The honest answer to “what multiple does my business sell for?” is: it depends. The dishonest answer is a single number. This article gives you the realistic ranges by industry, plus the factors that move you within them — so you can sanity-check any number a broker, buyer, or accountant quotes.
The ranges, by industry
These reflect transactions in the $250K–$10M sale-price range over the last 24 months. Larger deals trend higher; smaller deals trend lower. All are SDE multiples unless noted.
Service businesses
| Industry | SDE multiple range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| HVAC, plumbing, electrical | 2.5x – 5.0x | Recurring service contracts push high end |
| Landscaping, lawn care | 2.0x – 3.5x | Commercial contracts trade higher than residential |
| Cleaning (commercial) | 2.0x – 3.5x | Residential cleaning lower (1.5x–2.5x) |
| Pest control | 3.0x – 5.0x | Recurring revenue base is highly valued |
| Accounting / bookkeeping | 1.0x – 1.3x of revenue | Or 2.5x–4.5x SDE; revenue multiples are common |
| Law practice (single owner) | 0.7x – 1.0x of revenue | Hard to transfer; multiples reflect client risk |
| IT managed services (MSP) | 3.0x – 5.5x | High end with strong MRR percentage |
| Insurance agency | 2.0x – 3.5x of revenue | Or 6x–10x EBITDA — revenue multiples standard |
| Marketing agency | 2.0x – 4.0x | High end requires recurring retainers, not project-based |
Trades and contracting
| Industry | SDE multiple range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Roofing | 2.0x – 3.5x | Storm-driven volatility caps the multiple |
| Painting (commercial) | 2.0x – 3.5x | Residential painting lower |
| Specialty contractor (concrete, paving, fencing) | 2.0x – 3.5x | Equipment-heavy depresses multiple |
| Pool service / installation | 2.0x – 4.0x | Geography and recurring service base matter |
| Auto repair (independent) | 2.0x – 3.5x | Franchise auto repair: 2.5x–4.0x |
Retail and consumer
| Industry | SDE multiple range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Restaurant (independent) | 1.5x – 2.5x | Quick-serve franchises can hit 3.5x |
| Restaurant (franchised) | 2.5x – 4.0x | Brand strength matters |
| Convenience store | 2.5x – 4.0x | Real estate often included separately |
| Liquor store | 2.5x – 4.0x | License value is separate consideration |
| Specialty retail | 1.5x – 3.0x | E-commerce side raises the number |
| Salon / spa / barbershop | 1.5x – 2.5x | Owner-operator drag is high |
| Fitness / gym (independent) | 1.5x – 2.5x | Membership churn is the limiting factor |
| Car wash (in-bay automatic) | 4.0x – 6.0x | Real estate often dominates value |
Manufacturing and distribution
| Industry | EBITDA multiple range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Light manufacturing | 3.5x – 5.5x | Customer concentration is the swing factor |
| Specialty / niche manufacturing | 4.0x – 7.0x | Defensible IP or process pushes higher |
| Distribution / wholesale | 3.5x – 5.0x | Inventory turn and supplier diversity matter |
| Food manufacturing | 4.0x – 6.0x | Brand vs. private-label affects the multiple |
| Industrial services | 4.0x – 6.5x | Multi-year contracts elevate |
Online / digital
| Industry | Multiple range | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| SaaS ($1M+ ARR) | 4.0x – 8.0x ARR | Or 4x–10x SDE; growth and NRR drive the number |
| SaaS (sub-$1M ARR) | 2.5x – 4.5x SDE | Buyer pool is smaller |
| E-commerce (Amazon FBA) | 2.5x – 4.0x SDE | Brand registry and product diversity matter |
| Content / affiliate sites | 30x – 45x monthly profit | Or ~2.5x–3.5x SDE |
| Lead generation sites | 2.5x – 4.0x SDE | Traffic source diversification matters |
| Marketplaces / community | 4.0x – 7.0x SDE | Network effects raise the multiple |
Healthcare and personal services
| Industry | Multiple range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Dental practice | 0.7x – 0.9x of revenue | Or 4x–6x EBITDA; revenue-based common |
| Medical practice (single specialty) | 0.5x – 0.8x of revenue | Reimbursement environment limits |
| Veterinary clinic | 5.0x – 9.0x EBITDA | Consolidator activity has elevated multiples |
| Home healthcare | 3.5x – 5.5x EBITDA | License transferability matters |
| Senior care / assisted living | 6.0x – 10.0x EBITDA | Real estate often included |
| Childcare / preschool | 3.0x – 5.0x SDE | Real estate component varies |
What moves you within the range
Industry sets the range. Eight factors decide where you land within it.
1. Recurring revenue percentage
A landscaping company that’s 70% commercial recurring contracts and 30% one-off jobs trades at 3.5x–4x. The same business at 70% one-off and 30% recurring trades at 2.0x–2.5x. Same industry, doubled multiple.
2. Customer concentration
Top customer over 30% of revenue is a yellow flag. Top customer over 50% is a multiple-killer. Buyers price the worst-case (that customer leaves the year after closing) and discount accordingly. Diversify before listing.
3. Owner dependence
If you personally hold customer relationships, sign every check, and price every job, the buyer is buying you — and you’re leaving. Multiples drop 0.5x–1.5x for owner-dependent businesses. The fix: hire and elevate a GM 12–18 months before listing.
4. SDE trajectory
Three years of growing SDE earns the high end of the range. Flat earns the middle. Declining drops you 0.5x–1.0x below the bottom — buyers project further decline.
5. Revenue durability
Long customer tenure (5+ years average), low churn, recurring revenue, multi-year contracts: all earn premiums. Project-based revenue with no repeat customer pattern: discount.
6. Margins relative to peers
If your industry typically runs 18% net margins and yours runs 12%, buyers see opportunity (good) or weakness (bad), depending on why. Document the why.
7. Documentation quality
Clean books, three years of tax returns, a defensible add-back schedule, and a quality-of-earnings report (for $1M+ SDE deals) all support the high end of the range. Messy books cap you at the bottom regardless of underlying quality.
8. Industry tailwinds
Veterinary, accounting, IT services, HVAC, and pest control are seeing PE roll-up activity that’s elevated multiples 0.5x–1.0x above five-year averages. Restaurants and brick-and-mortar retail are seeing the opposite. Sector matters.
How to sanity-check any number you’re given
If a broker, buyer, or accountant gives you a multiple, ask:
- What’s the source? Recent transactions in your industry and size range, or general “feel”?
- What range applies to my specific risk profile? Top of the range requires recurring revenue, low concentration, three-year growth, and a working GM.
- What’s the implied sale price after working capital and any seller note discount? Buyers and brokers sometimes quote multiples gross of structure adjustments.
- Is this an SDE or EBITDA multiple? They’re not interchangeable. (See EBITDA vs SDE.)
What this means for you
If your industry’s range is 2.5x–5x, the work is identifying which factors are pushing you to the bottom and which are pushing you to the top. Most owners can move themselves a full multiple in 12–18 months by addressing 2–3 factors deliberately — typically owner-dependence, customer concentration, and recurring revenue percentage.
A confidential valuation gives you your current number against your current risk profile. Once you have that, the path to the higher number becomes concrete instead of theoretical.
