How Much Is My Business Worth? UK Calculator
How much is my business worth?
A multiple of adjusted annual profit, not revenue. How much of your income is contracted and how dependent the business is on you set the multiple.
Most privately held trading businesses are worth a multiple of their adjusted annual profit, not a multiple of revenue. The multiple a buyer will pay depends on how much of your revenue is contracted and recurring, how dependent the business is on you, and how credible your forward numbers are. Well-run businesses with contracted recurring revenue command materially higher multiples than project-led businesses on the same profit. The calculator on this page applies that logic to your own figures.
How much can I sell my business for in practice?
A range, not a number. Where you land in it depends on how many credible buyers are looking at you at the same time.
The realistic answer is a range, not a number, and it is set by three things: the earnings a buyer will accept after adjustments, the multiple your revenue quality supports, and how many credible buyers are looking at you at the same time. Owners who negotiate with a single approach almost always sell at the bottom of their own range. Competition is what moves the price within it.
It is an indicative range, not a valuation. It cannot see customer concentration, contract terms or the quality of your accounts, and those move a price by a turn or more.
It is an indicative range built from the multiple bands we publish in our sector valuation guides, adjusted for your margin, growth and recurring revenue. It cannot see your customer concentration, contract terms, management depth, working capital position or the quality of your accounts, and those routinely move a price by a turn or more in either direction. Treat it as a starting point and use the free written valuation report for a figure you could take into a conversation with a buyer.
What is the difference between SDE and EBITDA?
SDE adds the owner's pay and personal costs back. EBITDA assumes a paid manager replaces you. The multiples applied to each are not comparable.
Seller's discretionary earnings adds the owner's own salary, benefits and personal costs back to profit, because a small buyer expects to work in the business. Adjusted EBITDA assumes the buyer pays a market-rate manager to replace the owner, so that salary stays as a cost. The same business will show a higher SDE than EBITDA, and the multiples applied to each are not comparable. Comparing a 3.5x SDE offer with a 6x EBITDA offer without rebuilding both is the most common valuation mistake owners make.
Why do buyers pay more for recurring revenue?
Contracted income is kept by default. Project work has to be won again. Two businesses on the same profit can price two to four turns apart on that split alone.
Contracted maintenance, inspection, monitoring or membership revenue is income the buyer keeps whether or not they win new work next year. Project or installation revenue has to be won again from a standing start. Across building services and compliance, two businesses with identical profit can price two to four turns apart purely on that split, which is why the mix matters more than the headline revenue figure.
Should I value my business on revenue or profit?
Profit, in almost every case. In trades, compliance, facilities and healthcare services a buyer is purchasing an earnings stream.
Profit, in almost every case. Revenue multiples appear in software and in some very high-growth situations, but in trades, compliance, facilities and healthcare services a buyer is purchasing an earnings stream. A revenue multiple quoted for one of those sectors is usually either a rule of thumb someone has misapplied or a broker anchoring you to a number they cannot deliver.
What are add-backs and how much do they matter?
Costs a new owner would not carry. Each one you can evidence is multiplied, so it is worth several times its face value. Anything unproven is stripped out.
Add-backs are costs in your accounts that a new owner would not carry: above-market owner pay, personal vehicles, family on payroll, one-off legal or professional fees. Each documented pound or dollar of add-back is multiplied, so one that survives diligence can be worth several times its face value. Anything you cannot evidence will be stripped out during quality of earnings work, so claim only what you can prove.
Do I have to be selling to get a valuation?
No. Most owners who use the free report are two to three years out. The factors that move a multiple take twelve to twenty-four months to shift.
No. Most owners who use the free report are two to three years from any decision. Knowing the number early is what gives you time to change it, because the factors that move a multiple, recurring revenue mix, management depth, customer concentration, take twelve to twenty-four months to shift, not twelve weeks.
What does the free valuation report include?
Your adjusted earnings, the multiple range they support, the factors holding it back, and a realistic buyer set. Free, no obligation, about a minute to start.
A written report covering the adjusted earnings a buyer would apply a multiple to, the multiple range your business currently supports and why, the specific factors holding it back, and what a realistic buyer set looks like for your sector and size. It is free, there is no obligation to run a process with us, and it takes about a minute to start.
The largest lever in our sectors. Move the mix from a quarter to a half of revenue and you change the band the business is valued in, not just its position within one.
Whether the business runs without you
If you hold the relationships, price the jobs and sign off the technical work, a buyer is purchasing your diary. A documented second tier of management is worth real money.
The quality of your accounts
Management accounts that reconcile to filed statements and add-backs you can evidence protect the price. Numbers that fail inspection are the usual cause of a re-trade.
Selling a business in the US
Free business valuation calculator estimating an indicative enterprise value range from revenue, margin, growth and recurring revenue, for owners of privately held businesses in the UK and US.
How do I use a business valuation calculator for a US company?
Enter annual revenue in dollars, your profit margin, growth and the share of revenue that is recurring. The calculator returns an indicative enterprise value range.
