Franchising contributes £19.1 billion to the UK economy and the average franchised unit turns over around £400,000, according to the bfa NatWest Franchise Survey. Almost nine franchised units in ten report being profitable. The question for anyone choosing a network is which sectors carry those returns, what they cost to enter, and how to tell a profitable franchise from a well-marketed one.
Joining a network means starting a business with a brand, a system and a supply chain already built. The bfa NatWest Franchise Survey, the longest-running study of the UK sector, puts the contribution at £19.1 billion, up 12% on the previous survey, with sector turnover spread across tens of thousands of units.
What follows sets out where those returns concentrate, what entry costs look like at each level, and the three measures that separate a genuinely profitable franchise from a persuasive brochure.
Why franchising performs well in the UK
The survey figures describe a sector that has been stable for a long time:
- £19.1 billion contributed to the UK economy, up 12% on the previous survey
- £400,000 average turnover per franchised unit
- 89% of franchised units report being profitable
- Of units trading five years or more, 60% describe themselves as quite or highly profitable
- Around 40% of franchise systems can be run from home, with no premises cost at all
- Fewer than 1% of franchised units close each year through commercial failure
Two of those numbers matter more than the headline. The five-year figure shows profitability building with time rather than arriving at opening. And the home-based share explains why entry costs in the UK start far lower than the average unit turnover suggests.
Good to know
These profitability figures are self-reported by franchisees to a survey, not audited accounts. They are the best sector-wide data the UK has, and the bfa NatWest survey has run for more than thirty years, so the trend is meaningful.
But “89% profitable” says that most franchisees describe themselves as in profit, not what that profit is. No UK franchisor is required to publish what its franchisees earn, and none does in audited form, which is why the three measures further down matter so much.
Which sectors carry the strongest returns
Four families concentrate most of what is on offer in the UK, and they behave very differently on entry cost and on how income arrives.
| Sector | Entry level | How the income behaves |
|---|---|---|
| Property, estate and lettings | Middle to high | Recurring monthly management fees plus transactional sales commission |
| Business services and trades | Middle to high | Repeat contracts with commercial customers, less exposed to consumer spending |
| Home and personal services | Lowest | No premises, territory based, income scales with hours and density |
| Food, drink and retail | Highest | Premises, fit-out, rates and stock before the first sale |
Property is where the audited evidence is strongest. The Property Franchise Group, listed on AIM, runs around 1,900 outlets across 18 brands including Belvoir, Martin & Co, Hunters, Northwood and EweMove, several of which recruit among the property franchises in the UK. Its 2025 results show lettings management service fees of £21.6 million against £10.5 million from sales, with recurring sources making up 51% of group income.
Business services and trades sit behind Franchise Brands plc, also AIM-listed, which reported 2025 adjusted EBITDA of £35.2 million and pre-tax profit of £12.7 million. Its scale sits in the business-to-business division of Pirtek, Metro Rod, Metro Plumb, Filta and Willow Pumps rather than in its consumer brands, because drainage, hydraulics and commercial kitchen services are bought on repeat contracts. Because drainage, hydraulics and commercial kitchen services are bought on repeat contracts, the recurring model behind much of the business services category.
Home and personal services are the cheapest way in. Published figures from brands’ own sites include Barking Mad at £9,995 plus VAT for home-from-home dog boarding, Petpals at £12,500 plus VAT, We Love Pets at £12,995 plus VAT and ChipsAway at £29,995 plus VAT for mobile car repair. Driving instruction is cheaper still and priced weekly, at £75 a week with LDC and £99 a week with RED for instructors using their own car, as our guide to opening a driving school in the UK sets out.
