Zerorez franchise unit economics
Zerorez franchisees run van-based residential cleaning businesses for carpet, tile, upholstery and hard surfaces, using alkaline water, inside an Operating Territory.
Zerorez franchise at a glance
Item 19 of Zerorez's 2026 FDD reports fiscal 2025 sales, cost of goods, gross profit, advertising and contribution margin for 43 franchisees with at least a year of history, with the average, median, high and low for each.
Zerorez franchisees averaged $1,428,301 of sales in fiscal 2025, with a median of $890,136, according to Item 19 of Zerorez’s 2026 FDD, issued 31 March 2026. The 43 in that group are 72%* of Zerorez’s 60 locations. Fees paid to Zerorez come to about 9.25%* of sales. A Zerorez franchise costs $218,718 to $410,698 to open.
- A Zerorez franchise costs $218,718 to $410,698 to open, including a $30,000 initial franchise fee, according to the brand's 2026 FDD.
- Zerorez charges a royalty of 6% of sales and a 1% brand fund contribution.
- At the average Zerorez location, cost of goods took 42.5% of sales.
- Work out Zerorez's fees at your own sales with the minimum fee calculator.
- Royalty, technology and brand fund take 9.25 points of Zerorez revenue.
These figures come from Zerorez's 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document, as the brand reported them, and were read by Averan Advisors.
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Talk to Averan → Move your books and accounting to Averan →- The minimum royalty equals 6% of the development obligation at every stage. $250, $500, $1,000 and $1,500 a month against required annual revenue of $50,000, $100,000, $200,000 and $300,000 *, so the minimum charges you as though you hit the target whatever you actually bill.
- Contribution margin of 38.6% arrives before franchise fees come to 9.25%. That leaves 29.3% for the average franchisee and 16.3% at the median *, and labor, vans, insurance, rent and owner pay all still come out of that.
- Advertising runs 19% of revenue on average and 24.8% at the median. $270,778 and $220,488 *, against a contractual minimum of 15%, so the median franchisee spends a tenth of revenue above the requirement.
- A van returns its own hardware in 16 to 18 months. $188,604 of annual revenue against $99,144 to $110,624 of vehicle and equipment, at the filed 38.6% margin *, which is the real gate on adding the next one.
- The median franchisee bills 62.3% of the average and 14 of 43 reach it. That is $890,136 against $1,428,301 *, because the highest-selling franchisee bills $12,914,633, nine times the average on its own.
How much does a Zerorez franchise make?
The average Zerorez unit reported $1,428,301 of revenue in the 2026 FDD, and the median reported $890,136. Item 19 of the Zerorez FDD publishes revenue, cost of goods, gross margin, advertising and contribution margin for 43 franchisees with at least a year of history, and what an owner keeps depends on the costs set out below. Fees come off the top first, at about 9.2% 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 businesses are below.
Top performers
What separates the top Zerorez performers
Zerorez publishes a range for its franchisees instead of grouped averages. The highest-selling of the 43 Zerorez franchisees with at least a year of history billed $12,914,633 of gross revenue in 2025. The lowest-selling Zerorez franchisee in that group billed $31,163. Both run the same brand, on the same agreement, paying the same fees. The middle location sold $890,136. The average was $1,428,301. More than half the system is below the number the brand quotes.
Decided before you open
- Site and trade area.The highest-selling Zerorez franchisee sells 414.4× the lowest-selling one. Catchment, daytime population and neighboring businesses affect where a location falls.
- Capacity.Capacity is the number of vans, times the hours they run, times how full their schedules are. The build sets how much you can sell.
- Territory.This model sells from a territory quoted at 60,000 households, with no storefront. Population density sets how much driving sits between jobs.
- Opening cost range.Opening costs $218,718 to $410,698, a 1.9× range inside one brand.
- Fees and the minimum.Fees run about 9.2% of sales. A minimum fee also applies, so lower-selling locations pay a higher effective rate. Work out the sales level where the percentage overtakes the minimum.
Live operating levers
- Products and materials.Products and materials take 42.5% of sales. The levers are buying terms, price discipline and waste.
- Sales depend on customers.The owner works on how many customers are won, how many are lost, and what each spends in a year.
Context you underwrite around
- Locations included.These figures cover 43 of 60 locations. Locations open less than the full year, brand-owned, or not meeting the reporting criteria are excluded.
