Pet Butler franchise unit economics
Pet Butler franchisees run wrapped pickup trucks on pet-waste removal routes through territories of up to 60,000 homes. Across 39 businesses trading a full year, a truck billed $102,592 at $19.45 a stop and 3.60 stops an hour. Royalty, the marketing fund and a flat $18,000 local advertising requirement take 33.7% of that.
- Primary source
- Pet Butler, LLC, 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document
- Items read
- Item 7 for cost to open; Item 19 for sales and any profit figure
- Population
- 39 of 38 locations
- Our calculations
- Marked on the page with an asterisk. Method
- Last reviewed
- 26 September 2026
Disclosure-based. Not a forecast, not an offer to sell a franchise, and not advice.
A truck-hour here is worth $70.02, $19.45 a stop at 3.60 stops an hour. A truck bills $102,592 a year, and royalty, the marketing fund, the software fees and a flat $18,000 of local advertising take $34,613 of it. That is a third of the truck before fuel, wages or the truck itself.
- A truck-hour is worth $70.02. $19.45 a stop at 3.60 stops an hour *, so the system-average truck runs about 28 hours of paid stop time a week to reach $102,592.
- The brand and advertising load is $34,613 on a $102,592 truck. 33.7% of it *, 1,780 stops, or 494 route hours, go to covering it before the owner earns a dollar.
- Local advertising is a flat $18,000 a territory until that territory bills $360,000. The requirement is the greater of 5% or $18,000 *, and 38 franchisees hold 93 territories, an average obligation of $44,053 each *.
- One household in 423 is a customer. 142 customers a truck against a 60,000-home territory *, so growth is a penetration problem.
- The lowest-selling truck gives up 52.2% and the highest-selling 19.6%. $52,988 against $384,043 *, because the $18,000 minimum advertising charge and $2,250 of fixed fees land the same on both.
How much does a Pet Butler franchise make?
The average Pet Butler unit reported $102,592 of revenue in the 2026 FDD, and the median reported $108,667. The brand’s disclosure document discloses revenue and not profit, so what an owner keeps depends on the cost structure set out below. Fees come off the top first, at about 33.7% of sales across royalty, brand fund and the rest of the stack. Revenue is not income. Rent, wages, cost of goods and the franchise fees all come out before an owner is paid. The figures for the highest-selling and lowest-selling territories are below.
An hour of truck time
Two numbers multiply into everything else.
| Measure | Average | Median | Low | High | Reaching the average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue a stop | $19.45 | $18.10 | $15.28 | $70.73 | 12 of 39, 31% |
| Stops an hour | 3.60 | 3.35 | 2.05 | 5.12 | 17 of 37, 46% |
| Revenue a customer | $724 | $673 | $409 | $2,148 | 13 of 39, 33% |
| Revenue a truck | $102,592 | $108,667 | $52,988 | $384,043 | 26 of 39, 67% |
| Revenue a truck-hour * | $70.02 | $60.64 | n/a | n/a | n/a |
Every ratio is as the brand reported it and the truck-hour line multiplies revenue a stop by stops an hour, marked *.
The system-average truck makes 5,275 stops a year. 101 stops a week at 3.60 an hour *. That is about 28 paid hours, leaving time in the week for the drive out and home.
A customer buys 37 stops a year at $19.45 each. $724 of revenue *, so a weekly route with a few missed weeks, and the whole model is a subscription with a truck attached.
Stops an hour is the metric most owners already beat. 46% reach the 3.60 average against 31% on revenue a stop, so pricing separates this system more than speed does.
The median truck beats the average truck by $6,075. $108,667 against $102,592, with 67% at or above the average. The one ratio here where the typical owner sits ahead, because a single $384,043 truck pulls the aggregate around.
Raising revenue a stop by a dollar is worth $5,275 a truck. *, and the filed range runs from $15.28 to $70.73, so the room is real.
Top performers
What separates the top Pet Butler performers
Pet Butler splits its locations into groups instead of publishing one average. The best group averaged $384,043 a year. The worst averaged $52,988. Both run the same brand, on the same agreement, paying the same fees.
Decided before you open
- Trade area and site.A 7.2× gap between bands is not an operating gap. Catchment, daytime population and what sits next door set the ceiling before the first customer arrives.
- Capacity, fixed at build.capacity is None vans multiplied by hours multiplied by how full they run. What you can sell is set by the build, and the build does not change after opening.
- Territory, and how much of it is real.This model sells from a territory rather than a building. Two owners with the same brand and different ground are running different businesses, and density decides how much driving sits between jobs.
- What you spend to open.Opening costs $96,325 to $121,486, a 1.3× range inside one brand. The high end usually buys more capacity, so the cheapest build is not always the cheapest route to the top band.
