How much does a D-BAT franchise cost?
The 2026 D-BAT Franchise Disclosure Document estimates $503,450 to $995,100 to open one D-BAT Facility in the United States. That total includes a $45,000 Initial Franchise Fee, premises and construction costs, equipment and technology, opening supplies, and $50,000 to $75,000 of Additional Funds for the first three months. It is not a liquid-capital requirement, and actual site costs can fall outside the disclosed range.
Data basis. Legal franchisor: D-BAT Academies, LLC, a Texas limited liability company. Parent and trademark owner: D-BAT Sports, Inc. FDD issuance date: May 11, 2026. Cost sections reviewed: Items 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, and 17. Unit paths: one D-BAT Facility and an Area Development Agreement for multiple Facilities. Information checked: July 14, 2026.
The public official D-BAT U.S. franchise website describes the Facility concept, but no matching public copy of the May 11, 2026 FDD was located on a D-BAT-controlled domain. FDD citations in this article are therefore unlinked Item-and-page references. Exhibit K listed registration-state effective dates as pending in the document reviewed, so state availability should be confirmed before payment.
Capital snapshot
What is included in the $503,450 to $995,100 range?
The 2026 Item 7 total contains 20 separate expenditures. Premises and construction dominate the range: the FDD assumes a typical D-BAT Facility occupies 10,000 to 22,000 usable square feet in an industrial building, and the condition of that space changes both Leasehold Improvements and Facility Build-out costs. The official D-BAT Facility tour provides visual context for the pro shop, pitching machines, cage area, front desk, and other physical components, but the FDD remains the source for the dollar ranges.
Premises, construction, systems, and approvals
| Item 7 expenditure | 2026 amount | Payment timing and payee | FDD reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial Franchise Fee | $45,000 | At Franchise Agreement signing; D-BAT Academies, LLC | Item 7, p. 9 |
| Lease deposit | $7,000–$20,000 | As arranged; landlord | Item 7, p. 9 |
| Leasehold Improvements | $100,000–$375,000 | As arranged; contractors | Item 7, p. 9 |
| Facility Build-out | $213,000–$330,000 | Before opening; third parties | Item 7, p. 9 |
| Construction Management and On-Site Training Fee | $6,000 | Timing conflicts inside the FDD: Item 7 says at signing; Item 5 says 45 days before the Opening Date | Items 5 and 7, pp. 4 and 10 |
| Computer system(s) | $15,000–$20,000 | Before opening; D-BAT and third-party suppliers | Item 7, p. 10 |
| Signage and graphics | $17,000–$21,000 | As arranged; D-BAT and third-party suppliers | Item 7, p. 10 |
| Blueprints, plans, and permits | $8,000–$25,000 | Before opening; agencies and site professionals | Item 7, pp. 10 and 12 |
| Furniture, Fixtures and Equipment | $14,500–$25,000 | Before opening; D-BAT and third-party suppliers | Item 7, pp. 10 and 12 |
| Permits and Licenses | $3,000–$5,000 | As required; government agency | Item 7, p. 10 |
The Facility Build-out category includes turf, nets, lights, pitching machines, fencing, slatwall, non-turf flooring, and related fixtures and equipment. Leasehold Improvements assume either a lower-cost vanilla box or a more extensive second-generation remodel; landlord tenant-improvement allowances are not reflected.
Opening materials, professional costs, and working capital
| Item 7 expenditure | 2026 amount | Payment timing and payee | FDD reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brochures, press kits, and sales collateral | $2,000–$3,000 | As arranged; D-BAT and third-party suppliers | Item 7, p. 10 |
| Uniforms | $250–$1,000 | As arranged; D-BAT and third-party suppliers | Item 7, p. 10 |
| Insurance | $500–$1,000 | Before opening; insurance agent | Item 7, pp. 10 and 12 |
| Utility deposits | $700–$1,600 | Before opening; utility companies | Item 7, p. 10 |
| Travel during training | $500–$2,000 | As incurred; hotels and restaurants; airfare is excluded | Item 7, pp. 10 and 12 |
| Initial advertising and marketing products | $5,000–$7,500 | As required; D-BAT, media, and approved suppliers | Item 7, pp. 10 and 12 |
| Initial pro shop inventory | $0–$4,000 | As arranged; third-party suppliers | Item 7, pp. 10 and 12 |
| Initial Cage Usage Supplies | $15,000–$23,000 | Before opening; D-BAT and approved suppliers | Item 7, p. 10 |
| Legal, accounting, and professional fees | $1,000–$5,000 | As arranged; buyer's professionals | Item 7, pp. 10 and 12 |
| Additional Funds — three months | $50,000–$75,000 | As incurred; rent, advertising, payroll, and miscellaneous opening costs | Item 7, pp. 10 and 12 |
The $50,000 to $75,000 Additional Funds range is already inside the $503,450 to $995,100 Item 7 total. It covers the first three months and includes rent, advertising, miscellaneous opening costs, and employee payroll. It assumes the franchisee personally manages day-to-day operations and excludes owner salary or draw, financing costs, life-insurance premiums required by a lender, and debt service.