- What the filing does not include.Item 19 of the Zerorez FDD publishes revenue, cost of goods, gross margin, advertising and contribution margin for 43 franchisees with at least a year of history. Ask the franchisor or current owners for any cost line the filing leaves out.
Down to what is left
Revenue and contribution margin, 2025
| Line | Share of revenue | Average | Median | High | Low |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gross revenues | 100% | $1,428,301 | $890,136 | $12,914,633 | $31,163 |
| Cost of goods sold | 42.5% | $606,835 | $442,085 | $6,075,499 | $15,667 |
| Gross profit | 57.5% | $821,466 | $448,051 | $6,839,134 | $15,496 |
| Advertising and marketing | 19% | $270,778 | $220,488 | $1,919,463 | $26,414 |
| Contribution margin | 38.6% | $550,688 | $227,563 | $4,919,671 | $(10,918) |
Every dollar figure and percentage is as the brand reported it for the 2025 fiscal year. The median, high and low columns describe the franchisee holding that rank on revenue instead of the median of each line.
Contribution margin is measured before franchise fees, wages, vehicles, insurance, rent and owner pay. Royalty, technology fee and brand fund take 9.25% of revenue and sit below this table, along with wages, vehicles, insurance, rent and owner pay. So the 38.6% is a gross figure with most of the cost base still to come.
After the brand, the average franchisee keeps 29.3% and the median 16.3%. $418,570 against $145,225 *, and that is the pool every wage and every van payment competes for.
The median franchisee’s products cost 49.7% of revenue against the average franchisee’s 42.5%. That is $442,085 on $890,136 *, 7.2 points of gross profit, worth $63,897 a year at median revenue.
Advertising takes 24.8% of the median franchisee’s revenue and 14.9% of the highest-selling one’s *. That is a gap of ten points of revenue, and the clearest sign that customer acquisition gets cheaper per dollar as a territory matures.
The lowest-selling franchisees spent $26,414 on advertising to bill $31,163. 84.8% of revenue *, which is how a contribution margin lands at minus $10,918 and why this line deserves a monthly review.
Discounts available
- Zerorez takes 20% off the franchise fee for honorably discharged U.S. veterans.
- Zerorez takes 50% to 100% off the fee for owners who roll in an existing similar business with two years of sales and at least $50,000 in trailing-year sales, scaled to sales.
- Zerorez takes 10% off additional franchises for franchisees of at least two years, and 25% off when a franchisee already has $50,000 in sales in the new area.
- Zerorez takes 10% to 25% off for employees of Zerorez, its affiliates or franchisees with at least two consecutive years' service.
- Zerorez takes 50% off the residential fee for technicians in its Technician to Owner Pathway with three to five years' service, and 100% off with five or more.
From Item 5 of the Zerorez 2026 FDD. The costs on this page use the full initial franchise fee for one unit, before any discount.
The van as the unit
Revenue per van
| Franchisee | Sales | Vans implied * | Contribution margin | Margin a van * |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Highest-selling | $12,914,633 | 68.5 | $4,919,671 | $71,846 |
| Average | $1,428,301 | 7.6 | $550,688 | $72,717 |
| Median | $890,136 | 4.7 | $227,563 | $48,217 |
| Lowest-selling | $31,163 | 0.2 | $(10,918) | $(66,078) |
Revenue and contribution margin are as the brand reported it and the van counts divide each figure by the filed $188,604 of annual revenue a van, marked *.
A van bills $15,717 a month and $188,604 a year. The system averaged eight vans in January 2025 and eight in December, a change of zero across the year. So in 2025 this system grew revenue a van.
A van costs $99,144 to $110,624 in vehicle and equipment. That is $82,165 to $92,145 for the mobile unit and $16,979 to $18,479 for the equipment package, against $72,801 of contribution a year at the filed margin. So the hardware returns itself in 16.3 to 18.2 months *.
The average and the highest-selling franchisees earn almost the same margin a van. $72,722 against $71,846 *, so scale here buys more vans, which is a useful thing to know before adding the ninth.
The median franchisee earns $48,217 a van against the average’s $72,717. A gap of $24,500 *, worth $115,633 a year across the median fleet of 4.7 vans, and it sits almost entirely in the product and advertising lines.
