If burgers are your passion but the thought of opening your own restaurant is overwhelming, think about investing in one of this year’s best burger franchises.
All of today’s top burger franchises have developed a method of doing business that works well and produces successful results. That’s a win-win for a burger lover like you who is looking to get into the business but leery of starting from scratch.
MORE: TOP RESTAURANT FRANCHISES
From the long-established to the fast-growing, browse our listing of top burger franchises to help narrow your search. With the right match, you can end up with a long-term, successful and fulfilling burger franchise.
Mooyah
Min Investment: $100,000
MOOYAH Burgers, Fries & Shakes is a fast-casual, “better burger” concept serving made-to-order burgers, hand-cut fries and handcrafted ice cream shakes in a vibrant atmosphere with outstanding guest service. MOOYAH’s first-class operations and in-restaurant support team focus on driving sales through a high use of technology and hands-on active support. Through its team of experienced multi-unit/multi-brand franchisees, MOOYAH is positioned for extensive market share of the $72 billion Fast Casual Better Burger segment.
Five Guys
Min Investment: $150,000
Five Guys Burgers & Fries was founded in 1986 and within a year and a half expanded to more than 300 units. Now, 25 years later, there are more than 900 Five Guys locations throughout the nation, with plans for 1,500 locations in development. Five Guys cooks and prepares burgers to order and no two burgers are alike. Besides their famous burgers, Five Guys serves hot dogs, including Kosher and a bacon cheese dog, sandwiches like grilled cheese and veggie.
Wayback Burgers
Min Investment: $100,000
Wayback Burgers began back in 1991 as Jake’s Hamburgers with a single restaurant in Newark, Delaware. Twenty years later, Wayback Burgers is rapidly expanding its stores, recently reaching over 200 contracted locations with 76 currently operating nationally. Wayback Burgers features a brand new “Burger of the Month” and “Shake of the Month,” and burgers are just the beginning: house-made potato chips, all beef hot dogs, marinated chicken sandwiches, turkey burgers, specialty sandwiches and fresh salads are available as well.
Johnny Rocket’s
Min Investment: $200,000
The first Johnny Rockets was launched in 1986 in Los Angeles, Cali. based on the concept that everyone deserves a place where they can escape from today’s complicated world and experience the uncomplicated goodness of classic Americana. Every Johnny Rockets burger franchise serves simple, great-tasting food from a menu of all-American favorites, including juicy hamburgers, crispy American Fries, classic sandwiches and rich, delicious hand-dipped shakes and malts. Johnny Rockets has 330 corporate and franchise-owned restaurants in 32 states and 27 countries.
The Burger Bistros
Min Investment: $100,000
The Burger Bistro is a full-service restaurant with quality cooks, servers and managers. Bistro Burger’s menu boasts two million different combinations of burgers and has garnered the title of “Second Best Burger in New York City” from Zagat. Burger Bistro’s upscale setting separates it from the abundance of counter-service concepts. There are no 3,000 sq. ft. locations with huge overhead to generate million dollar stores – instead, most Burger Bistro franchises are only 1,200 sq. ft.
Farmer Boys
Min Investment: $300,000
From a start as a chain of eight family owned restaurants, Farmer Boys has built a burger franchise operation today that includes 77 restaurants in locations across 11 California counties and in Nevada. Farmer Boys prides itself on 100% pure USDA beef, and hand-smashed avocado, locally sourced whenever possible; crisp veggies served within days of harvest; family recipe bacon; and award-winning American cheese on locally-baked buns.
Great Steaks
Min Investment: $100,000
Since 1982, Great Steak has been serving the finest cheesesteaks in hundreds of franchise locations across the U.S. and abroad. The rich history of the American Philly cheesesteak has inspired the Great Steak brand to honor the cheesesteak’s early beginnings by serving quality, affordable meals that taste great. At the same time, Great Steak continues to innovate in the cheesesteak category by offering guests a variety of menu options that include specialty sandwiches, baked potatoes and famous fries.
HWY 55
Min Investment: $125,000
Hwy 55 Burgers Shakes & Fries has been serving up good times and great food since 1991. The franchise has achieved a lot in the last 24 years, growing to over 100 restaurants across North Carolina, South Carolina, Alabama, Tennessee, Virginia, Ohio, Texas and Florida, with hundreds more locations scheduled to open in the next seven years. During that time, its mission has remained the same: to provide each guest with world-class service and fresh food in a family atmosphere.
Teddy’s Bigger Burgers
Min Investment: $150,000
Teddy’s Bigger Burgers got its start in the backyard cookouts of owners Ted and Rich. The two loved good burgers but couldn’t understand why there weren’t any fast food restaurants that offered the quality of their home-cooked burgers in a quick service environment. Today, Teddy’s uses only 100% fresh chilled ground chuck. Its burgers are hand-pattied daily and always charbroiled to order, and its produce and buns are the highest quality and are delivered fresh daily. Teddy’s operates several popular burger franchise locations on Oahu, HI and is currently expanding.