Business valuation calculator

Two businesses in the same industry with the same SDE can sell for very different prices. The multiple rewards durability of earnings

Free Tool · No Email Required

What's a small business actually worth? Enter its cash flow (SDE), pick an industry multiple, and see an estimated value range.

Seller's Discretionary Earnings (SDE) annual

What the business earns for one owner-operator after normalizing the owner's compensation and add-backs.

Industry sets a typical multiple

Choose the closest industry. You can still adjust the multiple for quality.

Multiple editable; adjust for quality

Quality adjustment

Owner-dependent or concentrated customers → lower. Clean books, recurring revenue, real team → higher.

The adjustment changes the multiple used in the estimate; you can always edit the multiple directly.

2026 typical SDE multiples by industry	Multiple
Car wash	4.73×
Laundromat	4.12×
Child care / daycare	3.40×
E-commerce / websites	3.33×
HVAC	2.80×
Auto repair	2.70×
Plumbing	2.62×
Landscaping / lawn service	2.56×
Gym / fitness	2.44×
Pest control	2.35×
Accounting / tax	2.33×
Cleaning / janitorial	2.30×
Restaurant (single-unit)	2.26×