An entry build of $218,718 to $410,698 covers one van. 15.3% to 28.8% of what the average franchisee bills in a year *, of which $90,000 to $241,500 is working capital for the first twelve months, excluding owner draw.
The minimum is the target
Minimum royalty and revenue requirement
| Stage | Minimum royalty a month | Annual revenue required | Revenue where 6% overtakes the minimum * |
|---|---|---|---|
| Months 4–15 | $250 | $50,000 | $50,000 |
| Months 16–27 | $500 | $100,000 | $100,000 |
| Months 28–39 | $1,000 | $200,000 | $200,000 |
| Month 40 onward | $1,500 | $300,000 | $300,000 |
The minimum royalty and revenue requirement are as the brand reported it for a traditional market. The crossover column divides the yearly minimum by the 6% royalty rate, marked *.
Each minimum is exactly 6% of the revenue the agreement obliges you to reach. $1,500 a month is $18,000 a year, and $18,000 at 6% is $300,000 *. The same match holds at all four stages, so the minimum and the target are one number written twice.
Two schedules for the same minimum sit in the same document. The fee table tops the minimum out at $750 a month from month 28. Schedule A of the franchise agreement puts a traditional market at $1,000 from month 28 and $1,500 from month 40, a difference of $9,000 a year from year four. Settle it in writing before signing.
Franchise fees take 9.25% of gross sales. That is 6% royalty, 2.25% technology and 1% brand fund, $132,118 a year on the average franchisee and $82,338 at the median *.
That 9.25% can rise to 12.5%. Technology may rise to 3.5% and the brand fund to 3%, worth $46,420 a year on the average franchisee at today’s revenue *, which is a third of what the fees cost now.
Local advertising of 15% of gross sales sits outside the fee table. It appears with the advertising obligations, so 24.25% of revenue is committed before a technician is paid. The average franchisee’s actual 19% of advertising takes that to 28.25% *.
Territory and the system
Franchised outlets, 2023 to 2025
| Year | Start | Opened | Terminated | Reacquired | Ceased, other | End |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 53 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 55 |
| 2024 | 55 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 57 |
| 2025 | 57 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 60 |
Every column is as the brand reported it and each year's arithmetic returns the filed closing count exactly.
A territory of 60,000 households costs $30,000, and half that size costs half the money. That is 50 cents a household either way *, and the revenue requirement of $300,000 works out at $5.00 a household a year.
The average franchisee bills $23.81 a household and the median $14.84. On a full 60,000-household territory *, against the $5.00 the agreement requires, so the obligation sits well below where a working territory lands.
The system added seven franchised outlets across three years. That is 53 to 60, with 21 openings against 14 departures: six terminations, two reacquisitions and six closures for other reasons.
Twelve of the 60 franchisees reported figures the brand declined to use. 20% of the system, alongside five in their first year, so the 43 in the revenue table represent 71.7% of the franchisees operating *.
Selling inside the system costs $7,500 and selling outside it costs $30,000. That is a $22,500 premium for an outside buyer, worth pricing into an exit long before the exit.
Rolling an existing $1,000,000 cleaning business in waives the whole $30,000 fee. The trade is paying royalty from the first month, which on $1,000,000 of revenue is $15,000 *, so the waiver is worth about $15,000 net, and more at lower revenue.
Questions we get asked
Questions an owner asks
How much does a Zerorez franchise make?
Zerorez franchisees averaged $1,428,301 of sales in fiscal 2025, with a median of $890,136, according to Item 19 of Zerorez’s 2026 FDD, issued 31 March 2026. The 43 in that group are 72%* of Zerorez’s 60 locations. Fees paid to Zerorez come to about 9.25%* of sales. A Zerorez franchise costs $218,718 to $410,698 to open.
What does a Zerorez franchisee bill?
Across 43 franchisees with at least a year of history, the 2025 average was $1,428,301 of gross revenues and the median $890,136. The highest-selling billed $12,914,633 and the lowest-selling $31,163. Fourteen of the 43 reached the average and 21 reached the median.
What comes back after costs at Zerorez?
Products cost 42.5% of revenue and advertising 19%, leaving a contribution margin of 38.6%, $550,688 on average and $227,563 at the median. That figure arrives before royalty, technology fee, brand fund, wages, vehicles, insurance, rent and owner pay, so treat it as a gross profit.
What fees does Zerorez charge?
