The 10 Best Low-Investment Franchises of 2020

Opening your own business is no joke. Appropriately, it requires a significant investment. While larger franchises with high financial requirements often generate the highest ROI, those investments are typically cost-prohibitive for smaller franchisees. But for new entrepreneurs who haven’t yet built the liquidity to snag the biggest franchise fish, there are still a number of lucrative options on the lower end of the investment spectrum. 

Drawing from this year’s Entrepreneur Franchise 500 List, 1851 has compiled a list of 10 brands with a minimum initial investment of less than $100,000.

Right at Home* (Entrepreneur ranking: 340)

• Minimum Investment: $80,150
• Units: 600+

Founded in 1995, Right at Home offers in-home companionship, personal care and assistance to seniors and adults with disabilities who wish to live independently. Local Right at Home offices are independently owned and operated and directly employ and supervise all caregiving staff, each of whom is thoroughly screened, trained, bonded and insured prior to entering a client’s home. 

Right at Home was the highest-ranked senior care franchise opportunity on Entrepreneur Franchise 500 list in 2018. That same year, Forbes magazine ranked Right at Home the No. 1 franchise to own under $150,000. 

Mosquito Joe* (Entrepreneur ranking: 218)

• Minimum Investment: $95,600
• Units: 100+

Mosquito Joe is a leader in the outdoor pest control industry, providing mosquito control treatment services to residential and commercial consumers. Acquired by Neighborly® in 2018, Mosquito Joe is part of a community of home service experts. 

MaidPro (Entrepreneur ranking: 111)

• Minimum Investment: $74,560
• Units: 150+

Ranked as the top maid service for low-cost and home-based cleaning by Entrepreneur, MaidPro prides itself on its unique approach to both business and franchising. 

Since its founding in 1991, MaidPro has quickly grown to more than 150 locations across the U.S. and Canada. 

uBreakiFix (Entrepreneur ranking: 21)

• Minimum Investment: $55,400
• Units: 500+

Founded in 2009, the uBreakiFix concept began franchising in 2013. To date, uBreakiFix has completed more than 7.5 million repairs at its more than 540 locations across North America and is an authorized service provider for both Samsung and Google. The industry-leading company offers both mail-in and walk-in repairs of electronics including smartphones, tablets, computers, video game consoles and other devices. All repairs come with a 90-day parts-and-labor warranty.

Pearle Vision (Entrepreneur ranking: 58)

• Minimum Investment: $77,695
• Units: 500+

Ranked as the nation’s top Eye Care franchise by Entrepreneur in 2020, this year marks the 12th consecutive year that Pearle Vision has ranked on the Franchise 500 and the 36th time in the 41 years the list has been published. 

Founded in 1961, Dr. Stanley Pearle completed the concept of one-stop total eye care with complete eye exams along with an extensive selection of eyewear. Pearle Vision is owned by Luxottica, a leader in premium fashion, luxury and sports eyewear.

Sylvan Learning* (Entrepreneur ranking: 252)

• Minimum Investment: $68,680
• Units: 800+

With more than 40 years of experience and more than 800 points of presence throughout North America, Sylvan Learning is the leading provider of personal learning for students in grades K–12. Sylvan is transforming how students learn and inspiring them to succeed in school and in life. Sylvan’s proven tutoring approach blends amazing teachers with SylvanSync™ technology for an engaging learning experience. 

Sylvan also leads the way with Sylvan EDGE — its STEM and accelerated courses and Sylvan Prep — its college and test prep courses.

360 Painting (Entrepreneur ranking: 55)

• Minimum Investment: $76,655
• Units: 100+

360° Painting is an award-winning brand that Entrepreneur has ranked both as the #1 Paint Franchise two years in a row and as one of the fastest-growing franchises in 2019. With low overhead, little risk and a fully-integrated training program, 360° Painting offers the best experience in opening, operating and growing your own business, while also being home-based. 

The brand’s special partnerships with nationally recognized painting companies like Sherwin-Williams and PPG Paints give it cutting-edge access to the latest in commercial and residential painting.

GYMGUYZ (Entrepreneur ranking: 74)

• Minimum Investment: $56,072
• Units: 234

GYMGUYZ is #1 in Home Personal Training providing convenient, customized and creative workouts wherever you are. Founded in 2008 by fitness specialist Josh York, the mobile brand utilizes a fleet of franchise vans that bring more than 365 pieces of state-of-the-art fitness equipment and expert coaches to their customers’ doors to drive accountability and provide tailored workouts. 

Since beginning franchising in 2014, the brand’s growth has exploded, increasing by 1,700 percent. Now with nearly 200 locations internationally, including the United States, United Kingdom and Canada, GYMGUYZ is the fastest growing fitness concept in the U.S. and has plans to open another 100+ locations globally in the coming year. 

Weed Man (Entrepreneur ranking: 102)

• Minimum Investment: $68,500
• Units: 600+

Weed Man, North America’s fastest-growing franchised lawn care provider, is a network of locally owned and operated lawn care businesses providing environmentally responsible fertilization, weed control and integrated pest management services. Founded in 1970 and since the brand started franchising in 1976, Weed Man has been supporting franchisees — now, in more than 675 territories across North America.

Rooter-Man (Entrepreneur ranking: 85)

• Minimum Investment: $46,750
• Units: 450+

Founded in 1970, Rooter-Man grew to become one of the largest plumbing, sewer and drain cleaning companies in North America. Since then, Rooter-Man has grown to a network of over 450 locations across the United States and Canada and was named the #1 Plumbing Franchise by Entrepreneur Magazine for 16 years in a row from 2003 through 2018.