Does the $548,450 to $1,040,100 development range cover three D-BAT Facilities?
No. For a three-Facility Area Development Agreement, Item 7 discloses $548,450 to $1,040,100, but that figure combines the $90,000 Development Fee with the estimated investment for only one Facility after removing that Facility's $45,000 Initial Franchise Fee. It is not a disclosed budget for constructing and opening all three Facilities.
How the three-Facility fee commitment is staged
The following amounts are a direct reading of the Development Fee formula plus a clearly labeled arithmetic calculation. They exclude every site, construction, equipment, inventory, and working-capital cost for Facilities two and three.
Derived total Initial Franchise Fees for three Facilities: $135,000 before any qualifying veteran discount. The 2026 FDD requires at least two Facilities under an Area Development Agreement. Source: Items 5 and 7, pp. 3–4 and 11–13.
A buyer evaluating multi-unit development needs a separate capital plan for each later Facility. The Area Development Agreement secures development rights and a schedule; it does not convert the one-Facility Item 7 range into a three-Facility construction budget.
When is the money paid before a D-BAT Facility opens?
Cash leaves the buyer in several stages rather than as one payment. The 2026 FDD contemplates an optional Letter of Intent, agreement-signing payments, site and construction payments, specified fees 45 days before opening, and supplier purchases shortly before operations begin. Federal disclosure rules generally require the FDD to be delivered before a binding agreement or franchise-related payment; see the FTC franchise buying guide and 16 CFR Part 436.
The Earnest Money Payment is collected before a Franchise Agreement or Area Development Agreement if the buyer elects to sign the Letter of Intent. It is nonrefundable, but it is credited to the Initial Franchise Fee if the contemplated agreement is signed by the agreed deadline.
A single-Facility buyer pays the $45,000 Initial Franchise Fee. A three-Facility developer pays the $90,000 Development Fee. Site deposits, professional fees, and other third-party payments may also begin as arranged.
The Lease Deposit, Leasehold Improvements, Facility Build-out, blueprints, permits, signage, computer systems, and equipment are paid under landlord, contractor, agency, and supplier schedules. Item 11 requires an acceptable site within 180 days after the Franchise Agreement, subject to the contract's termination provisions.
Item 5 states that the $2,500 Initial Software License Fee and $6,000 Construction Management and On-Site Training Fee are due at this point. The Item 7 table instead lists the $6,000 fee as due when the Franchise Agreement is signed.
The buyer acquires $15,000 to $23,000 of Initial Cage Usage Supplies and $5,000 to $7,500 of Initial Marketing Products, plus other inventory, uniforms, insurance, utility deposits, training travel, and opening requirements.
The continuing $354 monthly Software License Fee starts, the Advertising and Promotion Fund contribution is calculated monthly, and the local advertising obligation is measured quarterly. Merchant Services Fees arise by transaction.
The $6,000 Construction Management and On-Site Training Fee has two different due dates inside the same 2026 FDD: Item 5 says 45 days before the Opening Date, while Item 7 says when the Franchise Agreement is signed. A buyer should require the controlling due date in writing before signing or authorizing payment.
What fees continue after opening?
D-BAT does not disclose a routine sales-based Royalty Fee. Instead, the continuing cost structure centers on Membership Fees, advertising, software, payment processing, and conditional Management Fees. D-BAT acts as the collection agent for Membership Fees, deducts applicable charges, and remits the balance to the franchisee. Revenue from private instruction, other services, and retail equipment and apparel is not subject to the disclosed royalty calculation.
| Continuing fee | 2026 amount or basis | When due | FDD reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Advertising and Promotion Fund Contribution | 2.5% of Membership Fees | Monthly | Item 6, p. 5 |
| Local advertising or Advertising Cooperative contribution | 2.5% of Membership Fees | Quarterly | Items 6 and 11, pp. 5 and 18 |
| Software License Fee | Currently $354 | Monthly after operations begin | Item 6, p. 6 |
| Merchant Services Fees | Currently 2.5%–4% by transaction type | As incurred | Item 6, p. 6 |
| Management Fee | Conditional: 40% of Membership Fees or up to 12% of Gross Revenue | Monthly if imposed | Item 6, pp. 5 and 9 |
| Additional training | Up to $500 per person per day; up to $5,000 per Facility per year | Before training | Item 6, p. 6 |
The two ordinary advertising obligations use the same denominator and together equal a derived 5% of Membership Fees before any cooperative increase: 2.5% to the Advertising and Promotion Fund plus 2.5% for local advertising. An Advertising Cooperative contribution is credited toward the local advertising requirement. This is not a percentage of all Gross Revenue.
