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    Franchise opportunities compared

    Happy Joes vs Huddle House, Inc.

    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.

    Happy Joes2026 FDDHuddle House, Inc.2025 FDD

    Initial investment · Item 7

    Happy Joes

    $252,750

    2026 FDD · Item 7 · PDF p. 12

    Huddle House, Inc.

    $380,880 – $2,381,275

    2025 FDD · Item 7

    Initial franchise fee · Item 5

    Happy Joes

    $40,000

    2026 FDD · Item 5 · PDF p. 11

    Huddle House, Inc.

    $35,000

    2025 FDD · Item 5 · PDF p. 17

    Royalty · Item 6

    Happy Joes

    Not available

    Huddle House, Inc.

    4.75%

    2025 FDD · Item 6 · PDF p. 21

    Before you compare

    • Happy Joes figures come from its 2026 FDD and Huddle House, Inc. figures from its 2025 FDD, so the years differ.
    • Huddle House, Inc. discloses more than one business format, so the investment range spans formats; the full report breaks them out.
    • Item 19 figures cover the location groups each FDD names (Happy Joes: 13, Huddle House, Inc.: 65). Different groups are not directly comparable.

    Financial commitment

    Estimated initial investment (Item 7)

    Happy Joes

    $252,750
    Total initial investment — $252,750–$846,250
    2026 FDD · Item 7 · PDF p. 12

    Huddle House, Inc.

    $380,880 – $2,381,275
    2025 FDD · Item 7
    Standard initial franchise fee (Item 5)

    Happy Joes

    $40,000
    2026 FDD · Item 5 · PDF p. 11

    Huddle House, Inc.

    $35,000
    2025 FDD · Item 5 · PDF p. 17
    Royalty (Item 6)

    Happy Joes

    Not available
    No reviewed royalty record

    Huddle House, Inc.

    4.75%
    Royalty
    2025 FDD · Item 6 · PDF p. 21
    Brand / advertising fund (Item 6)

    Happy Joes

    Not available
    No reviewed brand or advertising fund fee

    Huddle House, Inc.

    3.5%
    Advertising Fund — traditional Unit — 3.5%
    2025 FDD · Item 6 · PDF p. 21

    System scale & health

    Total outlets (Item 20)

    Happy Joes

    1
    Outlets at end of 2025
    2026 FDD · Item 20 · PDF p. 25

    Huddle House, Inc.

    269
    Outlets at end of 2024
    2025 FDD · Item 20 · PDF p. 82
    Net outlet change (Item 20)

    Happy Joes

    +0
    Calculated: 1 at end of 2023 → 1 at end of 2025

    Huddle House, Inc.

    −17
    Calculated: 286 at end of 2022 → 269 at end of 2024
    Outlet exits (Item 20)

    Happy Joes

    Not available
    No complete exit records for a year

    Huddle House, Inc.

    Not available
    No complete exit records for a year
    Franchising since (Item 1)

    Happy Joes

    Not available
    Not in reviewed records

    Huddle House, Inc.

    1966
    From a verified franchisor listing
    Franchisor founded (Item 1)

    Happy Joes

    Not available
    Not in reviewed records

    Huddle House, Inc.

    Not available
    Not in reviewed records

    Financial performance (Item 19), by location group

    Happy Joes
    Locations counted not stated in the reviewed record — Locust restaurant
    100 percent
    other Total revenue
    2026 FDD · Item 19 · PDF p. 22
    Locations counted not stated in the reviewed record — Bettendorf restaurant
    58 percent
    other Gross profit
    2026 FDD · Item 19 · PDF p. 22
    Locations counted not stated in the reviewed record — West 50th restaurant
    28.9 percent
    other Total controllable payroll expenses
    2026 FDD · Item 19 · PDF p. 22
    +10 more groups in the full report
    Huddle House, Inc.
    Locations counted not stated in the reviewed record — Franchised Huddle House units participating in the VDC Product Offering during…
    $249
    other 2024 Franchised Huddle House Units participating in VDC 2024
    2025 FDD · Item 19 · PDF p. 80
    Locations counted not stated in the reviewed record — Company-Operated Huddle House Units participating in Papa Corazón’s LPL in 2024
    $37,628
    other 2024 Company-Operated Huddle House Units participating in Papa Corazón’s LPL 2024
    2025 FDD · Item 19 · PDF p. 80
    Locations counted not stated in the reviewed record — Company-operated Huddle House units participating in Papa Corazón’s LPL during…
    $11,790
    other 2024 Company-Operated Huddle House Units participating in Papa Corazón’s LPL 2024
    2025 FDD · Item 19 · PDF p. 80
    +62 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.

    Happy Joes vs Huddle House, Inc.: common questions

    Which costs less to open, Happy Joes or Huddle House, Inc.?
    Happy Joes: $252,750 (2026 FDD · Item 7 · PDF p. 12); Huddle House, Inc.: $380,880 – $2,381,275 (2025 FDD · Item 7). These are each franchisor's Item 7 estimated initial investment. The low end of the disclosed estimate is lower for Happy Joes. At least one range spans several business formats. Estimates are not quotes, and the FDD years may differ.
    Which has more locations, Happy Joes or Huddle House, Inc.?
    Happy Joes: 1 (2026 FDD · Item 20 · PDF p. 25); Huddle House, Inc.: 269 (2025 FDD · Item 20 · PDF p. 82). Total outlets from Item 20. Outlet counts do not indicate territory availability or franchisee results.
    Do Happy Joes and Huddle House, Inc. disclose financial performance (Item 19)?
    Happy Joes has reviewed Item 19 figures for 13 location groups; Huddle House, Inc. has reviewed Item 19 figures for 65 location groups. 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

    Keep researching

    Full Happy Joes report

    Every reviewed fee, Item 19 group, outlet table and territory disclosure

    Full Huddle House, Inc. report

    Every reviewed fee, Item 19 group, outlet table and territory disclosure

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