See Through the Murk.
An FDD runs hundreds of pages. The real risks sit on a few of them. We find them before you sign.
What's Really in Your FDD?
What Most Reviews Cover
Franchise fee, royalty rate, territory size, litigation count. The fundamentals any review will surface. It's also where most buyers stop.
What They Don't
Whose units are in the “average revenue” table, and whose were left out. Growth headlines that net out transfers and buybacks. Personal guarantees that survive termination. “Protected” territories with online sales carved out. Franchises sold that never opened.
But Can't I Just Ask a Chatbot?
You can, and you'll get a confident, complete-looking answer in two minutes. What you won't get: any way to know which numbers are wrong, what's on the scanned pages it never read, or whether this brand's terms are normal or the worst in their category. We extract 202 fields with two independent reads, a page citation on every value, and a library of 2,110 FDDs across 1,500+ brands to say what's unusual. The difference isn't the summary. It's knowing which numbers you can trust, because every one points to the page it came from. A chatbot reads the one FDD you hand it. When we hold the brand's prior filing, we compare the two and show you what changed.
Inside Your FDD Report
Proprietary Transparency Rating
A 0-100 score computed from 32 forensic checks across five pillars: Disclosure, Trajectory, Solvency, Consistency, and Litigation.
32 Forensic Checks
Every FDD is analyzed against 32 binary risk indicators across five categories.
Territory & Non-Compete
Identifies loopholes that let HQ compete against you in your own territory.
Termination & Exit Clauses
Surfaces non-compete traps that survive termination and post-term restrictions.
What Item 19 Actually Says
States the revenue figure Item 19 discloses under the FDD’s own label, with the sample it covers. Where the FDD discloses no costs, the report says so and gives you the questions to put to the franchisor, rather than an earnings number built on a rate nobody disclosed.
Why I Built This
“After going through the franchise buying process firsthand, and learning the hard way what disclosure documents leave out, I set out to build the tool I wish I'd had. Franchise Sonar is that tool.”
The Founder // Built from Experience
Your Due Diligence Options
| FDD Attorney | Franchise Consultant | Franchise Sonar | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | Varies by firm | Usually franchisor-paid | $499 |
| Time | 2-4 weeks | Ongoing | Within 24 hours |
| Coverage | Legal compliance and counsel | Sales-biased | 32 forensic checks |
FDD Attorney
Franchise Consultant
Franchise Sonar
Protect Your Investment Before You Sign
$499 to protect a $250,000 decision = 0.2% of your investment
Essential Scan
or 4 interest-free payments of $49.75
Should you keep looking at this brand? A first read of the numbers that decide it.
- ✓Murk Score: our 0 to 100 transparency rating for this FDD
- ✓Fees, royalty and total investment, each with its FDD page
- ✓What Item 19 discloses about sales, and what it leaves out
- ✓Outlets opened, closed and transferred (Item 20)
- ✓Lawsuits the franchisor discloses (Item 3)
- ✓The franchisor’s own financial statements (Item 21)
- ✓Questions to ask first, each tied to a fact on an FDD page
Complete Report
or 4 interest-free payments of $124.75
Your FDD due diligence, done completely: every Item read, every change since last year, every question to ask before you sign.
- ✓What changed since last year’s FDD: every change, field by field, with the page in both years (when we hold last year’s FDD; when we don’t, the report says so)
- ✓All 23 Items read, including the franchisor’s financial statements and the contract terms
- ✓Every finding labeled Serious, Ask about or Good sign, each with its FDD page
- ✓What it will cost you, and what Item 19 says owners make, and where it says nothing
- ✓Territory, non-compete, renewal and exit terms, set out for your attorney
- ✓Every question to ask, grouped by who can answer it: the franchisor, current owners, former owners, your attorney, your accountant
- ✓Every calculation shown, so you can check our math
Want to talk it through? Add the 60-minute call for $500 more.
30-Day Money-Back GuaranteeDeep Dive Package
or 4 interest-free payments of $249.75
Talk it through with someone who’s signed one.
Brokers are paid when you sign. Franchisors are selling. We’ve owned a franchise, read the fine print the hard way, and gone through a legal fight with our franchisor. For 60 minutes, that experience is on your side of the table.
- ✓60 minutes on video with former franchisees, booked right after checkout
- ✓We walk your report with you: what’s normal, what’s not, and what to push on
- ✓The pitfalls first-time buyers miss, checked against this FDD’s own pages
- ✓The questions to take to your attorney, the franchisor and current owners
- ✓A follow-up email with your action items, in writing
- ✓Your full due diligence package: everything in the Complete Report
Paid by you, never by a franchisor. We earn the same whether you sign or walk away.
30-Day Money-Back GuaranteeWe are not lawyers. The call is information about this FDD, not legal advice.
| Feature | Free | $199 | $499 | $999 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Murk Score | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Snapshot Metrics (fees, investment, units) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Item 3: Litigation Summary | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Item 19: Financial Representations Audit | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Integrity Dashboard | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Items 12 & 17: Territory + Exit Deep-Dive | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Item 19 Revenue Read + Franchisor Cost Questions | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Franchisee Validation Questions + Attorney Priorities | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
| What Changed Since Last Year’s FDD (two-vintage comparison) | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
| 60-Minute Call with Former Franchisees | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ |