Franchise costs, growth strategies, and real-world systems for independent home service operators — written by a 25-year industry veteran who's been an owner, broker, and franchise consultant.
The definitive guide to franchise alternatives for home service businesses. Real FDD numbers, cost comparisons, system breakdowns, and everything you need to understand why independent operators with the right systems outperform franchisees.
Read the full guide →How AI is changing small business — and what home service pros should actually use.
Anthropic launched Claude for Small Business with 15 AI workflows for SMBs. Here's what it does well, where generic AI falls short for home services, and what to actually use instead.
Read more →Real FDD numbers, real cost comparisons, and the case for building your own brand across 6 home service verticals.
Molly Maid, Merry Maids, Two Maids, MaidPro — what cleaning franchises actually cost, what you get, and why the alternative wins on math alone.
Read more →U.S. Lawns, Lawn Doctor, Weed Man, and Grounds Guys charge $80K–$350K+. We break down the real FDD numbers.
Read more →1-800-GOT-JUNK? and College Hunks charge $108K–$350K+ with 8–10% royalties. The actual business costs $3K to start.
Read more →DoodyCalls charges $30K–$80K+ to do what you can start for $500. The most lopsided franchise math in home services.
Read more →The inside story of why HomePro was built — from someone who's been an operator, a broker, and a franchise industry insider.
Read more →Startup costs, revenue potential, and how to get franchise-grade systems for every major home service vertical — without the franchise fees.
Read more →Brand-by-brand breakdowns of what each major home service franchise actually costs — straight from the latest Franchise Disclosure Documents — versus building independently.
📊 Start here: Home-Service Franchise Costs — The Complete 2026 Comparison →
$126,880–$170,110 to open, a $55,000 fee, and 7% royalties — while the franchise count keeps shrinking. The real math.
Read more →$146,950–$512,450 to open a Metro Market, then 6% of every dollar (with minimums), forever.
Read more →A $114,950+ franchise fee — almost the entire startup cost — then 10% royalty plus a 5% marketing fund on net revenue.
Read more →$161,900–$215,000 to open, a $67,000 fee, 7% + 2% fees, plus marketing minimums starting at $60,000/year.
Read more →8% royalty + 8% marketing/tech + up to 5% co-op — as much as 21% of every dollar, forever.
Read more →$39,900 fee plus 9% of gross — for a business the founders started with a bucket and a rake.
Read more →A $42,500 fee plus ~$72,000 of required first-year marketing, then ~14% of gross — and a long revenue ramp.
Read more →$147,210–$427,195 to open, then a 7% royalty plus a mandated 10% ad spend and up to 4% national — nearly 20% of gross.
Read more →A $49,000 fee plus a 6%→4% royalty on ~$944K median commercial revenue — a “fair” royalty that’s still real money at scale.
Read more →$162,380–$220,375 to open, a $50,000 fee, and a tiered 10%/9%/8% royalty — steepest where new owners live.
Read more →$45,000 fee plus 8–11% of gross (6% royalty + 2% MAP + up to 3% local) — another Neighborly fee stack.
Read more →$263,000–$386,000 to open, an $80,000 license fee, and a sliding 3–10% royalty that hits new operators hardest.
Read more →$255,075–$365,310 to open, a $72,500 fee, and a tiered 5–10% royalty plus ~2.5% marketing — on ~$540K average revenue.
Read more →$298,800–$804,900 to open with a low 4% royalty — the barrier here is the six-figure entry, not the fees.
Read more →Low $101,280–$262,145 entry and a “3%” royalty — but the scale starts at 10% and the median unit pays ~13% all-in.
Read more →What a Jan-Pro franchise really costs — fees, royalties, and the independent alternative.
Read more →The full breakdown of Jani-King's fees and royalties versus building your own.
Read more →MaidPro's franchise fees, royalties, and how the numbers compare to going independent.
Read more →Molly Maid's real cost of entry and ongoing royalties versus the independent path.
Read more →The Maids' franchise fees and royalties, broken down against building your own brand.
Read more →What ServiceMaster charges to enter and operate — and the independent alternative.
Read more →Step-by-step guides for launching your first home service business the right way.
From licensing to your first client — a proven roadmap for starting a cleaning business without a franchise. Real steps, real numbers.
Read more →A direct comparison: what cleaning franchises actually deliver vs. what independent operators with the right systems can build.
Read more →Initial fees, royalties, marketing funds, tech fees, renewal fees — the complete breakdown of what a franchise actually costs over 5 and 10 years.
Read more →Add-on services, revenue diversification, and growth strategies for established operators.
Hit the cleaning business ceiling? These 6 expansion paths break you through $10K/month without adding more residential clients.
Read more →Year-round revenue for landscapers. 7 proven add-ons that fill the off-season and can double your annual revenue.
Read more →Stop being a jack-of-all-trades. Stack 5 high-demand, high-ticket services and become the go-to operator in your market.
Read more →6 add-on services that smooth the feast-or-famine revenue cycle painters know all too well. Real numbers, real strategies.
Read more →Stop chasing one-off hauls. Build predictable, recurring income with the property manager pipeline and recurring contract model.
Read more →Your existing rig can deliver 5 additional high-value services. Turn annual clients into monthly recurring revenue.
Read more →