Sonic
Food & Beverage · Quick-Service Restaurants
- Active units
- 3,144
- Royalty
- 5.0%
Franchised, year-end 2024
of weekly Net Sales
About Sonic
Sonic Boom is an innovative bounty program designed to empower developers to create groundbreaking applications within the Sonic ecosystem. As part of its enticing initiative, Sonic Boom offers Sonic Gems through a substantial airdrop of 190.5M $S, incentivizing builders across various domains such as payments, lending, NFTs, tooling, stablecoins, gaming, and more. Participants can earn these gems by developing unique apps that meet specific criteria, with multiple winners in each category, including Emerald, Sapphire, and Ruby rankings for outstanding contributions.
In addition to the reward system, Sonic Boom encourages the integration of advanced monetization strategies through its Gas Monetization (GasM) program, which has expanded from 15% to 90%. By collaborating with Safe AA, developers can also enhance their projects and gain additional points. This comprehensive support framework fosters a vibrant community committed to pushing the boundaries of technology, making Sonic Boom a premier destination for aspiring developers looking to make an impact. Join Sonic Boom and help shape the future of Sonic applications!
Key terms
- Franchise fee
$15k
- New Restaurant Opening (NRO) incentive
Royalty reduced: 1% Year 1; 1.5% Year 2; 2% Year 3; 2.5% Year 4; 5% thereafter; SMF contribution 50% off through Year 5 (and possibly through Year 8 under additional conditions).
- Relocation Incentive
Royalty reduced: 1% Year 1; 2% Year 2; 3% Year 3; 5% thereafter.
- Early Opening Incentive
If qualified under NRO and open before required date, 0% royalty until the required opening date (up to 12 months).
- Pioneer Incentive
First person to sign a new Development Agreement for 2+ units in DC, ME, NH, or VT receives 50000 royalty fee credit for each of the first two locations.
- Brand fund
0.9% of Net Sales
- Local advertising
3.3% of Net Sales
- Footprint
1,250 – 1,500 sq ft
- Development Agreement
$10k
- Veteran discount
10000.0% off franchise fee — VetFran Program provides a royalty fee credit of 10000 per qualifying Traditional Drive-In or Drive-Thru Only Location (up to 100000 total). Not a discount to the franchise fee.
Brand Percentile Rankings
Rankings compare brands in the same operating year. Fee and investment figures come from the FDD (2025 filing); filings on file: 2024, 2025.
Growth
- Total locations—
Franchised units open at year-end
- New openings—
Gross new units opened during the calendar year
- 1-year unit growth rate—
Net unit growth versus prior year
- 3-year unit CAGR—
Compound annual growth rate of unit count over the trailing 3 years
- Unit growth ratio—
Cumulative opens / closures through year-end
Unit economics
- Annual unit volume (Median)$1.6M
Per Item 19 Note (1): “AUV” or “Unit Volume” is the same as Gross Sales (all revenues).
- Annual unit volume (25th percentile)$1.1M
AUV equals Gross Sales. Period Jan 1–Dec 29, 2024. Includes 3,086 franchised traditional restaurants; excludes 30 opened in 2024, 26 temporarily closed for ext…
- Annual unit volume (75th percentile)$1.9M
AUV equals Gross Sales. Period Jan 1–Dec 29, 2024. Includes 3,086 franchised traditional restaurants; excludes 30 opened in 2024, 26 temporarily closed for ext…
- 1-year Median AUV growth rate-1.4%
Year-over-year change in median AUV
- Store-level EBITDA Margin—
Median unit-level EBITDA / AUV
Investment profile
- Estimated initial investment$2.4M
Midpoint of estimated initial investment range
↓ Lower is better - Time to open9 months
Midpoint of average time from agreement to opening
↓ Lower is better - Royalty rate5.0%
Percent of net sales paid to the franchisor
↓ Lower is better - Sales-to-investment ratio0.7×
Median AUV / estimated initial investment midpoint
- Cash-on-cash returns—
Median unit-level EBITDA / estimated initial investment midpoint. Steady-state estimate; year 1 returns will be lower as the unit ramps to median volumes.
Franchisee healthLocked
- Unit closure ratio
- Transfer vs. closure ratio
- Percent multi-unit franchisees
- Litigation rate
- EBITDA multiple on sales & transfers
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Location footprint
Showing 735 of 1000 mapped locations
Sources
Financial and operating figures are sourced from the brand's Franchise Disclosure Documents. Brand percentile rankings are based on comparisons to other brands that include the same metrics in their Franchise Disclosure Documents.