Entrepreneur Magazine's 42nd Annual Franchise 500® Released

IRVINE, Calif., Jan. 19, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Entrepreneur magazine has unveiled its 42nd annual Franchise 500^®, and ranked Taco Bell at #1 for the first time – jumping up from the #2 last year. Dunkin' is #2, The UPS Store is #3, Popeye's Louisiana Kitchen is #4, and Culver's is #5.

This is Taco Bell's first-ever #1 ranking and 11^th appearance in the Franchise 500^® top 10 list. After a 15-year hiatus, Taco Bell returned to the Franchise 500^® top 10 list with a #8 finish in 2018. It climbed to #4 in 2019, then #2 in 2020. The top ranking reflects the company's commitment to innovation and earning the trust of its franchisees and customers.

Because the Franchise 500^® is an exhaustive survey of franchise companies and their individual performances, it also provides insight into the industry more broadly. This year's results show that despite the challenges of 2020, there was still growth in the franchise industry, albeit at a slower rate than previous years. The companies that ranked in the Franchise 500 this year had a total of 510,051 units (franchise and company-owned) open and operating as of July 31, 2020, which is an increase of 14,354, or 2.9 percent, over the previous year. That compares with an increase of 21,851, or 4.6 percent, from 2018 to 2019.

Of the 510,051 units represented by the companies on our list, a little over 92 percent (472,200 units) were actual franchised locations. The rest were company-owned units. For the first time in several years, domestic growth (an increase of 7,141 US franchises) outpaced international growth (6,935 franchises) for the top 500 companies.

"2020 was a challenging year for everyone, but it was also a year of unusual opportunity," says Jason Feifer, Entrepreneur editor-in-chief. "Franchises were able to be nimble and innovative, serving the needs of franchisees and customers in ways that will resonate for many years to come. We believe that, when we eventually look back on this time, we'll see it as a moment when many brands defined themselves for the future."

In Entrepreneur's continuing effort to best understand and evaluate the ever-changing franchise marketplace, the company's 42-year-old ranking formula continues to evolve as well. The key factors that go into the evaluation include costs and fees, size and growth, support, brand strength, and financial strength and stability. Each franchise is given a cumulative score based on an analysis of more than 150 data points, and the 500 franchises with the highest cumulative scores become the Franchise 500^® in ranking order.  

To view the full ranking and any of these related stories, pick up a copy of the January/February 2021 issue of Entrepreneur magazine on newsstands on January 26, or visit www.entrepreneur.com/franchise500.

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SOURCE Entrepreneur Media Inc.