Automotive
Big O Tires Franchise
A tire and full-service automotive repair franchise (tires, brakes, alignment, suspension, oil changes) that began as a Colorado buying cooperative for independent tire dealers in 1962 before adopting a franchise model. Acquired by TBC Corporation in 1996, it's one of the larger tire-retail franchise networks in the U.S., concentrated in the Western and Midwestern states, and reported 461 franchised stores and zero company-owned locations as of its fiscal year ended March 31, 2025.
Every franchisor has to file a document called an FDD before they can legally sell you a franchise. Buried in it are the two things a sales rep won't volunteer: what you'll actually spend to open, and whether existing locations are opening or closing. That's what's below, pulled straight from Big O Tires's own filing.
What it costs to open
From the filing's investment breakdown -- not a "starting at" number a sales rep quoted you.
Franchise fee
$17,500
Total to open
$511,500–$1,882,500
Ongoing royalty
Not a %-of-revenue fee -- see FDD
What you'd actually spend, over time
The upfront cost is only part of it. Plug in what you expect a location to bring in, and see the real total once royalties over a few years are added on top.
Defaulted to a rough automotive industry average, not a figure from Big O Tires's own FDD -- change it to your own estimate.
Startup investment (royalty not included -- see below)
$511,500 – $1,882,500
Big O Tires doesn't charge a straightforward percentage-of-revenue royalty -- its FDD describes a different ongoing-fee structure instead. That cost isn't included in the total above; check the FDD directly for the real terms before using this figure to compare against other franchises.
When would you break even?
Revenue alone doesn't tell you this -- it depends on what's left after rent, labor, and everything else. Big O Tires's FDD doesn't disclose a reliable profit figure (most franchisors don't), so this starts from a typical automotive profit margin (~12%) and applies it to the revenue you entered above -- adjust the percentage to your own realistic estimate.
Defaulted to a general automotive industry benchmark, not a figure from Big O Tires's own filing -- this is a starting point to adjust, not a promise about what franchisees actually make.
At that profit, you'd break even in about
6.6–24.1 years
Weigh that payback period against what you already know: Big O Tires is currently losing locations. A long payback period on a shrinking brand is a very different bet than the same payback period on a growing one.
Is Big O Tires actually growing?
Franchisors have to report, every year, how many locations opened, closed, or changed hands. Most franchise sites never show you this. Here it is:
Locations opened vs. closed, by year
ShrinkingFrom Item 20 of Big O Tires's FDD, the section franchisors use to disclose real openings and closings.
| Year | Franchised units, start | Franchised units, end | Net change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 460 | 462 | +2 |
| 2025 | 462 | 461 | -1 |
Most recent year (2025): lost 1 franchised units, ending the year at 461 total.
How Big O Tires compares to other Automotive franchises
Across the 9 automotive franchises we've hand-verified so far, the typical range to open runs $278,880–$790,285, with royalties averaging around 5.9% of gross sales (based on the 4 of them that charge a flat %-of-revenue royalty).
$515,250–$650,400 · non-%-of-revenue royalty
Tint World$249,950–$479,950 · 6% royalty
Midas$385,450–$940,050 · non-%-of-revenue royalty
CARSTAR$23,500–$165,300 · 5.5% royalty
Jiffy Lube$211,000–$510,000 · 4% royalty
Meineke$224,898–$1,200,818 · non-%-of-revenue royalty
Maaco$196,000–$644,000 · 8% royalty
Valvoline Instant Oil Change$192,375–$639,550 · non-%-of-revenue royalty
Big O Tires Franchise FAQ
How much does it cost to franchise a Big O Tires?
Based on Big O Tires's own FDD, total initial investment to open one location runs $511,500–$1,882,500, including the $17,500 franchise fee. Big O Tires, LLC's FDD, issued 6/30/2025 (fiscal year ended 3/31/2025). A direct DFPI-hosted filing PDF for this entity wasn't located via search, so these figures are drawn from that FDD as reported and cross-checked across two independent FDD-data outlets -- vetmyfranchise.com's Big O Tires franchise/FDD review pages and 1851franchise.com's Franchise Deep Dive on Big O Tires -- which agree on the fee, investment range, and Item 20 franchised-unit counts (460 at FYE 3/31/2023, 462 at FYE 3/31/2024, 461 at FYE 3/31/2025).
What is the Big O Tires franchise fee?
The initial franchise fee is $17,500. Big O Tires's ongoing fee isn't a flat percent-of-revenue royalty -- check the FDD's Item 6 for the actual structure.
Is the Big O Tires franchise growing or shrinking?
Shrinking. Across 2024–2025, Big O Tires lost a net 1 franchised location, per its own annual FDD filings.
Keep going
- Big O Tires and Christian Brothers Automotive are both automotive franchises; Big O Tires's total investment starts about $3,750 lower than Christian Brothers Automotive's. Christian Brothers Automotive Franchise
- Big O Tires and Midas are both automotive franchises; Midas's total investment starts about $126,050 lower than Big O Tires's. Midas Franchise
Where this came from: Big O Tires, LLC's FDD, issued 6/30/2025 (fiscal year ended 3/31/2025). A direct DFPI-hosted filing PDF for this entity wasn't located via search, so these figures are drawn from that FDD as reported and cross-checked across two independent FDD-data outlets -- vetmyfranchise.com's Big O Tires franchise/FDD review pages and 1851franchise.com's Franchise Deep Dive on Big O Tires -- which agree on the fee, investment range, and Item 20 franchised-unit counts (460 at FYE 3/31/2023, 462 at FYE 3/31/2024, 461 at FYE 3/31/2025). You can pull the same filing yourself from the California DFPI's public franchise search. Filed 2025-06-30. None of this is investment advice -- get the franchisor's current FDD and talk to a real attorney or accountant before you sign anything.
If you see a different unit count elsewhere: franchisors only have to refile their FDD annually, so the numbers here can run 6–18 months behind a franchisor's own real-time marketing claims -- which often aren't independently verified, and sometimes count signed-but-not-yet-open locations. A gap isn't necessarily an error on either side; it's two different snapshots in time from two different sources.