Franchise Facts Report → brands → Big Apple Bagels
Big Apple Bagels franchise — is it worth it?
Medium risk Item 19 disclosed
BIG APPLE BAGELS is a food and beverage franchise with an initial investment ranging from $512,500 to $745,000.
Everything below is free, read straight off Big Apple Bagels's registered filing, with where the numbers land against food & beverage peers. Weighing Big Apple Bagels against other options? Get a free shortlist of franchises that fit your budget.
Figures above are as disclosed in Big Apple Bagels's most recent FDD (registered 2026). Source: Wisconsin Dept. of Financial Institutions — Franchise Registration · filing 640205 — check it yourself. See every other Wisconsin-registered franchise.
Considering Big Apple Bagels? See what else fits your budget
Tell us your budget and the industries you're open to. We'll match you with 5–10 franchises whose own FDDs fit — ranked by earnings disclosure, growth and closure rate — and email you the list. Big Apple Bagels will be on it if it fits.
How much does a Big Apple Bagels franchise make?
Big Apple Bagels is one of the franchisors that answers this on the record: its most recent FDD makes an Item 19 financial performance representation — actual unit earnings figures, disclosed by the franchisor itself. The headline figure did not machine-read cleanly from this filing, so we don't print one; Item 19 of the source FDD has the tables. See every food & beverage brand that discloses earnings in the Food & beverage franchises with disclosed Item 19 earnings ranking.
Big Apple Bagels franchise profit vs. revenue
Revenue is not profit. An Item 19 almost always reports sales — what a location takes in — not what an owner keeps. Out of that number come Big Apple Bagels's 5% royalty, the ad fund, rent, payroll, supplies and debt service. No FDD tells you a Big Apple Bagels franchise's profit, because profit depends on your site, your rent and how you run it — so treat any "Big Apple Bagels franchise profit" figure quoted elsewhere as someone's estimate, not a disclosure.
Big Apple Bagels lawsuits & legal history (FDD Item 3)
Big Apple Bagels's most recently filed Franchise Disclosure Document (2026) discloses no litigation in Item 3. That is a real signal rather than a gap: the FTC Franchise Rule requires a franchisor to disclose material litigation involving itself, its predecessors, parents, affiliates and management, so an empty Item 3 in a current filing means there was nothing it was required to report. It is worth reading alongside the churn numbers — a system can have a clean Item 3 and still be losing franchisees, which is what Item 20 shows.
Big Apple Bagels closures & failure rate
Before you sign, Big Apple Bagels will hand you a list of current owners to call as references — and they choose who's on that list. It won't include the owners who quit, got bought out, or were forced out last year. The FDD does report that number, even though the reference list leaves those people off. Below is what Big Apple Bagels's most recent filing shows, and whether it's normal for a food & beverage of this kind.
The closest thing an FDD has to a failure rate is Item 20 — outlet openings, closures, terminations and non-renewals, reported by the franchisor. Big Apple Bagels's outlet tables did not machine-read cleanly; Item 20 of the source FDD has them.
Who owns Big Apple Bagels?
Big Apple Bagels's franchise is offered by BAB SYSTEMS INC — the franchisor named on the cover of its most recently filed Franchise Disclosure Document (2026), and the entity a franchisee actually signs with. That name comes straight off the filing at WI DFI; it identifies the franchisor, not necessarily the ultimate parent company behind it.
Food & beverage franchises at a similar investment level
Anyone weighing Big Apple Bagels is really weighing it against the other brands their money could go into. These are the closest by total initial investment (FDD Item 7), each with its own FDD-based page.
Big Apple Bagels franchise — frequently asked
Who owns Big Apple Bagels — who is the franchisor?
Big Apple Bagels's most recently filed FDD (2026) names BAB SYSTEMS INC as the franchisor — the entity you would actually sign the franchise agreement with, as stated on the disclosure document itself. A registry filing names the franchisor, not necessarily its ultimate parent company.
How much does a Big Apple Bagels franchise cost?
Big Apple Bagels's most recently filed FDD (Item 7) puts the total estimated initial investment at $512,500 – $745,000, with an initial franchise fee of $25,000 and a 5% royalty. That price is the franchisor's own estimate of what it takes to open, not a quote. Against food & beverage peers it sits in the bottom quartile (median $379,725).
How much profit does a Big Apple Bagels franchise make?
Big Apple Bagels discloses unit earnings in Item 19, but that figure is revenue — sales — not profit. Royalties (5% of gross for Big Apple Bagels), the ad fund, rent, payroll and supplies all come out of it, and no FDD discloses what an owner nets. Any Big Apple Bagels franchise profit number quoted elsewhere is an estimate.
Does Big Apple Bagels disclose financial performance (Item 19)?
Yes — Big Apple Bagels reports unit-level earnings in Item 19. The headline figure did not machine-read cleanly, so check Item 19 of the source FDD for the numbers.
Are there lawsuits against Big Apple Bagels?
No — Big Apple Bagels's most recently filed FDD (2026) discloses no litigation in Item 3. Franchisors must disclose material litigation involving themselves, their predecessors, parents, affiliates and management, so an empty Item 3 is a genuine signal rather than an omission.
Is Big Apple Bagels a good franchise to buy?
Nobody can answer that from Big Apple Bagels's numbers alone — it comes down to how its investment, earnings, litigation and franchisee churn stack up against food & beverage peers and against your own budget. Our read on this filing is medium risk. Every figure behind that read is on this page for free. If you're comparing options, the free shortlist on this page matches you with 5–10 franchises that fit your budget and industry.
Get a free email when something changes on Big Apple Bagels or food & beverage: a new FDD registration, a new lawsuit, an outlet count that shifts, or Item 19 earnings going from undisclosed to disclosed. Pulled straight from the same state registries this page is built on.