Sonesta Simply Suites franchise cost
Sonesta Simply Suites charges a royalty of 5% of gross room revenue plus a further 3.5% in marketing, reservation or system fees, according to its franchise disclosure document issued March 31, 2026. The franchisor estimates the total cost of a new-build hotel at $14,004,407 to $19,203,913, not counting land; converting an existing hotel runs $829,707 to $6,946,813.
- Royalty
- 5%of gross room revenue
- Marketing
- 3.5%of gross rooms revenue
- Fee to take over on a purchase
- None statedItem 5 lists no separate transfer fee. Ask Sonesta what it charges on a change of ownership.
- Fee for a new franchise
- $50,000Item 5 formula at 60 rooms. Fees actually charged can be lower; see the notes below.
- Total investment
- $14.0M to $19.2MItem 7 estimate for a new-build hotel
Recurring fees in the 2026 FDD
| Royalty | 5% of Gross Rooms Revenue |
|---|---|
| Marketing or brand fund | Brand Promotion Fee: 3.5% of gross room revenue; cap: may increase up to 4.5% upon notice |
| Reservation, loyalty and technology | Loyalty Program 2.5% of Qualified Revenue; corporate transient/consortia subscription $1,355-$2,200 per year; booking/transaction fees per Item 6. |
| Initial fee (Item 5) | Greater of $50,000 or $400 per Guest Room; No separate application fee. FY2025: one discounted Initial Fee of $35,000 for a 133-room hotel. PIP fee applies to conversions. |
| New build (Item 7) | $14,004,407 to $19,203,913 |
| Conversion (Item 7) | $829,707 to $6,946,813 |
| What Item 7 assumes | Cover/Item 7: newly constructed 100-room hotel and conversion of 100-room existing hotel. Excludes land. |
From the filing: Scope listed 'OYO/Sonesta Simply Suites if franchised': Sonesta Simply Suites is franchised (this FDD). OYO not checked.
What the fees cost a 60-room hotel
Take a 60-room Sonesta Simply Suites with $1,500,000 of rooms revenue a year. The royalty and the marketing or system fees that apply to every room night come to 8.5%, or $127,500 a year. That is $127,500 a year, about $10,625 a month, before payroll or utilities. Fees charged only on some bookings, such as loyalty-member stays, central reservation bookings and online commissions, come on top.
Those fees come straight off NOI. At 1.25x coverage, $127,500 of fees is $102,000 a year of payment you can no longer borrow against, or about $940,000 of loan at 10% over 25 years.
Fees billed per reservation, per transaction or as a fixed amount are not in this total; they are listed in the table above as the FDD states them. Run your own numbers with Sonesta Simply Suites fees filled in.
Financing a Sonesta Simply Suites
Lenders read the franchise agreement as closely as the appraisal. On a purchase, expect the brand to require a change-of-ownership application, a new franchise agreement on current terms and often a property improvement plan (PIP), and expect the lender to fold the PIP cost into the project. For a new build, the Item 7 range is the starting point for the construction budget a lender will test.
Most owner-operators finance a branded hotel with an SBA 7(a) or 504 loan. Read SBA 7(a) for hotels and SBA 504 for hotels, or send the deal to Janover Capital.
Source
Sonesta Simply Suites Franchise Disclosure Document, issued March 31, 2026, as filed with the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation. Cover p.1; Item 5 and Item 6 per TOC; Item 7 FDD p.33-34. View the filing record. Fees change every year and the franchise agreement you sign controls. Read on 2026-10-24.
Other Sonesta brands
- Americas Best Value Inn: royalty see FDD, all percent fees see FDD
Buying or building a Sonesta Simply Suites?
Send the deal to Janover Capital, which runs this site and arranges hotel financing through lenders.