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Holiday Inn Express Franchise Fees 2024: Royalty, Marketing and Initial Fee
Holiday Inn Express is an upper midscale brand from IHG. Here is what it charges to join and to stay in the system, where the numbers come from, and how they compare with similar brands.
Holiday Inn Express fees at a glance
| Initial fee | $500 per room, minimum $75,000 |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 6% |
| Marketing or program fee | 3% (Services Contribution) |
| Royalty plus marketing | 9% of rooms revenue |
| Franchisor | IHG |
| Segment | Upper midscale |
| Disclosure year | 2024 |
Note: Amended 2024 FDD (issued March 28, 2024, amended June 28, 2024) on file with the Minnesota Department of Commerce; IHG has not filed a newer FDD there. Also a loyalty program contribution on member stays.
Source: Read in Holiday Inn Express’s 2024 Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD). Source 1
How Holiday Inn Express compares
Holiday Inn Express’s royalty and marketing fees add up to 9% of rooms revenue. That is above the 8.7% average for the 11 upper midscale brands in our table with a comparable headline figure, the 7th-lowest of the 11.
| Upper midscale brand | Franchisor | Royalty | Marketing | Headline |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GrandStay Hotels | GrandStay | 5% | 2% | 7% |
| Holiday Inn | IHG | 5% | 3% (Services Contribution) | 8% |
| Hyatt Select | Hyatt | 5% | 3% (Commercial Services Fee) | 8% |
| Wyndham Garden | Wyndham | 5% | 3% (Marketing and Global Sales Fee) | 8% |
| Wingate by Wyndham | Wyndham | 5.5% | 3% (System Assessment Fee) | 8.5% |
| Undergraduate by Hilton | Hilton | 5% | 4% | 9% |
| Comfort Inn | Choice Hotels | 6% | 3.5% (Marketing and Reservation Fee) | 9.5% |
| Comfort Suites | Choice Hotels | 6% | 3.5% (Marketing and Reservation Fee) | 9.5% |
| Country Inn & Suites by Radisson | Choice Hotels | 6% | 3.5% (Marketing and Reservation Fee) | 9.5% |
| Hampton by Hilton | Hilton | 6% | 4% | 10% |
What the headline number leaves out
Royalty and marketing are only the start. Most brands also charge for reservations and distribution, loyalty-program assessments on member stays, required technology and property-management systems, training and quality assurance. Brands also negotiate: ramp-up royalty discounts, key money and conversion incentives are common. Ask IHG for its estimate of total fees as a share of rooms revenue, and read Items 5 and 6 of the current FDD before you sign. Our analysis of what owners really pay a brand puts the typical all-in bill at 10% to 13% of rooms revenue.
Other IHG brands
Holiday Inn · Candlewood Suites · Staybridge Suites · Crowne Plaza · Atwell Suites · Garner · voco · Hotel Indigo · EVEN Hotels · Kimpton · InterContinental · Vignette Collection · Noted Collection · avid hotels
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The Hotelier Times is a publisher, not a franchise adviser. Fees change; confirm every figure in the brand’s current Franchise Disclosure Document. Spot an error? Email nathan@hoteliertimes.com.