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Home Instead

maturefranchising since 1995

Home Instead is one of the largest home care franchise systems, with 626 locations, and it is still adding more. Owners pay a 5.0% royalty on gross sales. — HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing.

What stands out

HomecareHQ analysis of 23 home care franchise systems' 2026 disclosure documents.

How Home Instead compares

Runs ahead of the field
  • Exit rate1.6%
    below typical
Differs from typical
  • All-in fee load at $1M7.6%
    above typical
  • Brand fund2.0%
    above typical

Growth, against 14 other large systems

Net unit growth
HomeCare Advocacy Network: −41.7%Nurse Next Door: −2.7%Visiting Angels: +0.4%Home Instead: +1.1%Right at Home: +5.0%BrightStar Care: +6.2%Comfort Keepers: +7.1%Griswold: +8.8%ComForCare: +9.3%Senior Helpers: +11.0%HomeWell Care Services: +11.7%Homewatch CareGivers: +12.6%SYNERGY HomeCare: +13.8%Assisting Hands Home Care: +14.9%FirstLight Home Care: +17.2%Seniors Helping Seniors: +24.4%CareBuilders at Home: +27.3%Amada Senior Care: +33.2%A Place At Home: +38.9%Hallmark Homecare: +63.9%One You Love Homecare: +71.4%Home Matters Caregiving: +93.8%Executive Home Care: +276.2%
+1.1%
below typical
Three-year unit growth
Visiting Angels: +1.7%Home Instead: +2.0%BrightStar Care: +14.1%Right at Home: +14.1%Comfort Keepers: +15.7%Homewatch CareGivers: +17.1%Griswold: +21.5%ComForCare: +24.3%Senior Helpers: +25.5%FirstLight Home Care: +30.1%Assisting Hands Home Care: +36.5%SYNERGY HomeCare: +37.9%Nurse Next Door: +42.0%Amada Senior Care: +63.1%HomeWell Care Services: +63.4%One You Love Homecare: +71.4%CareBuilders at Home: +75.0%Seniors Helping Seniors: +85.1%A Place At Home: +163.2%Executive Home Care: +338.9%
+2.0%
lower than most
Exit rate
CareBuilders at Home: 0.0%Home Matters Caregiving: 0.0%Right at Home: 0.4%Comfort Keepers: 0.7%Home Instead: 1.6%Visiting Angels: 1.7%FirstLight Home Care: 2.0%ComForCare: 2.4%Senior Helpers: 2.8%BrightStar Care: 2.9%Griswold: 3.3%Assisting Hands Home Care: 3.5%SYNERGY HomeCare: 4.7%A Place At Home: 5.6%Homewatch CareGivers: 5.6%Seniors Helping Seniors: 5.6%One You Love Homecare: 7.1%Amada Senior Care: 9.2%Executive Home Care: 9.5%HomeWell Care Services: 12.2%Nurse Next Door: 16.4%Hallmark Homecare: 25.0%HomeCare Advocacy Network: 50.0%
1.6%
below typical

Fees, across every system that discloses the measure

Effective royalty at $1M
Visiting Angels: 3.5%Amada Senior Care: 5.0%Assisting Hands Home Care: 5.0%ComForCare: 5.0%Comfort Keepers: 5.0%FirstLight Home Care: 5.0%Griswold: 5.0%Home Instead: 5.0%Homewatch CareGivers: 5.0%Nurse Next Door: 5.0%One You Love Homecare: 5.0%Right at Home: 5.0%Senior Helpers: 5.0%SYNERGY HomeCare: 5.0%BrightStar Care: 5.3%Seniors Helping Seniors: 5.4%A Place At Home: 5.5%Executive Home Care: 6.0%Hallmark Homecare: 6.0%Home Matters Caregiving: 6.0%HomeWell Care Services: 6.0%HomeCare Advocacy Network: 7.0%CareBuilders at Home: 9.0%
5.0%
near typical
All-in fee load at $1M
Visiting Angels: 6.0%ComForCare: 6.1%One You Love Homecare: 6.2%FirstLight Home Care: 6.2%Amada Senior Care: 6.4%Seniors Helping Seniors: 6.4%Nurse Next Door: 6.7%Comfort Keepers: 7.0%Right at Home: 7.2%Homewatch CareGivers: 7.3%Hallmark Homecare: 7.3%Home Matters Caregiving: 7.3%SYNERGY HomeCare: 7.5%Senior Helpers: 7.6%Home Instead: 7.6%A Place At Home: 7.7%BrightStar Care: 8.1%Executive Home Care: 8.2%Assisting Hands Home Care: 10.0%CareBuilders at Home: 10.0%
7.6%
above typical
Initial franchise fee
A Place At Home: $50KCareBuilders at Home: $50KGriswold: $50KHomeWell Care Services: $50KOne You Love Homecare: $50KRight at Home: $50KHomeCare Advocacy Network: $50KExecutive Home Care: $50KBrightStar Care: $50KFirstLight Home Care: $50KHomewatch CareGivers: $50KVisiting Angels: $52KHome Matters Caregiving: $52KHome Instead: $54KAssisting Hands Home Care: $55KComfort Keepers: $55KSenior Helpers: $55KSeniors Helping Seniors: $55KSYNERGY HomeCare: $55KAmada Senior Care: $57KComForCare: $59KHallmark Homecare: $60KNurse Next Door: $72K
$54K
near typical

The typical home care franchise: 5.0% royalty rate, $52K initial franchise fee, +12.6% net unit growth. See what’s typical →

Not shown for this system: royalty share of revenue (the filing does not disclose it).

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Questions this data answers

Ask HQ uses these same benchmarks to answer questions about your own agency’s growth, fees and margins. See how it works →

The basics

Royalty
5.0%on gross salesSource ↗
Brand fund
2.0%Source ↗
Initial franchise fee
$54KSource ↗
Cost to open, from
$93KSource ↗
Technology fee
$500/moSource ↗
Agreement term
5 yearsSource ↗
Franchised locations
626at the end of 2025Source ↗
Standard territory
10,000residents aged 65 and overp. 45 ↗
Legal entity
Home Instead, Inc.
Franchising since
1995p. 9 ↗
Filing read
2026 disclosure document
›Key statistics to cite
  • Home Instead added +1.1% to its franchised locations last year (HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing).
  • Home Instead grew its franchised locations +2.0% over three years (HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing).
  • Home Instead lost 1.6% of its franchised locations last year (HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing).
  • Home Instead has 0 franchises sold and not yet open (HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing).
  • Home Instead ended the year with 626 franchised locations (HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing).
  • Home Instead saw 7.4% of its locations change hands (HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing).
  • Home Instead runs a 53.8% operating margin (HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing).
  • Home Instead reports $2.35M in annual revenue for the businesses it counts (HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing).
  • Home Instead spells out 11 of the basic facts behind its revenue figures (HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing).
  • Home Instead charges a 5.0% royalty (HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing).
  • Home Instead collects 5.0% on a million dollars of sales (HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing).
  • Home Instead takes 7.6% of a million dollars of sales each year (HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing).
  • Home Instead charges $54K to buy the franchise (HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing).
  • Home Instead asks 2.0% of sales for the brand fund (HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing).
  • Home Instead charges $500/mo for technology (HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing).
  • Home Instead puts the cost of opening at $93K and up (HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing).
  • Home Instead gives new owners 25 hours of classroom training (HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing).
  • Home Instead runs its agreement for 5 years (HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing).
  • Home Instead charges $25K to sell the business on (HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing).
  • Home Instead gives an owner a territory of 10,000 residents aged 65 and over (HomecareHQ analysis of its 2026 filing).
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