, and the franchisor may deal with that manager on day-to-day operations. The FDD adds that it strongly recommends the owner personally devote substantial time to the business. |
|---|---|
| Initial training | The New Franchisee Onboard Training Program totals about 144 hours: roughly 36 hours of web-based classroom training, 36 hours of facilitated in-person workshops, and 72 hours of on-the-job training in an approved Subway restaurant. Facilitated sessions are held at the Miami, Florida or Shelton, Connecticut headquarters or an approved regional training facility, with two to three hours of homework per evening and a perfect-attendance requirement. The franchisee or a Designated Manager must complete the program before opening; there is no training fee for the first two attendees and $1,500 for each additional person, but the franchisee pays all travel, lodging and wage costs. Waivers or shortened programs are available for existing franchisees and for school lunch franchisees. Disclosed
|
| Multi-unit / development options | Qualified franchisees may operate multiple restaurants under a Development Agreement together with one or more Franchise Agreements or a Multi-Unit Franchise Agreement. The development fee equals the then-current initial franchise fee (or the applicable reduced fee) multiplied by the number of restaurants in the development schedule, and no separate initial franchise fee is then charged per restaurant; Item 7 shows a development fee of $22,500 to $82,500 for a 2 to 10 restaurant program. Reduced royalty rates of 7.5% to 8% and reduced advertising contributions of 2% to 3.5% may be available to multi-unit developers, and some may qualify for a rebate of part or all of the initial franchise fee if they meet or exceed the development schedule. Existing franchisees in substantial compliance pay a reduced $7,500 fee for additional restaurants. Disclosed
|
| Territory (Item 12) | No exclusive or protected territory is granted. Item 12 states the franchisee will not receive an exclusive territory and may face competition from other franchisees, from outlets the franchisor owns, and from other channels of distribution or competitive brands the franchisor controls. There are no radius restrictions and no minimum or maximum population requirements limiting where another Subway restaurant may be licensed or opened, except as state law may provide. The franchisor and its affiliates reserve unlimited rights to compete and to license others to compete, including through call centres, the internet, catalogue sales and other direct marketing, with no compensation to the franchisee. The franchise entitles the franchisee to operate only at one approved location, and no options or rights of first refusal on additional franchises in a market area are granted. Relocation is permitted at the franchisee's expense if the lease ends without fault, the site is destroyed or condemned, or the franchisor judges the location's character has deteriorated. Disclosed
|
| Initial term | 20 years Disclosed
Twenty years under the standard Franchise Agreement. A franchise bought through a transfer runs only for the remaining term of the existing agreement. School lunch locations run five years; satellite terms follow the base restaurant's agreement, or one year for a short-term satellite. The franchisor may terminate if it does not approve the location within six months of signing, and the restaurant must open within 12 months or the agreement expires, subject to a $1,000 extension fee. |
| Renewal | One additional 20-year term is available if the franchisee has complied with all material provisions, keeps possession of the premises, gives written notice 12 to 18 months before expiry, has satisfied all monetary obligations, signs the then-current form of franchise agreement and a Renewal Addendum, pays the renewal fee (25% of the then-current franchise fee, currently $3,750), meets then-current qualifications and training standards, and signs a general release. School lunch locations renew in five-year terms with no renewal fee. Disclosed
|
Risk and legal observations
Items 3, 4, 8, 15, 17 — summarized neutrallyLitigation: 57 matter(s) disclosed Disclosed · Bankruptcy: Disclosure present Disclosed
View legal disclosures, restrictions and guarantees
| Litigation (Item 3) | 57 matter(s) disclosed Disclosed Item 3 states that, other than 47 actions and 10 franchisor-initiated actions disclosed in Exhibit L, no other litigation must be disclosed. Exhibit L groups the matters into pending actions, concluded actions, actions involving non-Subway affiliates and management, and franchisor-initiated litigation. The introduction to Exhibit L describes the recurring categories as suits by franchisees and third parties alleging violations of franchise, antitrust or securities law or alleging fraud or unfair or deceptive practices, alongside personal-injury and illness claims arising at franchisee-operated restaurants that the franchisor says are ordinary routine litigation covered by insurance. One of the pending matters is a long-running French regulatory proceeding against the international affiliate Subway International B.V. over allegedly imbalanced franchise agreement clauses, in which a EUR 500,000 fine was imposed in 2020, an appeal is pending, and settlements were reached with the regulator and most intervening franchisees while claims from a small group of former franchisees remain. Item 3 adds that franchisees the franchisor or its affiliates sued in connection with the franchise relationship during fiscal 2025 amounted to roughly 0.03% of franchisees operating Subway restaurants globally. The individual matters in Exhibit L were not each reviewed for this record. |
|---|---|
| Bankruptcy (Item 4) | Disclosure present Disclosed Item 4 discloses one matter involving an officer rather than the franchisor. The chief financial officer of the franchisor and several affiliates was senior vice president of finance at Sungard Availability Services Capital, Inc. from August 2017 to December 2019. Sungard and certain affiliates filed voluntary Chapter 11 petitions in the Southern District of New York on May 1, 2019; the plan of reorganization was confirmed on May 2, 2019 and the cases closed on September 6, 2019. No bankruptcy of the franchisor or its parents is disclosed. |