Enter your annual revenue in dollars, your profit margin, last year's growth and the share of revenue that is contracted or recurring, then pick the closest industry. The calculator returns an indicative enterprise value range and shows the earnings figure the multiple is applied to. Use the figures from your filed tax returns, not a forecast, because those are what a buyer and an SBA lender will underwrite from.
Is SDE or EBITDA used to value my business in the US?
Owner-operated businesses below roughly $1M of earnings are usually priced on SDE. Larger businesses with a management layer are priced on adjusted EBITDA.
Most owner-operated US businesses below roughly $1M of earnings are priced on seller's discretionary earnings, because the typical buyer is an individual or a search fund who will run the business. Once a business has a management layer and earnings above that level, private equity and strategic buyers price it on adjusted EBITDA. Our guide to seller's discretionary earnings explains where one gives way to the other.
Free business valuation calculator for UK and US owners. Enter revenue and profit for an indicative range in seconds, then request a written report.
Free business valuation calculator for US owners. Enter revenue, margin and recurring revenue in dollars for an indicative value range, then get a written report.
What is my business worth?
Enter four figures and see an indicative enterprise value range. No sign-up and no email needed to see the number.
Four figures and one industry. You see the earnings a buyer would apply a multiple to, and every adjustment separately.
The free report rebuilds your earnings the way a buyer will and sets out what would need to change to move the multiple. No cost and no obligation.
, not its revenue. The multiple a buyer will pay depends on how much of your revenue is contracted and recurring, and how dependent the business is on you personally.
The bands below are DealFlowAgent estimates drawn from our published sector valuation guides. They are not a quotation and not an offer.
What moves the multiple, and what a calculator cannot see
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Learn more about the valuation and value drivers report
This is sometimes called EBITDA margin or operating margin. It represents what is left in the business after all costs are paid, before the owner takes their salary or pays tax. For example: £2M revenue, £360k profit = 18% margin.
Your profit as a percentage of revenue, after paying all operating costs (staff, materials, subcontractors, overheads, and all other business costs), but before paying yourself, dividends, or tax.
How much do you expect your revenue to grow over the next 12 months? Enter 0 if you expect it to stay flat. Negative numbers are accepted.
, project work, installations, or single sales. Customers are not under contract.
, projects/installs plus ongoing maintenance contracts or subscriptions you expect to renew.
, majority under formal contract or strong, data-backed repeat purchase.
Include revenue (1) under formal contract (maintenance, SLAs, inspections, multi-year service) or (2) backed by strong data showing reliable repeat purchase. Exclude one-off projects or reactive callouts.
What percentage of your annual revenue is genuinely recurring, meaning you are confident it will come back next year without having to re-sell it?
Briefly describe your main service mix
Each row shows your input, the typical sector benchmark, and the resulting adjustment to your EV/EBITDA multiple.
This estimate is based on your financials alone. A full valuation also accounts for your contracts, customer concentration, management team, and growth trajectory, factors that can significantly move your multiple. We'll review your business in detail and walk you through exactly what buyers will pay, and why.
Book a free 30-minute valuation call with a sector specialist.
Book My Free Valuation Call
This estimate uses the Market Multiples (EV/EBITDA) methodology, the most widely used approach in lower mid-market M&A transactions. The multiples reflect the ranges our advisers apply when appraising private companies in our specialist sectors, adjusted for your company's size, industry, revenue quality, growth, and profitability. This is an indicative range, not a formal valuation, and it does not constitute financial or investment advice.
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Get the full valuation report
A written report covering the adjusted earnings a buyer would apply a multiple to, the range your business currently supports, and what is holding it back. Optional, and your range above stays on screen either way.
London and New York", body:
"I couldn't have asked for better support during my exit. They found the perfect acquirer and negotiated terms that exceeded my expectations."
Joined full-time on 22 August 2026 from the largest M&A advisory firm in the UK, owned by K3 Capital. As an ex-Director he managed teams of M&A advisors, analysts and associates, working daily with business owners, buyers and stakeholders on live acquisition deals. Selected from 260 applicants alongside colleagues from investment banking backgrounds, he brings that experience and network to lead the advisory bench across Building Services, Facilities Management, and Healthcare.
Senior Building Services & FM Advisor
Martin is one of the most well-connected figures in UK fire, security, building services and FM. He is Chairman of both the Fire Industry Association and the British Security Industry Association, the only person in the UK to hold both roles simultaneously. Martin spent over a decade in senior leadership at Mitie, latterly as Industry Liaison Director for its fire and security division, helping scale the business past £500m in revenue and playing a role in the £366m acquisition of Marlowe plc, which created one of the UK's largest compliance, fire and security services groups. He joined DealFlowAgent because owners in these sectors deserve a genuine sector-specialist advisor across valuation, business optimisation and buyer access. In recognition of his industry roles, he acts in a personal, non-partisan capacity.
Industry Partner, Hiring and Leadership
Nick leads FM Talent Partners, the facilities management and real estate leadership search firm, and is a leading specialist in building services and FM management talent. He partners with DealFlowAgent on two-way referrals: helping business owners and acquirers fill the key roles that decide whether a business is sellable, and introducing owners who are thinking about their next chapter to a team that knows their industry and their market. Key-person dependency is one of the two most common reasons a sale collapses, and Nick fixes it at source.