Zerorez charges 6% of gross sales in royalty in a traditional market, or $750 a month flat in a market of 30,000 households or fewer. On top of that a 2.25% technology fee, which may rise to 3.5%, and a 1% brand fund contribution, which may rise to 3%. Together they come to 9.25% today, with room to reach 12.5%.
What has to be spent on local advertising at Zerorez?
The advertising obligations set it at least 15% of gross sales every month. Filed spending averaged 19% of revenue and ran 24.8% at the median franchisee, so most of the system spends above the minimum. Cooperative contributions count toward it.
What is the minimum royalty at Zerorez?
The minimum is $250 a month from the fourth full month, $500 from the sixteenth, $1,000 from the twenty-eighth and $1,500 from the fortieth in a traditional market. Each of those is exactly 6% of the annual revenue the agreement requires at that stage, $50,000, $100,000, $200,000 and $300,000. The fee table shows a single schedule topping out at $750, which conflicts with the agreement's own Schedule A.
What does a van produce at Zerorez?
A Zerorez van produces $15,717 of sales a month, or $188,604 a year. The system averaged eight vans a franchisee in both January and December 2025. A van costs $99,144 to $110,624 in vehicle and equipment and returns that in 16 to 18 months of contribution at the filed margin, on our reading.
What does a Zerorez territory cost?
A Zerorez territory costs $30,000 for up to 60,000 households, or $15,000 for a Hometown Market of up to 30,000, 50 cents a household either way. Territory rights cover residential customers; commercial work, and work outside the territory, is held on a non-exclusive basis. Boundaries stay fixed whatever the population does.
Which two numbers should run monthly at Zerorez?
Track revenue a van against $15,717, because that is the lever the whole model turns on. Then track advertising as a share of revenue against 19%, because at the median franchisee it reaches 24.8% and is the second-largest cost line in the business.
- Item 19 of the Zerorez FDD gives no profit after every cost. It publishes revenue, cost of goods, gross margin, advertising and contribution margin for 43 franchisees with at least a year of history, so what an owner keeps after all costs is not disclosed.
Questions worth putting to Zerorez
These are questions the Zerorez filing leaves open. An owner or a buyer can put them to Zerorez directly.
- How would wages and rent at a new Zerorez location compare with the figures in the filing? Item 19 of the Zerorez FDD publishes revenue, cost of goods, gross margin, advertising and contribution margin for 43 franchisees with at least a year of history.
- Which factors does Zerorez see in its highest-selling locations, such as trade area, years open and size?
- 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 Zerorez locations closed, were sold, or changed hands last year, and why?
Run your own numbers.
The Franchise Numbers Check 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 each van actually earning?
We review your unit economics and cash forecast and build your reporting around $15,717 a van a month, the 9.25% the fees take before labor. The 15% minimum advertising charge that most of this system runs above.
Talk to Averanthe franchise library, all 447 brands · how franchise unit economics work · running the books across several locations · what Averan does for franchise owners
Zerorez reads against the rest of the carpet and floor care group: AdvantaClean · Chem-Dry · Garage Force · Garage Living · Oxi Fresh · PremierGarage. The carpet and floor care guide compares all of them on the same figures.
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?It works out the sales level where a minimum fee stops applying.
- How much cash do I fund before a new location covers its own costs?It builds a 13-week forecast for the months before break-even.
- My payroll percentage keeps climbing. Is that a payroll problem?It shows how to tell whether payroll is rising or revenue is falling.
- I run several locations. Which ones actually make money?It shows each location's contribution to profit and the reporting it takes to see it.
- How much of Item 19 can I rely on?It explains what an Item 19 financial performance representation tells you and what it leaves out.
Where these figures come from.
Every figure here comes from ZEROREZ Franchising Systems, Inc.’s 2026 FDD and is unaudited by us. We are unaffiliated with the brand. Calculations of our own are labeled where they appear, the figures describe past performance at other businesses and are not a projection of yours. This page is an educational summary. It is not an offer to sell a franchise, and it is not financial, legal or tax advice. Zerorez® is a registered trademark of its owner. How Averan reads a Franchise Disclosure Document.
These figures come from the brand's disclosure. They are not a forecast, an offer to sell a franchise or advice. Source: ZEROREZ Franchising Systems, Inc., 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document, issued 31 March 2026.