Which costs less to open, Card My Yard or Dealer Specialties?

Card My Yard: $10,350 – $18,550 (2026 FDD · Item 7 · PDF p. 24); Dealer Specialties: $17,400 – $44,900 (2025 FDD · Item 7 · PDF p. 12). These are each franchisor's Item 7 estimated initial investment. The low end of the disclosed estimate is lower for Card My Yard. Estimates are not quotes, and the FDD years may differ.

Which has more locations, Card My Yard or Dealer Specialties?

Card My Yard: 492 (2026 FDD · Item 20 · PDF p. 59); Dealer Specialties: 21 (2025 FDD · Item 20 · PDF p. 31). Total outlets from Item 20. Outlet counts do not indicate territory availability or franchisee results.

Do Card My Yard and Dealer Specialties disclose financial performance (Item 19)?

Card My Yard has reviewed Item 19 figures for 5 location groups; Dealer Specialties makes no Item 19 financial performance representation. Different location groups are not directly comparable, and revenue is not profit.

Franchise opportunities compared

Card My Yard vs Dealer Specialties

Reviewed figures from each brand's Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD), side by side. Each figure carries its FDD year and page. This is not a ranking or recommendation, and the two FDDs may cover different years and location groups.

Card My Yard2026 FDD

Dealer Specialties2025 FDD

Initial investment · Item 7

Card My Yard

$10,350 – $18,550

2026 FDD · Item 7 · PDF p. 24

Dealer Specialties

$17,400 – $44,900

2025 FDD · Item 7 · PDF p. 12

Initial franchise fee · Item 5

Card My Yard

$8,500

2026 FDD · Item 5 · PDF p. 14

Dealer Specialties

$10,000

2025 FDD · Item 5 · PDF p. 9

Royalty · Item 6

Card My Yard

Not available

Dealer Specialties

$100

2025 FDD · Item 6 · PDF p. 9

Before you compare

Card My Yard figures come from its 2026 FDD and Dealer Specialties figures from its 2025 FDD, so the years differ.
Only Card My Yard has reviewed Item 19 figures here.

Financial commitment

Disclosure

Card My Yard

Dealer Specialties

Estimated initial investment (Item 7)

Card My Yard

$10,350 – $18,550

TOTAL

2026 FDD · Item 7 · PDF p. 24

Dealer Specialties

$17,400 – $44,900

Total initial investment (range 17400–44900)

2025 FDD · Item 7 · PDF p. 12

Standard initial franchise fee (Item 5)

Card My Yard

$8,500

2026 FDD · Item 5 · PDF p. 14

Dealer Specialties

$10,000

2025 FDD · Item 5 · PDF p. 9

Royalty (Item 6)

Card My Yard

Not available

No reviewed royalty record

Dealer Specialties

$100

Royalty and continuing service minimum per dealer lot

2025 FDD · Item 6 · PDF p. 9

Brand / advertising fund (Item 6)

Card My Yard

$50/mo

Marketing Fund — Greater of 0.5% of monthly Gross Sales or $50 per month in the first 12 months and $100 per month thereafter

2026 FDD · Item 6 · PDF p. 17

Dealer Specialties

$0.03

Advertising fee per unique VIN

2025 FDD · Item 6 · PDF p. 9

System scale & health

Disclosure

Card My Yard

Dealer Specialties

Total outlets (Item 20)

Card My Yard

492

Outlets at end of 2025

2026 FDD · Item 20 · PDF p. 59

Dealer Specialties

Outlets at end of 2024

2025 FDD · Item 20 · PDF p. 31

Net outlet change (Item 20)

Card My Yard

−40

Calculated: 532 at end of 2023 → 492 at end of 2025

Dealer Specialties

−63

Calculated: 84 at end of 2022 → 21 at end of 2024

Outlet exits (Item 20)

Card My Yard

Not available

No complete exit records for a year

Dealer Specialties

Not available

No complete exit records for a year

Franchising since (Item 1)

Card My Yard

October 2020

2026 FDD · Item 1 · PDF p. 9

Dealer Specialties

Not available

Not in reviewed records

Franchisor founded (Item 1)

Card My Yard

September 3, 2020

2026 FDD · Item 1 · PDF p. 9

Dealer Specialties

Not available

Not in reviewed records

Financial performance (Item 19), by location group

Card My Yard

Franchised (457 locations) — other measures and revenue

$127 per order

mean Ticket Price per Order

2026 FDD · Item 19 · PDF p. 56

Franchised (94 locations) — revenue and other measures

$9,298

mean Gross Sales

2026 FDD · Item 19 · PDF p. 54

Franchised (410 locations) — adjusted operating results — System (all franchise locations over 1 year old)

$4,524

mean First Year Gross Profit

2026 FDD · Item 19 · PDF p. 56

+2 more groups in the full report

Dealer Specialties

Not disclosed — no Item 19 financial performance representation

Item 19 groups are shown separately and never combined. Revenue or sales figures are not profit. Net outlet change and turnover are Franopolis calculations from the disclosed counts; turnover is a count-based rate, not a measure of owner earnings.

Card My Yard vs Dealer Specialties: common questions

Which costs less to open, Card My Yard or Dealer Specialties?: Card My Yard: $10,350 – $18,550 (2026 FDD · Item 7 · PDF p. 24); Dealer Specialties: $17,400 – $44,900 (2025 FDD · Item 7 · PDF p. 12). These are each franchisor's Item 7 estimated initial investment. The low end of the disclosed estimate is lower for Card My Yard. Estimates are not quotes, and the FDD years may differ.
Which has more locations, Card My Yard or Dealer Specialties?: Card My Yard: 492 (2026 FDD · Item 20 · PDF p. 59); Dealer Specialties: 21 (2025 FDD · Item 20 · PDF p. 31). Total outlets from Item 20. Outlet counts do not indicate territory availability or franchisee results.
Do Card My Yard and Dealer Specialties disclose financial performance (Item 19)?: Card My Yard has reviewed Item 19 figures for 5 location groups; Dealer Specialties makes no Item 19 financial performance representation. Different location groups are not directly comparable, and revenue is not profit.

Answers restate the reviewed figures above. Not a ranking or recommendation.

How Franopolis reviews FDD figures