Live operating levers
- Routes, the operating driver.This model bills on routes. The van costs the same whatever it does that day, so the owner works on how many stops fit into it and how far apart they are. It is worth watching every week, because by the time it turns up in a monthly close the quarter is half gone.
- Fees, and where the minimum bites.Fees run about 33.7% of sales. A minimum sits underneath the percentage, so the low-volume location pays the higher effective rate. The brand charges the weakest locations the most. Work out the sales level where the percentage overtakes the minimum and know which side of it you are on, because the answer changes what an extra dollar of sales is worth.
Context you underwrite around
- The reporting screen.39 of 38 locations are behind these figures. Locations open less than the full year, brand-owned, or not meeting the reporting criteria are excluded, so the numbers describe locations that cleared that screen, not the system as a whole.
- What the disclosure leaves out.Item 19 publishes no profit or cost data for franchised locations. Anything below the sales line has to come from the franchisor or from owners you call.
A third of a truck
Thirty-four thousand dollars leaves a hundred-thousand-dollar truck.
| Charge | Rate | Lowest-selling $52,988 | Average, $102,592 | top quarter, $384,043 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Royalty | 12% of gross sales, weekly | $6,359 | $12,311 | $46,085 |
| Marketing fund | 2% of gross sales, cap 4% | $1,060 | $2,052 | $7,681 |
| Local advertising | Greater of 5% or $18,000 a territory | $18,000 | $18,000 | $19,202 |
| Software, technology, education | $100 and $75 a month, $150 a year | $2,250 | $2,250 | $2,250 |
| Total | n/a | $27,669 | $34,613 | $75,218 |
| Share of the truck | n/a | 52.2% | 33.7% | 19.6% |
The rates, minimums and fixed fees are as the brand reported it and the dollar figures apply them to the filed revenue-a-truck figures, marked *.
Covering the load takes 1,780 stops, or 494 route hours. At the system average *, a third of the truck’s year spent earning back what leaves it.
The lowest-selling truck hands over more than half its revenue. 52.2% against 19.6% at the highest-selling *, because $20,250 of the bill is fixed and lands identically whatever the truck bills.
The marketing fund may double from 2% to 4%. Adding $2,052 at the average truck *, a stated cap worth carrying in any model.
Software and technology fees may rise by up to 100% a year. The $100 and $75 monthly charges both sit under that adjustment right, so $2,100 of annual fees could become $4,200.
An understatement of 5% or more puts the audit cost on the owner. Royalty is paid weekly on the Wednesday after the reporting week, so the reporting rhythm is tight and worth automating.
The $18,000 territory
Every territory costs eighteen thousand dollars a year whether it sells anything or not.
| Territory gross sales | 5% of sales * | Requirement | Share of sales * |
|---|---|---|---|
| $102,592 | $5,130 | $18,000 | 17.5% |
| $200,000 | $10,000 | $18,000 | 9.0% |
| $360,000 | $18,000 | $18,000 | 5.0% |
| $500,000 | $25,000 | $25,000 | 5.0% |
The greater-of-5%-or-$18,000 rule is as the brand reported it and the columns apply it at each revenue level, marked *.
the minimum applies until a territory bills $360,000. *, three and a half times the system-average truck, so nearly every owner in this system is paying the flat number.
Thirty-eight franchisees cover 93 territories. An average of 2.45 each *, and the requirement applies to each one, $44,053 of annual local advertising for the average multi-territory owner *.
Extra homes cost 50 cents each above 60,000. So a second territory is cheap to buy and expensive to hold, the $18,000 arrives with it.
Underspending is billed. A shortfall against the minimum is paid to the brand and routed into the fund, so the choice is where the money goes.
There is no sales target to keep the territory. The brand keeps other Pet Butler businesses out while the owner stays in compliance. May leave the boundaries alone during the term without the owner’s consent. So the map is secure even when the numbers dip.
What it costs to open, and the network
The truck costs more than the table says.
| Measure | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Filed total | $96,325 | $121,486 |
| Initial franchise fee | $46,000 | $46,000 |
| Initial marketing campaign fee | $30,000 | $30,000 |
| Truck wrap and decals | $2,380 | $5,000 |
| The truck itself, bought outright | $32,150 | $39,500 |
| Total with the truck * | $128,475 | $160,986 |
Every line is as the brand reported it, with the truck assumed financed in the estimate and added here at its filed outright cost, marked *.
Pet-service professionals pay $27,600 instead of $46,000. A 40% reduction on a first territory, available to those converting an existing pet business, the largest single discount in the fee schedule.
The $30,000 marketing campaign fee equals two thirds of the franchise fee. Payable at initial training, and the Flex Start route range it over a schedule while adding $5,000 to $15,000 of local marketing on top.