| Personal guaranty | Required Disclosed
Item 15 requires the franchisee's principal owners to sign a personal guaranty covering all obligations owed to the franchisor. A Designated Manager signs only if also a principal owner. Separately, Items 6 and 7 state that each owner must guarantee the payment obligations under the Sublease with the franchisor's leasing affiliate, and that a direct landlord may also require a personal guarantee. |
| Non-compete | During the term, the franchisee and its owners may have no direct or indirect association with a competitive business anywhere. After termination, expiration or transfer, the restriction runs for one year within a three-mile radius of any location where a Subway restaurant operates or operated in the prior year. Breach carries a stated payment of $15,000 for each competing business plus 8% of that business's gross sales, and the franchisor may also seek termination, an injunction or damages. The covenants are modified for non-traditional and school lunch locations, where the restriction is limited to the facility or school. Disclosed
|
| Transfer restrictions | All transfers need franchisor approval, which the FDD says will not be unreasonably withheld. Conditions include first offering the restaurant to the franchisor, which has a right of first refusal it can exercise by matching any offer within 30 days; if the franchisor and any franchisee holding limited exclusivity rights decline, the franchisee may sell to a third party but not at a lower price or on better terms. The buyer must qualify, complete training before closing, sign the then-current franchise agreement and sublease or sublicence and a Transfer Addendum, the seller must pay the transfer fee and all outstanding amounts, cure any default, bring the restaurant into full compliance with the Operations Manual, and both parties must sign a general release. A satellite restaurant generally cannot be transferred separately from its base restaurant. On death or permanent disability of an owner of 50% or more, the interest must be assigned to an approved third party within 12 months. Disclosed
|
| Termination / non-renewal | The franchisee has no right to terminate; if the franchisor fails to cure a default within 60 days the franchisee's remedy is arbitration. The franchisor may terminate only for good cause. Curable defaults carry short cure periods: 10 days for unpaid royalty, advertising, rent or other amounts owed to the franchisor or its affiliates, and 30 days for other breaches of the agreement or of the Operations Manual. Fourteen categories of non-curable default terminate the agreement automatically on notice, including failing to open on time or to complete training, abandoning the restaurant for two business days in any 12-month period, understating royalty by more than 3% over three or more weeks, three breaches in 12 months or two breaches of the same obligation in six months, felony conviction, insolvency, and uncured health or safety violations. Non-traditional locations under Franchise Agreement Rider Part I may be terminated by the franchisor for any reason within 30 days of signing. Disclosed
|
| Supplier restrictions (Item 8) | All required food, equipment, beverages and other products and services must be bought from an approved distribution centre or another approved source, which may be the franchisor or an affiliate; franchisees may not independently source products, and supplier-approval criteria are treated as a trade secret. Required purchases are estimated at 66.5% to 100% of everything needed to open and 29.5% to 37.5% of annual operating costs. Sole-source items include POS hardware, the SubwayPOS and Subway Payment Manager software, the gift card processor, the loyalty programme, designated payment terminals and processors, and insurance through a designated broker programme. In 2025 the franchisor reported $1,257 from franchisees' required direct purchases plus $136,510,121 in supplier contributions and purchase discounts tied to required purchases, together about 14.75% of its total revenues of $925,217,000; an affiliate received $8,469,235 from required SubwayPOS software purchases. The franchisor also earns rent and may keep a margin where it subleases premises, though it says franchisees currently pay the landlord directly. Disclosed
|
| Dispute resolution | Except for certain claims the franchisor may bring, all disputes must be arbitrated, administered by the American Arbitration Association or the American Dispute Resolution Center at the choice of the party filing first. Arbitration and any litigation take place in the state of the franchisor's principal place of business, currently Connecticut, and the FDD's Special Risks page flags this out-of-state forum. Florida law governs the agreement, with the Federal Arbitration Act governing the arbitration provisions, in each case subject to state law. The franchisee may not bring court litigation under the agreement, while the franchisor may seek injunctive relief in any court over trademark, confidentiality and non-compete breaches. Claims may be brought only against the franchisor, not its affiliates or associated individuals, and incidental, exemplary, contingent, punitive and consequential damages are excluded except where governing law prohibits. Arbitration fees are shared, but a franchisee who withholds money from the franchisor or an affiliate pays the whole fee plus costs. Disclosed
|
- No exclusive territory of any kind, and no radius or population limits on where another Subway may open (Item 12).
- The franchised system shrank in each of the last three fiscal years, with net franchised outlets down 1,803 between the start of 2023 and the end of 2025 and the annual decline widening each year (Item 20).
- Item 20 states 792 locations were temporarily closed as of December 31, 2025, and that reopenings account for about 56% of the 499 outlets reported as opened in 2025.
