Survey
How Much Does it Cost to Open a Restaurant?
People who want to get into the restaurant business are always asking, "How much does it cost to open a restaurant?"
We surveyed our members to find out the total startup costs involved in opening their restaurant. We received more than 350 responses from a wide variety of restaurants. Of course, no two restaurants are the same, and the cost per square foot to open a restaurant varies greatly depending upon a litany of factors such as service style, decor, size, location and more. Nevertheless, we were able to uncover a number of statistics that can be useful when planning your startup.
To help you analyze these results we provide a summary report which provides the most important figures from each section of the survey. In order to see more detailed information and draw more meaningful comparisons, scroll down to view the results of only those restaurants that more closely resemble your own concept.
Download the Independent Restaurant Cost to Open Survey Report
Preview
This form is available in the following formats. You must have a compatible program installed on your computer to use them.
Click to Download Adobe PDF format
| View filtered responses and summary reports in the following areas below: | |
|---|---|
| Service type (full service, limited service, bar, takeout) | |
| Tenant space vs. Free-standing building | |
| New construction vs. Remodels | |
| Survey Summary - All Respondents | |||
| Sales-Investment Results | Lower Quartile | Median | Upper Quartile |
| Annual sales | $550,500 | $1,125,000 | $1,880,000 |
| Sales per sq. ft. | $209 | $325 | $535 |
| Sales per seat | $6,340 | $10,567 | $15,667 |
| Annual profit-$ | $0 | $71,325 | $168,750 |
| Profit-% | 0.0% | 5.5% | 15.0% |
| Sales to Investment Ratio | 1.6 to 1 | 2.8 to 1 | 5.0 to 1 |
| Annual return on investment (ROI) | 0.0% | 17.0% | 43.2% |
| # of months it took to become profitable | 2 | 5 | 12 |
| Cost Estimates | Lower Quartile | Median | Upper Quartile |
| Total startup cost | $175,500 | $375,500 | $750,500 |
| Startup cost per sq. ft. | $59 | $113 | $220 |
| Startup cost per seat | $1,820 | $3,586 | $6,808 |
| Construction cost-$ | $70,000 | $200,000 | $472,500 |
| Construction Cost-% of Overall Startup | 36.5% | 57.9% | 72.6% |
| Construction cost per sq. ft. | $24 | $65 | $143 |
| Construction cost per seat | $724 | $2,000 | $4,326 |
| Kitchen & bar equip. cost-$ | $40,000 | $95,000 | $196,250 |
| Kitchen & bar cost per sq. ft. | $50 | $100 | $177 |
| Preopening expenses | $10,000 | $20,000 | $50,000 |
| Space Requirements | Lower Quartile | Median | Upper Quartile |
| Total sq. ft. | 2,000 | 3,070 | 5,000 |
| Kitchen sq. ft. | 600 | 1,000 | 1,500 |
| Kitchen % of overall sq. ft. | 21.2% | 31.0% | 41.7% |
| Total # seats | 65 | 120 | 176 |
| Sq. ft. per seat | 24 | 31 | 40 |