- Membership Fees
- All revenue collected from membership sales, excluding sales tax. D-BAT collects these payments as agent and may deduct amounts owed before remitting the balance.
- Gross Revenue
- A broader defined measure covering revenue and other value attributable to Facility operations, with specified exclusions. It becomes relevant to the alternative conditional Management Fee formula.
- No routine sales royalty
- The FDD says private instruction, other services, and retail equipment and apparel revenue are not subject to royalty fee calculations.
- Software systems
- The $15,000 to $20,000 Item 7 computer range includes the $2,500 Initial Software License Fee and the first three months of the ongoing Software License Fee. D-BAT may require hardware and software upgrades. The official D-BAT systems page describes scheduling, point-of-sale, payroll, inventory, and member-management functions.
Which fees apply only after a trigger or transaction?
Item 6 contains several charges that do not belong in the ordinary opening budget but can become material after default, a performance trigger, a transfer, renewal, insurance lapse, audit, supplier request, or missing Manual. These fees should be treated as contingent contract exposure rather than recurring baseline expenses.
Item 6 also requires indemnification for covered losses and expenses, reimbursement of enforcement or termination costs and attorneys' fees, and other circumstance-dependent amounts that cannot be converted into a reliable opening budget.
Which cost obligations can change after the Facility opens?
Required technology upgrades, designated suppliers, inventory standards, local advertising decisions, premises work, and contract events can change the cash requirement after opening. The 2026 FDD permits D-BAT to update computer hardware and software requirements, and third-party providers can increase Software License Fees and Merchant Services Fees.
Item 7 shows only $0 to $4,000 for Initial Pro Shop Inventory because all or most inventory is expected to be supplied on consignment. Item 8 separately requires the Facility to maintain minimum pro shop inventory with a wholesale purchase cost of up to $40,000. Rawlings/Easton is identified as a current designated supplier providing consigned pro shop inventory. Buyers should verify title, shrinkage, return, replacement, freight, and payment terms rather than treating the $0 Item 7 low end as a permanent zero-cost inventory obligation.
Other required assets include proprietary scheduling and point-of-sale software, QuickBooks accounting software, specified computer hardware, pitching machines, turf, nets, cage equipment, signage, uniforms, marketing products, and Initial Cage Usage Supplies. Item 7's Furniture, Fixtures and Equipment range includes HitTRAX and estimated shipping. Amounts for future upgrades, replacements, remodels, and relocation are not fixed in the 2026 FDD.
Does D-BAT disclose a liquid-capital or net-worth minimum?
No numerical Liquid Capital, Net Worth, or Non-Borrowed Funds threshold is stated in the reviewed 2026 FDD or on the official D-BAT franchise pages cited here. Item 10 also states that D-BAT Academies, LLC does not offer direct or indirect financing and does not guarantee a buyer's note, lease, or obligation.
This means the $503,450 to $995,100 Estimated Initial Investment should not be presented as an approval threshold. Net Worth is not cash, Liquid Capital is not the same as Total Initial Investment, and lender proceeds may involve interest, points, debt service, collateral, or life-insurance costs that Item 7 expressly excludes from Additional Funds.
The FDD's special-risk disclosures state that a spouse must sign a document making the spouse liable for obligations under the Franchise Agreement even without an ownership interest. The agreements also use guarantees and personal undertakings. The buyer should identify which personal and marital assets secure the obligations before treating entity-level funds as the full capital exposure.
What should be confirmed before relying on the disclosed range?
The official range is a national FDD estimate, not a quote for a particular lease, contractor, lender, or municipality. The most important verification work is therefore to reconcile the current agreement, site plan, vendor quotes, and state offering status with the exact Item 7 assumptions.
What is the practical capital takeaway?
The verified 2026 starting point is $503,450 to $995,100 for one D-BAT Facility. The range is primarily a real-estate and construction range, not a franchise-fee range. It already includes three months of Additional Funds but excludes owner compensation, debt service, financing costs, some travel, and future upgrades or remodels.
The continuing fee structure is also unusual: the FDD discloses no routine sales-based Royalty Fee, while requiring 2.5% of Membership Fees for the Advertising and Promotion Fund, 2.5% of Membership Fees for local advertising, a current $354 monthly Software License Fee, transaction-based Merchant Services Fees, and a potentially large conditional Management Fee. For multi-unit buyers, the $548,450 to $1,040,100 Area Development entry range must not be mistaken for the cost to open three Facilities.