The advantages and the limits of the model
What a franchise gives you:
- A brand customers already recognise, from the first day of trading
- Training and support before opening and afterwards
- Buying power on stock, equipment and often insurance
- A tested operating model, and lead generation in many networks
- Lenders that understand the format, which can ease funding
What it costs you:
- An initial fee, payable before any trading begins
- A management service fee every month, usually a percentage of turnover
- A marketing levy, frequently charged separately
- Compulsory purchasing through nominated suppliers, at network prices
- Little freedom to change the concept, and an operations manual to follow
- A fixed term, with renewal and transfer conditions at the end of it
What investment and funding to plan for
Entry costs in the UK run from under £10,000 for a home-based service franchise to six figures for a food or retail site with premises. The published funding routes are:
- Start Up Loan: £500 to £25,000 per applicant at a fixed 7.5% a year over one to five years, unsecured, with 12 months of free mentoring. Several owners may each apply, to £100,000 per business
- Growth Guarantee Scheme: a 70% government-backed guarantee to the lender, up to £2 million per business group
- Own contribution: British Business Bank guidance indicates that with established franchise brands the franchisee provides at least 30% of total set-up costs, including working capital
- Company registration: £100 online at Companies House, on the fee schedule in force from 1 February 2026
That 30% figure is the one most often quoted loosely. It includes working capital, which is usually the largest single line in a start-up budget, so counting it properly changes the number considerably, as what it costs to open a franchise in the UK sets out.
How to judge whether a franchise is profitable
A brand is not profitable because it is well known. Three measures decide it:
- The ratio of required investment to expected turnover. A £30,000 entry against £120,000 of turnover is a different business from a £200,000 entry against the same figure
- The total of the management service fee and the marketing levy. Added together and applied to turnover, not to profit, these come off before anything else
- The time to recover the investment. Two to three years is the common benchmark for a franchise that works
Editor’s tip
Recurring income is the strongest single signal, and the audited accounts show why. The Property Franchise Group’s lettings management fees, billed monthly on a managed portfolio, produced roughly twice the income of its sales fees, which only arrive on completion. That is why lettings books change hands at a multiple and sales pipelines do not. Applied to any network you are assessing, the question is not what a good month looks like, but how much of the income arrives whether or not this month goes well, which is where how to choose your franchisor starts.
Checks to make before signing
There is no franchise-specific legislation in the UK and no regulator for the sector. The British Franchise Association is a membership body that sets standards for its members, not a regulator, and membership is voluntary. The relationship is governed by the franchise agreement and by ordinary contract law, which makes the document itself the whole framework.
- Read the franchisor’s Companies House filings, which are public and free
- Read the filings of existing franchisees that trade as limited companies, several together
- Speak to franchisees you found yourself, not only those the franchisor introduces
- Ask how many franchisees left in the last three years, and why
- Have the agreement reviewed by a solicitor experienced in franchising
- Build your own business plan and cash flow forecast rather than relying on the franchisor’s projection
The bottom line
- UK franchising contributes £19.1 billion, with average unit turnover around £400,000 and 89% of units reporting profit
- Property and business services carry the strongest audited evidence, through two AIM-listed groups
- Home and personal services are the cheapest entry, from under £10,000
- Funding runs to £25,000 per applicant on a Start Up Loan at a fixed 7.5%
- Judge on investment against turnover, total fees, and time to recover the investment
- Recurring income is the single strongest signal of a profitable network
Frequently asked questions about the most profitable franchises in the UK
Property and business services show the strongest evidence, because both are represented by AIM-listed groups whose accounts are audited. The Property Franchise Group reported 2025 lettings management service fees of £21.6 million against £10.5 million from sales, and Franchise Brands reported adjusted EBITDA of £35.2 million with its scale in business-to-business trades.
Across the whole sector, the bfa NatWest Franchise Survey puts average unit turnover at around £400,000 and reports 89% of units as profitable.
Home-based and territory-based services are the cheapest entry, which is consistent with around 40% of UK franchise systems being operable from home. Published figures from brands’ own sites include Barking Mad at £9,995 plus VAT, Petpals at £12,500 plus VAT and We Love Pets at £12,995 plus VAT.
Driving instruction is priced weekly instead, from £75 a week with LDC. A Start Up Loan of up to £25,000 per applicant at a fixed 7.5% covers much of that range.
No. The UK has no franchise-specific legislation, no sector regulator and no disclosure document, so the relationship is governed by the franchise agreement and ordinary contract law.
The British Franchise Association sets standards for its members but is a membership body rather than a regulator, and membership is voluntary. That is why the agreement should be reviewed by a solicitor experienced in franchising before signature.
No audited average exists, because no UK franchisor is required to publish franchisee earnings. The bfa NatWest Franchise Survey reports average unit turnover of around £400,000 and 89% of units as profitable, but turnover is not income, and the profitability figure is self-reported.
What a franchisee takes home depends on the sector, the fees paid to the franchisor, the premises cost, and how the business is run. Two to three years is the common benchmark for recovering the initial investment.
