Which costs less to open, Mac Tools or Southern Steer Butcher?

Mac Tools: $9,750 – $418,385 (2026 FDD · Item 7); Southern Steer Butcher: $376,223 – $2,364,529 (2026 FDD · Item 7). These are each franchisor's Item 7 estimated initial investment. The low end of the disclosed estimate is lower for Mac Tools. At least one range spans several business formats. Estimates are not quotes, and the FDD years may differ.

Which has more locations, Mac Tools or Southern Steer Butcher?

Mac Tools: 832 (2026 FDD · Item 20 · PDF p. 82); Southern Steer Butcher: 9 (2026 FDD · Item 20 · PDF p. 57). Total outlets from Item 20. Outlet counts do not indicate territory availability or franchisee results.

Do Mac Tools and Southern Steer Butcher disclose financial performance (Item 19)?

Mac Tools has reviewed Item 19 figures for 1 location group; Southern Steer Butcher has reviewed Item 19 figures for 172 location groups. Different location groups are not directly comparable, and revenue is not profit.

Franchise opportunities compared

Mac Tools vs Southern Steer Butcher

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.

Mac Tools2026 FDD

Southern Steer Butcher2026 FDD

Initial investment · Item 7

Mac Tools

$9,750 – $418,385

2026 FDD · Item 7

Southern Steer Butcher

$376,223 – $2,364,529

2026 FDD · Item 7

Initial franchise fee · Item 5

Mac Tools

$8,000

2026 FDD · Item 5 · PDF p. 16

Southern Steer Butcher

$59,500

2026 FDD · Item 5 · PDF p. 9

Royalty · Item 6

Mac Tools

Not available

Southern Steer Butcher

2026 FDD · Item 6 · PDF p. 11

Before you compare

Both sets of figures come from 2026 FDDs.
Mac Tools and Southern Steer Butcher disclose 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 (Mac Tools: 1, Southern Steer Butcher: 172). Different groups are not directly comparable.

Financial commitment

Disclosure

Mac Tools

Southern Steer Butcher

Estimated initial investment (Item 7)

Mac Tools

$9,750 – $418,385

2026 FDD · Item 7

Southern Steer Butcher

$376,223 – $2,364,529

2026 FDD · Item 7

Standard initial franchise fee (Item 5)

Mac Tools

$8,000

2026 FDD · Item 5 · PDF p. 16

Southern Steer Butcher

$59,500

2026 FDD · Item 5 · PDF p. 9

Royalty (Item 6)

Mac Tools

Not available

No reviewed royalty record

Southern Steer Butcher

Royalty — tier 1 rate

2026 FDD · Item 6 · PDF p. 11

Brand / advertising fund (Item 6)

Mac Tools

Not available

No reviewed brand or advertising fund fee

Southern Steer Butcher

Brand Fund Contribution — 2%

2026 FDD · Item 6 · PDF p. 11

System scale & health

Disclosure

Mac Tools

Southern Steer Butcher

Total outlets (Item 20)

Mac Tools

832

Outlets at end of 2025

2026 FDD · Item 20 · PDF p. 82

Southern Steer Butcher

Outlets at end of 2025

2026 FDD · Item 20 · PDF p. 57

Net outlet change (Item 20)

Mac Tools

+19

Calculated: 813 at end of 2023 → 832 at end of 2025

Southern Steer Butcher

Calculated: 4 at end of 2023 → 9 at end of 2025

Outlet exits (Item 20)

Mac Tools

Not available

No complete exit records for a year

Southern Steer Butcher

Not available

No complete exit records for a year

Franchising since (Item 1)

Mac Tools

March 2007

2026 FDD · Item 1 · PDF p. 10

Southern Steer Butcher

Not available

Not in reviewed records

Franchisor founded (Item 1)

Mac Tools

Not available

Not in reviewed records

Southern Steer Butcher

Not available

Not in reviewed records

Financial performance (Item 19), by location group

Mac Tools

Franchised (894 routes) — revenue

$19,457 per Route

other Gross sales

2026 FDD · Item 19 · PDF p. 80

Southern Steer Butcher

Locations counted not stated in the reviewed record — Franchisee-operated Ocoee, Florida location; January 1–December 31, 2025; Net I…

$162,923

other Ocoee

2026 FDD · Item 19 · PDF p. 54

Locations counted not stated in the reviewed record — Franchisee-operated Jacksonville, Florida location; January 1–December 31, 2025…

$16,725

other Jacksonville

2026 FDD · Item 19 · PDF p. 53

Locations counted not stated in the reviewed record — Franchisee-operated St. Petersburg, Florida location; January 1–December 31, 20…

$182,135

other St. Petersburg

2026 FDD · Item 19 · PDF p. 54

+169 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.

Mac Tools vs Southern Steer Butcher: common questions

Which costs less to open, Mac Tools or Southern Steer Butcher?: Mac Tools: $9,750 – $418,385 (2026 FDD · Item 7); Southern Steer Butcher: $376,223 – $2,364,529 (2026 FDD · Item 7). These are each franchisor's Item 7 estimated initial investment. The low end of the disclosed estimate is lower for Mac Tools. At least one range spans several business formats. Estimates are not quotes, and the FDD years may differ.
Which has more locations, Mac Tools or Southern Steer Butcher?: Mac Tools: 832 (2026 FDD · Item 20 · PDF p. 82); Southern Steer Butcher: 9 (2026 FDD · Item 20 · PDF p. 57). Total outlets from Item 20. Outlet counts do not indicate territory availability or franchisee results.
Do Mac Tools and Southern Steer Butcher disclose financial performance (Item 19)?: Mac Tools has reviewed Item 19 figures for 1 location group; Southern Steer Butcher has reviewed Item 19 figures for 172 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