Steak n Shake Franchise Failure Rate
SBA 7(a) loan default data, FY2010–FY2019 · Updated 2026
Steak n Shake franchisees defaulted on 21.7% of SBA 7(a) loans between FY2010 and FY2019 — 5 of 23 loans were charged off — according to U.S. Small Business Administration data. That is higher than the Full-Service Restaurants industry average of 9.6%.
- 21.7%SBA default rate5 of 23 loans
- 23loans resolvedapproved FY2010–FY2019
- 9.6%Full-Service Restaurants averageall SBA loans in the industry
- 12th lowestindustry rankof 12 Full-Service Restaurants brands
| SBA default rate | 21.7% |
|---|---|
| Loans approved | 23 |
| Loans charged off | 5 |
| 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.
About 1 in 5 Steak n Shake SBA borrowers failed to repay — more than double the Full-Service Restaurants average of 9.6%.
What is the Steak n Shake franchise failure rate on SBA loans?
Steak n Shake 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 Steak n Shake franchisees: 23 loans approved between fiscal 2010 and 2019, of which 5 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–FY201923
- Charged off5
- Charge-off rate21.7%
- Full-Service Restaurants franchise benchmark9.6%
- Brand vs industry2.3x
- All-franchise SBA benchmark10.2%
- Average loan size, 2010s cohort$1,247,270
How does Steak n Shake compare with other Full-Service Restaurants franchises?
The table sets Steak n Shake'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. A cell in red is more than twice the industry benchmark.
| Measure | Steak n Shake | Full-Service Restaurants | All franchises | All SBA borrowers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Default (charge-off) rate | 21.7% | 9.6% | 10.2% | 8.0% |
| Loans in sample | 23 | — | — | — |
| Defaults | 5 | — | — | — |
| Average loan size | $1,247,270 | — | — | — |
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 | 1 | 1 | 100.0% |
| FY2011 | 3 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2012 | 4 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2013 | 4 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2014 | 3 | 0 | 0.0% |
| FY2015 | 1 | 1 | 100.0% |
| FY2016 | 3 | 3 | 100.0% |
| FY2017 | 4 | 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?
Steak n Shake's figure rests on 23 resolved SBA 7(a) loans approved between fiscal 2010 and 2019. That cohort has matured, so the rate is a settled outcome, not a projection. With 23 resolved loans, one default moves the rate by about 4.3 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 Steak n Shake figure is recomputed from the public SBA FOIA file on each rebuild.
Based on 23 resolved loans — directional, not precise.
Is Steak n Shake in financial trouble? What the SBA data shows
Steak n Shake's SBA 7(a) default rate was 21.7% for loans approved FY2010–FY2019 (5 of 23 loans charged off) — the highest of 12 Full-Service Restaurants brands tracked here. A default rate this far above the Full-Service Restaurants average of 9.6% is a signal worth investigating further before investing.
Frequently asked
- What is Steak n Shake's franchise failure rate?
- Steak n Shake franchisees defaulted on 21.7% of SBA 7(a) loans between FY2010 and FY2019 — 5 of 23 loans were charged off — according to U.S. Small Business Administration data. That is higher than the Full-Service Restaurants industry average of 9.6%.
- How does Steak n Shake compare to other Full-Service Restaurants franchises?
- Steak n Shake's 21.7% SBA default rate is higher 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). Steak n Shake franchise SBA 7(a) default rate, FY2010–FY2019 cohort: 21.7% (5 of 23 loans charged off). Derived from U.S. SBA FOIA data, loan statuses as of June 30, 2026.
https://franchisefailurerates.com/franchise/steak-n-shake/ · Data & methodology · Download the dataset (CSV)