Buffalo Wild Wings Franchise Failure Rate
SBA 7(a) loan default data, FY2010–FY2019 · Updated 2026
Buffalo Wild Wings franchisees defaulted on 0.0% of SBA 7(a) loans between FY2010 and FY2019 — 0 of 19 loans were charged off — according to U.S. Small Business Administration data. That is lower than the Full-Service Restaurants industry average of 9.6%.
- 0.0%SBA default rate, small sample0 of 19 loans
- 19loans resolvedapproved FY2010–FY2019
- 9.6%Full-Service Restaurants averageall SBA loans in the industry
- 1st lowestindustry rankof 12 Full-Service Restaurants brands
| SBA default rate | 0.0% (small sample) |
|---|---|
| Loans approved | 19 |
| Loans charged off | 0 |
| Date range | FY2010–FY2019 |
| Industry | Full-Service Restaurants |
| Industry average | 9.6% |
| Data source | U.S. SBA 7(a) FOIA loan data |
Most SBA default figures published online use loans approved since 2020 — loans that have had six years or less to fail — so those rates are floors, not outcomes. Every rate on this site is computed from the matured FY2010–FY2019 cohort: loans that have been paid in full or charged off, so the result is settled. Loans approved since 2020 are shown as counts so early charge-offs are visible without being mistaken for a rate.
Source: U.S. SBA FOIA dataset, statuses as of June 30, 2026. Figures also in the comparison table below.
None of the 19 Buffalo Wild Wings SBA borrowers in the sample failed to repay — but 19 loans is too few to call a rate.
What is the Buffalo Wild Wings franchise failure rate on SBA loans?
Buffalo Wild Wings is a Full-Service Restaurants franchise. This page reports the outcome of every SBA 7(a) loan the U.S. Small Business Administration's public FOIA file attributes to Buffalo Wild Wings franchisees: 19 loans approved between fiscal 2010 and 2019, of which 0 were charged off. Loan statuses are as of June 30, 2026, and the cohort has matured, so these are settled outcomes rather than projections.
- SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY201919
- Charged off0
- Charge-off rate (small sample)0.0%
- Full-Service Restaurants franchise benchmark9.6%
- All-franchise SBA benchmark10.2%
- Average loan size, 2010s cohort$818,842
How does Buffalo Wild Wings compare with other Full-Service Restaurants franchises?
The table sets Buffalo Wild Wings's charge-off rate beside its Full-Service Restaurants peers and the two economy-wide benchmarks. All figures use the same cohort — SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY2019, statuses as of June 30, 2026 — and the same denominator of resolved loans, so they are directly comparable.
| Measure | Buffalo Wild Wings | Full-Service Restaurants | All franchises | All SBA borrowers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Default (charge-off) rate | 0.0% (small sample) | 9.6% | 10.2% | 8.0% |
| Loans in sample | 19 | — | — | — |
| Defaults | 0 | — | — | — |
| Average loan size | $818,842 | — | — | — |
Source: U.S. SBA FOIA dataset, statuses as of June 30, 2026.
Show the numbers behind this chart
| Fiscal year | Loans | Charged off | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2010 | 3 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2011 | 9 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2012 | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2013 | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2014 | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2015 | 2 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2016 | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2017 | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
How to read this
A charge-off means a franchisee borrowed, operated, and failed severely enough that the SBA wrote off the government-guaranteed loan. Unlike franchisor marketing or Item 19 disclosures, this is an observed outcome recorded by a federal agency. One caveat cuts the other way: SBA borrowers are typically less capitalized than all-cash buyers, so these rates can overstate risk for well-funded operators.
How reliable is this number?
Buffalo Wild Wings's figure rests on 19 resolved SBA 7(a) loans approved between fiscal 2010 and 2019. That cohort has matured, so the count is a settled outcome, not a projection. With 19 resolved loans, one default moves the rate by about 5.3 percentage points. Loans approved since 2020 are excluded from the rate because most are still outstanding; they appear on this page as counts only. Every Buffalo Wild Wings figure is recomputed from the public SBA FOIA file on each rebuild.
Small sample (19 loans). A single default moves this figure substantially.
Is Buffalo Wild Wings in financial trouble? What the SBA data shows
Buffalo Wild Wings's SBA 7(a) default rate was 0.0% for loans approved FY2010–FY2019 (0 of 19 loans charged off) — the lowest of 12 Full-Service Restaurants brands tracked here. A default rate this far below the Full-Service Restaurants average of 9.6% is not, on its own, a sign of distress. With only 19 loans in the sample, one default moves the rate by about 5.3 percentage points, so read it as a flag rather than a verdict.
Frequently asked
- What is Buffalo Wild Wings's franchise failure rate?
- Buffalo Wild Wings franchisees defaulted on 0.0% of SBA 7(a) loans between FY2010 and FY2019 — 0 of 19 loans were charged off — according to U.S. Small Business Administration data. That is lower than the Full-Service Restaurants industry average of 9.6%.
- How does Buffalo Wild Wings compare to other Full-Service Restaurants franchises?
- Buffalo Wild Wings's 0.0% SBA default rate is lower than the Full-Service Restaurants industry average of 9.6%. See every Full-Service Restaurants franchise ranked on the Full-Service Restaurants industry page. Full-Service Restaurants franchises →
- What does 'SBA default rate' mean?
- An SBA default rate is the share of SBA 7(a) loans, approved FY2010–FY2019 and since resolved (paid in full or charged off), that were charged off — written off after the borrower failed to repay. It is not a measure of unit closures.
Source
Source: U.S. Small Business Administration, 7(a) loan program charge-off data, FY2010–FY2019. Franchise data is matched on the SBA's franchise code / brand name. "Failure rate" here means the share of approved loans (resolved: paid in full or charged off) that were charged off; it is not a measure of unit closures. Last updated September 30, 2026.
Every brand in one table, with percentiles and breakdowns by year, industry and loan size: franchise SBA default rates, all 415 brands.
Cite this page
Franchise Default Rates (2026). Buffalo Wild Wings franchise SBA 7(a) default rate, FY2010–FY2019 cohort: 0.0% (0 of 19 loans charged off). Derived from U.S. SBA FOIA data, loan statuses as of June 30, 2026.
https://franchisefailurerates.com/franchise/buffalo-wild-wings/ · Data & methodology · Download the dataset (CSV)