- Item 20 discloses that the franchisor has signed confidentiality clauses with current or former franchisees over the last three fiscal years restricting them from speaking openly about their experience.
- Fresh Forward 2.0 decor and equipment is required for all new restaurants and relocations, and existing locations must remodel to it or an approved variation on the franchisor's timetable (Item 7 Note 3).
- Combined royalty and advertising contributions total 12.5% of gross sales before the required 1.9% loyalty programme fee on Sub Club transactions and other technology charges (Item 6).
- Where the franchisee subleases from a franchisor affiliate, the affiliate may keep the difference between the master lease rent and the sublease rent, and termination of the sublease alone can render the franchise agreement valueless (Item 6 Note 6 and Note 12).
- Franchisees must give 12 to 18 months' notice to renew, and renewal requires signing the then-current franchise agreement and a general release (Item 17).
Summaries are neutral paraphrases of the cited document and are not legal advice. Read the full Items in the current FDD and consult a franchise attorney.
Illustrative unit economics
Not disclosedNo model is offered for Subway because no annual average unit sales disclosed in Item 19. We do not manufacture estimates where the disclosure does not support them.
Sources and provenance
Primary source: 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document — Doctor's Associates LLC (Subway) · issued 2026-04-30. Find the FDD at Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions — Franchise Registration Search. We cite source pages and do not redistribute PDFs.
View all sources, provenance and verification notes
| Document | Obtained from | Dates | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document — Doctor's Associates LLC (Subway) Registry file 641453 · 923 pages Cover page reads 'Issuance Date: April 30, 2026'. Wisconsin registration effective 4/30/2026, status Registered; this is the newest document available in the registry. Financial statements in Exhibit C cover the fiscal years ended December 31, 2025, 2024 and 2023. | Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions — Franchise Registration Search | Issued 2026-04-30 Retrieved 2026-08-29 | Newest available at retrieval |
AI-assisted extraction from the archived FDD text, independently machine-verified against the cited source (two passes plus tie-break); not human-reviewed. Extracted 2026-08-29. Last updated 2026-09-05. AI-assisted extraction independently machine-verified against the cited source document (2026-09-01): two independent AI reading passes plus tie-break re-inspection of every disagreement; 55 of 65 material fields confirmed (51 with the exact page citation re-confirmed), 0 corrected, 0 unresolved, 10 confirmed not disclosed. No human has reviewed this profile. Fiscal year covered: FY2025 (Dec 31, 2025). See how we use AI and verify data.
Fields flagged as uncertain (3)
- franchisor.business_since — Item 1 states only that franchises for Subway restaurants have been offered since 1974 and does not give the year the concept began operating, so the field is left null.
- risk.litigation.franchisee_initiated_count — Item 3 counts 47 actions plus 10 franchisor-initiated ones but does not say who brought the 47; Exhibit L entries were not each reviewed.
- investment.alternative_formats[1] and [2] franchise_fee — the multi-unit development fee is a $22,500 to $82,500 range the single-value field cannot hold; see operations.multi_unit.
Extraction notes (8)
- Item 19 contains no financial performance representation, so headline_auv, headline_median and all metrics are null or empty and item19.present is false.
- The item20.franchised_status warnings for all three years are expected: Table No. 3's printed totals do not foot (start plus openings less closures gives 20,178, 19,581 and 18,777 against printed year-ends of 20,133, 19,502 and 18,773). Footnote 3 says reacquired outlets are also counted in Table No. 4 because they are resold within a day or two, which explains most of the gap. Values are recorded exactly as printed.
- Item 7's printed totals do not foot to its line items either: the traditional column sums to about $263,500 low and $631,500 high against printed totals of $263,000 and $630,000, and the non-traditional column sums to about $224,500 against a printed $227,000. The printed totals are recorded and the discrepancy is described in investment.notes.
- Item 20 counts cover the United States and its territories, including Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the Northern Mariana Islands, so us_only is set true. International Subway restaurants operate under separate master franchise arrangements described in Item 1 and are excluded.
- No minimum liquidity or net worth requirement for franchisees appears on the cover pages or in Items 1, 5, 7 or 11; the $10 million net worth figure in Item 5 is one qualifying test for a corporate operator to receive a reduced non-traditional franchise fee, not a general financial requirement.
- No required ongoing local advertising spend was identified; the only local marketing obligation is a one-time grand opening sale, so fees.local_marketing is not_disclosed.
- Page numbers in source citations are physical PDF pages of the 923-page Wisconsin filing, which run about seven pages ahead of the FDD's own printed page numbers.
- Verification 2026-09-01: fix_page /operations/multi_unit 34 → 35
We do not host or redistribute FDD PDFs. Search the registry linked above by franchisor name to obtain the document. Found an error? Report a correction with the field and the primary source.
Compare Subway
Other food & qsr franchises: Crumbl, Domino's Pizza, Dunkin', Eggs Up Grill, Firehouse Subs, Jersey Mike's Subs. See all →