Monster Tree Service franchise unit economics

Revenue a territory

How much does a Monster Tree Service franchise make?

Source: Item 19, Table 2, as printed. Franchisees with several territories do not report each territory separately; the FDD states the figures are based on the totals for all territories a franchisee owns. Excluded: 15 franchisees with 27 territories that ceased operating during 2025.

142 territories averaged $574,903 of gross revenue in 2025, at a median of $549,358. 63 of them, 44%, were at or above the average. The highest territory had $1,874,987 and the lowest $67,196.

The top quartile averaged $950,676 a territory and the bottom quartile $242,103. The top average is 3.9* times the bottom. The four quartile totals add to $81,636,269*, $1 more than the printed total.

Item 19 reports figures for territories and for franchisees. At December 31, 2025, it states, 60 franchisees were operating in 142 territories. A typical territory holds about 80,000 single-family homes, and the business may be run from a home office.

Franchisees averaged 1,508 estimates, a 54% close ratio and an average job size of $1,998 in 2025. These figures cover 51 franchisees with 124 territories that used the required estimating and job-costing software. The medians were 1,134 estimates, 52% and $1,923.

Repeat customers produced 32.4% of 2025 revenue for 47 franchisees. Those franchisees, with 125 territories, had $69,349,757 of gross revenue, of which $22,464,064 came from clients they had served in 2022 to 2024.

Systemwide sales

Systemwide sales and territory count, 2021 to 2025

Source: Item 19, Table 1. Sales, growth and the territory count are as printed. Sales a territory divides systemwide sales by the territory count and is an Averan calculation. Data before May 14, 2021 was collected by the franchisor’s predecessor.

Systemwide sales were $83,845,069 in 2025, down 1% on 2024. They were highest in 2022, at $89,685,571, and fell 3% in 2023, 2% in 2024 and 1% in 2025.

The Table 1 territory count fell from 265 in 2023 to 177 in 2025, 33%* lower. Sales a territory rose from $328,029* to $473,701* over the same two years, an increase of 44%*.

The 2025 figure of $473,701* a territory differs from the $574,903 average in Table 2. Table 1 counts every territory that operated for any part of the year. Table 2 covers the 142 that operated for all of 2025 and leaves out 27 territories whose franchisees ceased operating during the year.

Item 20 states that some territories were merged into existing territories. It lists 19* territories merged during 2024 and 5* after the end of 2024, and says these mergers ended a franchise agreement without a loss of geographic coverage.

Franchisee quartiles

Revenue, gross margin and EBITDA by franchisee quartile, 2025

Source: Item 19, Table 3, as printed, except the two rows marked *, which divide by the territories in each quartile. The group excludes franchisees that opened or ceased operating during 2025 and 2 that did not submit complete QuickBooks profit and loss statements. In every column, printed gross profit less printed operating expenses does not equal printed EBITDA, and the FDD does not explain the difference. The FDD prints a median EBITDA of $1,061,521 for the whole group, above the highest EBITDA it prints, so that figure is left out of the table.

The 40 franchisees averaged $1,548,004 of revenue and $275,010 of EBITDA in 2025, an 18% margin. Median revenue was $1,284,922. The FDD defines EBITDA as gross revenue less total expenses. Operating expenses include royalty and brand fund payments and exclude owner compensation, taxes and finance charges.

EBITDA margins were 19% in quartiles 1 and 2, 15% in quartile 3 and 14% in quartile 4. Quartile 1 franchisees averaged $2,764,884 of revenue and quartile 4 franchisees $735,010.

Gross margin was highest in quartile 3, at 57%, and lowest in quartile 4, at 48%. Cost of goods sold covers hourly production labor with workers’ compensation, dumping and hauling, equipment rental, materials, subcontractors, fuel and vehicle repairs. Across the 40 franchisees, gross margin ranged from 24% to 84%.

EBITDA ranged from a loss of $189,232 to $1,031,635. The loss is in quartile 4, which also holds a franchisee with $329,609 of EBITDA, more than the highest in quartile 3. 16 of the 40 franchisees, 40%, were above the average EBITDA.

Quartile 1 franchisees held 3.8* territories each, against 2.0* to 2.3* in the other quartiles. On a territory basis, EBITDA was $140,457* in quartile 1, $144,947* in quartile 2, $69,545* in quartile 3 and $50,981* in quartile 4.

