Franchise opportunities compared
DQ Grill Chill vs Moe’s Southwest Grill
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.
Before you compare
- Both sets of figures come from 2026 FDDs.
- Item 19 figures cover the location groups each FDD names (DQ Grill Chill: 23, Moe’s Southwest Grill: 5). Different groups are not directly comparable.
| Disclosure | DGDQ Grill Chill | MSMoe’s Southwest Grill |
|---|---|---|
| Financial commitment | ||
| Estimated initial investment (Item 7) | $1,510,100 or third party suppliers TOTAL (15)(16) — $1510100 2026 FDD · Item 7 · PDF p. 28 | $644,425 Endcap and Inline 23 $644,425 $1,401,650 Total Initial Investment – Freestanding 23 — 644425 2026 FDD · Item 7 · PDF p. 43 |
| Standard initial franchise fee (Item 5) | $10,000 2026 FDD · Item 5 · PDF p. 21 | $7,500 2026 FDD · Item 5 · PDF p. 29 |
| Royalty (Item 6) | $4.00 be the mid-point between the continuing license fee in effect for years 1-5 and — 4% 2026 FDD · Item 6 · PDF p. 26 | $5.00 OTHER FEES Type of Fee 1 Amount Date Due Remarks Royalty Fee — 5% 2026 FDD · Item 6 · PDF p. 30 |
| Brand / advertising fund (Item 6) | Not available No reviewed brand or advertising fund fee | $1.00 Marketing Obligation Currently, each calendar quarter, you must spend not less than — 1% 2026 FDD · Item 6 · PDF p. 31 |
| System scale & health | ||
| Total outlets (Item 20) | Not available No reviewed outlet counts | 1,136 Outlets at end of 2025 2026 FDD · Item 20 · PDF p. 85 |
| Net outlet change (Item 20) | Not available Only one year reported | −88 Calculated: 1,224 at end of 2023 → 1,136 at end of 2025 |
| Outlet exits (Item 20) | Not available No complete exit records for a year | Not available No complete exit records for a year |
| Franchising since (Item 1) | Not available Not in reviewed records | 2001 From a verified franchisor listing |
| Franchisor founded (Item 1) | Not available Not in reviewed records | Not available Not in reviewed records |
| Performance (Item 19) | ||
| Financial performance (Item 19), by location group | Locations counted not stated in the reviewed record — Schedule A restaurants 110 units other Schedule A restaurants excluded from Schedule B 2024 · 2026 FDD · Item 19 · PDF p. 69 Locations counted not stated in the reviewed record — Schedule A: newly constructed freestanding, franchisee-owned and operated DQ Gr… $3,135,208 other aurants Meeting or Exceeding the Average 45% 44% 42% 44% High Annual Gross Sales · 2026 FDD · Item 19 · PDF p. 66 Locations counted not stated in the reviewed record — Schedule B subset: restaurants with usable franchisee P&Ls for the year 31.76 percent other Sales 157 $1,410,815 $3,135,532 $1,376,354 $650,772 70 45% · 2026 FDD · Item 19 · PDF p. 67 +20 more groups in the full report | Locations counted not stated in the reviewed record — Traditional eligiblefranchises Top Quartile $1,686,299 other Top Quartile · 2026 FDD · Item 19 · PDF p. 83 Locations counted not stated in the reviewed record — Traditional eligiblefranchises Total $1,137,571 other Total · 2026 FDD · Item 19 · PDF p. 83 Locations counted not stated in the reviewed record — Traditional eligiblefranchises 3rd Quartile $879,161 other 3rd Quartile · 2026 FDD · Item 19 · PDF p. 83 +2 more groups in the full report |
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.