July 2026 Methodology
BoeFly announced its most recent Franchise Growth Confidence Index – the quarterly BoeFly survey measuring how certain economic conditions and external factors affect franchisors’ growth. Between June 3 and June 19, 2026, we surveyed franchisor executives to determine whether there were significant changes in franchisor sentiment regarding domestic franchise growth.
Participants rated their confidence on a scale of a (not confident) to 7 (completely confident) regarding whether they expect their brand to achieve growth targets this year. Respondents also answered questions measuring the impact of key economic and external conditions.
Results
This quarter, 56% of franchisors expressed confidence in meeting their franchise growth targets, representing only a modest decline from 60% in Q1 2026 while remaining well above the 42.9% reported in Q4 2025. Although confidence has not returned to the 72.7% high recorded in Q1 2025, the findings suggest franchisor sentiment has stabilized despite ongoing economic uncertainty.
- 34% of franchisors reported being not confident, compared with 20% in Q1 2026, but substantially better than 57.1% in Q4 2025.
- Concerns surrounding interest rates continued to improve, with just 48% agreeing that current rates have negatively impacted franchise growth plans. This is the lowest level since the survey began in 2023.
- Inflation concerns also eased, with 44% saying inflation has negatively impacted growth, down from 55% in Q1 2026 and 61.9% in Q4 2025.
- A new question found that 38% of franchisors said delays in obtaining financing negatively affected franchise development goals, while 45% were neutral and 17% disagreed.
- Concern over geopolitical instability declined, with only 24% agreeing that the conflict in the Middle East negatively impacted franchise development goals, compared with 34% in Q1 2026.
- Neutral confidence responses fell to 10%, indicating franchisors are increasingly taking a definitive view about growth prospects.
Key Insights
- Interest-rate pressure continues to ease, falling from more than 71% in Q4 2025 to just 48% today.
- Inflation is becoming less of a franchise growth obstacle, with only 44% citing it as negatively impacting expansion.
- Confidence remains resilient despite uncertainty, remaining significantly higher than late-2025 levels.
- Financing delays remain a new watch point, with more than one-third of franchisors reporting them as a barrier.
Conclusion
The Q2 2026 findings suggest franchisors are entering the second half of the year with cautious optimism. While economic uncertainty continues to influence expansion decisions, easing concerns around interest rates and inflation indicate improving market conditions for franchise development. Financing timelines remain an emerging challenge, but overall confidence continues to recover from the lows experienced in late 2025, reinforcing a more favorable outlook for franchise growth.