Brand charges

Brand charges

Source: Item 6 and its notes. Item 6 states that each fee applies to each territory separately. Dollar figures apply the terms to the Table 2 average territory and are Averan’s. Not included: GPS fees, call center fees paid to a vendor, the annual conference, and transfer, renewal and late fees. Under a multi-territory addendum the weekly minimum is aggregated: from month 37, $1,176 a week for two territories and $1,575 for three.

At the $574,903 average territory, royalty, brand fund and technology fees come to $44,818*, or 7.80%* of revenue. Local marketing at 5% adds $28,745*, which takes the total to $73,563*, or 12.80%*.

The royalty rate steps down within each calendar year and returns to 6.5% each January. The lower rates apply to revenue above $1,000,000, $2,000,000 and $3,000,000 in the year. The Table 2 average territory, $574,903, falls within the 6.5% step.

From month 37 the minimum royalty for a single territory is $625 a week, or $32,500* a year. 6.5% of revenue equals that amount at $500,000* a year. The bottom quartile of territories averaged $242,103, on which 6.5% is $15,737*. If the 13th month of operation falls between November and March, the minimum starts in the first full week of April.

After the first three years, the local marketing requirement is waived while gross revenue exceeds the minimum performance requirement. Fees for website management and search engine optimization still apply, and the franchisor can reinstate the requirement if a franchisee misses the minimum by the end of a calendar year. During the first three years, the franchisor can require local marketing funds to be paid to it, an affiliate or a vendor.

The minimum gross revenue for a single territory is $280,000 in months 13–24, $400,000 in months 25–36 and $500,000 from month 37. A franchisee that misses it can be required to follow a revenue improvement program, after which the franchisor can reduce the territory or terminate the agreement for it. Under a multi-territory addendum the minimum from month 37 is $940,000 for two territories and $1,260,000 for three.

Cost to open

Cost to open

Source: Item 7 and its notes. The equipment and vehicles line assumes the equipment is financed with 20% down; Item 7 Note 5 prices the required equipment and vehicles at $299,000 to $368,500 in total. Additional funds cover staff and operating costs for the first 12 months and do not include an owner’s salary or draw.

A single territory costs $335,040 to $489,775 to open, of which $55,500 is paid to the franchisor or its affiliates. That amount is the $49,500 initial fee and the $6,000 pre-opening and grand opening marketing fee.

Additional funds for the first 12 months are the largest line, at $128,000 to $197,000. The low end assumes the owner works as the sales arborist for the first year. The high end assumes a sales arborist is hired from the first day and an opening late in the season or in the off-season, with about $20,000 of extra local marketing.

The required equipment package is priced at $299,000 to $368,500. It includes a chip truck, chipper, pickup truck or Mason dump, a mini skid loader or articulating loader, an equipment trailer and a sales vehicle. The investment table counts the down payment and early payments, and the rest is financed.

The $49,500 fee covers a territory of up to 80,000 single-family homes, with $0.25 for each home above that. A second and third territory licensed at signing cost $40,000 and $35,000. Veterans and active-duty personnel receive 30% off the first franchise, and qualifying minority-, women- and LGBTQ+-owned businesses receive $5,000 off.

The FDD estimates opening four to nine months after signing. The franchisor collected $15,000 in franchise fees during 2025.

Locations

Locations, 2023 to 2025

Source: Item 20. Item 20 counts territories in operation at year end, and each territory has its own franchise agreement. Company-owned territories were 3 at the start of 2023 and 0 from the end of 2024.

Monster Tree Service had 134 franchised territories at the end of 2025, against 247 at the start of 2023. Over the three years 26* territories opened, 49* were terminated, 2 were not renewed and 88* ceased for other reasons.

One territory opened in 2025. At the end of 2025 there were no signed agreements for territories not yet open, and the brand projected 1 new franchised territory in 2026, in Michigan.

Item 20 and Item 19 give different territory counts for the end of 2025. Item 20 counts 134 franchised territories in operation at year end. Item 19 states that 60 franchisees were operating in 142 territories at December 31, 2025. The FDD does not reconcile the two.

Transfers of territories to new owners were 9 in 2023, 6 in 2024 and 11 in 2025. The 11 in 2025 included 4 in Michigan and 2 each in Colorado and Minnesota.

The franchisor is a subsidiary of Authority Brands, Inc. Monster Franchising SPE LLC became the franchisor of the system on May 14, 2021.

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