The system stands at 38 franchised businesses covering 93 territories. Plus three company-operated, after five openings in 2024, zero in 2025 and one business handed to the affiliate in late December.
Two terminations in 2023 and zero since. With one business ceasing in 2025, a small, stable system where a single unit moves the percentages.
A transfer costs 2.5% of trailing gross sales, floored at $7,500 and capped at $17,500. Plus a marketing campaign fee of the greater of 5% of trailing sales or $30,000. So a buyer of an average truck pays about $37,500 above the purchase price *.
Questions we get asked
Questions an owner asks.
What does a Pet Butler truck bill?
In 2025, across 39 businesses trading a full year, revenue a truck averaged $102,592 with a median of $108,667. The lowest-selling truck billed $52,988 and the highest-selling $384,043.
What drives that figure?
Two ratios. Revenue a stop averaged $19.45 and stops an hour averaged 3.60, which multiply to $70.02 a truck-hour on our reading. At the median the same multiplication gives $60.64.
How many stops is that?
About 5,275 a year for the average truck, or 101 a week, which is roughly 28 hours of paid stop time. A customer buys about 37 stops a year at $724 of annual revenue.
What does the brand take?
A 12% royalty paid weekly. A 2% marketing charge that can rise to 4%. $100 a month for operating software, $75 a month for technology and $150 a year for training. Local advertising is separate and is the greater of 5% of the prior year's sales or $18,000, for each territory. On our reading that totals $34,613 against the average truck, or 33.7%.
Why does the minimum advertising charge matter so much?
Because 5% of sales only overtakes $18,000 at $360,000 of territory revenue, which is three and a half times the average truck. Below that the requirement is a flat number, and it applies to every territory held. With 38 franchisees covering 93 territories, the average owner faces about $44,053 a year.
What does it cost to open?
$96,325 to $121,486 as the brand reported it, which includes a $46,000 franchise fee and a $30,000 initial marketing campaign fee but assumes the truck is financed. Buying the truck outright adds $32,150 to $39,500, putting the real range at roughly $128,475 to $160,986. Pet-service professionals may pay $27,600 for the franchise fee instead of $46,000.
How secure is the territory?
Secure while you comply. A territory holds up to 60,000 houses. The brand keeps other Pet Butler owners out of it during the agreement. There is no sales target to keep it. Extra homes above 60,000 cost 50 cents each with approval.
Which two numbers should run weekly?
Revenue a stop against $19.45, because each dollar of it is worth $5,275 a year on an average truck. Stops an hour against 3.60. Because the two multiply into the truck-hour that pays for everything.
- No profit figure. The filing reports sales and not earnings, so what an owner keeps is not disclosed.
- No cost lines. Wages, rent and cost of goods are not broken out, so margin cannot be rebuilt from the document.
- No ramp. The filing does not show how a new location builds up, so the first-year curve has to be assumed.
Questions worth putting to Pet Butler
The filing answers what it answers. These are the gaps an owner or a buyer should close directly.
- What do locations at the median spend on wages and rent as a share of sales? The filing reports sales only.
- What separates the highest-selling locations from the lowest: trade area, years open, size, or the owner?
- How long does a new location take to reach the average you publish, and what does the build-up look like month by month?
- At what level of sales do the minimum charges stop applying and the percentage take over?
- How many Pet Butler locations closed, were sold, or changed hands last year, and why?
Run your own numbers.
The Franchise Finance Diagnostic runs the same checks on your own numbers. It scores where you stand and compares you with Item 19 of your brand’s FDD. It works out what one location earns and spends, and builds a 13-week cash forecast. Checks whether you are ready to open another one. It is free and it runs in your browser.
Launch the diagnostic →What is your truck-hour worth?
A structured review of your unit economics, cash forecast. Reporting, built around $70.02 a truck-hour, an $18,000 minimum advertising charge that lands on every territory. A load that reaches 52% on a weak truck.
Request the reviewthe franchise library, all 243 brands · how franchise unit economics work · running the books across several locations · what Averan does for franchise owners
Questions owners ask next
The figures above raise these, and each one is answered on its own page.
- At what level of sales does a minimum fee stop costing me more than the percentage?How royalty, ad fund and minimums actually work on a monthly statement.
- How much cash do I fund before a new location covers its own costs?A 13-week forecast for the months before break-even.
- My payroll percentage keeps climbing. Is that a payroll problem?Usually it is a revenue problem wearing a payroll costume.
- Do I need a bookkeeper, a controller, or a CFO?What each one owns, and the point at which the next one pays for itself.
- Revenue was the highest it has been. Why did profit not move?Where the extra revenue went, line by line.