Is there a free directory of Australian business brokers?
There is no single official directory of Australian business brokers, because nobody licenses "business broker" as an occupation nationally. Three kinds of free search exist instead: the Australian Institute of Business Brokers' member search, which lists members only; each state's licence register, which confirms a licence is real and current but says nothing about competence; and marketplace directories, which list brokers who advertise on that marketplace. Use the AIBB search or a marketplace to find candidates, then the state register to verify each one.
By the bizflip team · Published 3 September 2026 · Facts checked 3 September 2026 · Sources listed below
Short answer: yes, several free searches exist, but none of them is a complete list of Australian business brokers, and each one answers a different question. It is worth knowing which is which before you rely on one.
The reason there is no complete list is structural. As our guide to broker qualifications sets out, most states do not license "business broker" as a separate occupation — they license real estate, estate or land agents, and business broking sits inside that. A state register will happily tell you that a person holds a real estate agent licence. It has no field that says they sell businesses rather than houses.
Disclosure before we go further: bizflip publishes this page, and we also publish a broker directory of our own. It is listed last, and honestly, because it is still being populated and will not help you today.
1. The AIBB member search — the closest thing to an industry directory
The Australian Institute of Business Brokers is the peak body for the profession, and it publishes three free searches: a general member search, one filtered to Certified Professional Business Brokers, and one for Registered Business Valuers.
- What it can tell you: that a broker is a current member of the industry body, is bound by its Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct, and — if they appear in the CPBB or RBV listing — has completed a graded accreditation with an experience prerequisite behind it.
- What it cannot tell you: who all the brokers are. AIBB membership is voluntary and costs money, so a competent, licensed, long-established broker who has simply never joined does not appear. Absence from the AIBB search is not a finding.
- What it also cannot tell you: whether the member currently holds a valid licence in your state. The code requires members to keep their licensing current, but the search is a membership list, not a regulator's register.
2. State licence registers — free, official, and narrow
Every state and territory publishes a searchable register of licensed agents. These are the only official sources in this list, they are free, and checking one takes under a minute. They are the right way to verify a broker you have already found.
- New South Wales — the NSW Government's licence verification service covers property services licences, including the real estate agent licence a business broker must hold there.
- Victoria — Consumer Affairs Victoria publishes a public register of licensed estate agents.
- Queensland — the Fair Trading Licensing Register, searchable through the Queensland Government's "check a licence" service.
- Western Australia — Consumer Protection's licence and registration search, covering real estate and business agents licensed under the Real Estate and Business Agents Act 1978.
- South Australia — Consumer and Business Services' "find a licence holder" search covers land agent registration.
- Tasmania — the Property Agents Board of Tasmania publishes its register of property agents.
What a register proves is narrow but real: that the licence exists, that it is current, that it is held by the person or company you think it is, and whether it carries conditions. What it says nothing about is competence, industry experience, how many businesses the broker has actually sold, or what their clients thought of the process. A licence is a threshold, not a rating.
The ACT and the Northern Territory both still issue a business agent licence in its own right, and both maintain licence records through their own regulators — Access Canberra and NT Consumer Affairs respectively. We have not linked a register URL for either because we could not verify a stable public search page for them at the time of writing; contact the regulator directly.
3. Marketplace broker directories — free to search, paid to appear
The business-for-sale marketplaces run their own broker directories. Bsale publishes a "find a business broker" search, and BusinessSales.com.au maintains a broker network. These are genuinely useful for finding candidates in a region or an industry, because a broker who advertises on a marketplace is a broker who is actively taking listings.
The thing to understand about all of them is the business model. Bsale, for example, sells broker packages alongside its free search — so the directory lists brokers who pay to advertise there, not every broker in the market. That is not a criticism; it is simply what a marketplace directory is. Treat the ordering as advertising, not as a ranking of quality.
4. Ours
bizflip publishes an Australian business broker directory. Profiles are free and placement is not paywalled, which removes the pay-to-appear problem the marketplace directories have. It is also, at the time of writing, still being populated — so if you need a broker this week, the AIBB search and the marketplaces are where you should start, and you can come back and verify whoever you find on the state register.
How to actually use these together
- Find candidates on the AIBB search and one or two marketplace directories, filtered by your state and, if you can, your industry.
- Verify each one on your state's licence register. Check the name matches the trading entity, the licence is current, and note any conditions.
- Ask each for recent comparable sales in your industry and state, with prices — nothing in any directory or register tests that.
- Ask for their professional indemnity insurance and whether it is current. AIBB members must hold it; nobody else is required to.
- Get the fee structure in writing before signing an agency agreement. Our guide to business broker fees in Australia covers what is normal and what is negotiable.
And if you are still deciding whether to appoint one at all, do I need a business broker and how to sell a business without a broker take that question directly.
Sources
Every load-bearing claim in this guide, and where it comes from:
- The AIBB publishes three free member searches: "Find an AIBB Business Broker", "Find an AIBB Certified Professional Business Broker" and "Find an AIBB Registered Business Valuer". AIBB brokers are described as members of the peak industry body who have completed Best Practice, Code of Conduct and Ethics training. — Australian Institute of Business Brokers (AIBB)
- AIBB membership is purchased annually — first-year ordinary membership for licence or certificate holders is $1,000 — which is why the member search is a list of paying members rather than of all brokers. — Australian Institute of Business Brokers (AIBB)
- NSW Government licence verification service for property services and other licences. — NSW Government
- Consumer Affairs Victoria's public register of licensed estate agents. — Consumer Affairs Victoria
- Queensland Government "check a licence" service, which links to the Fair Trading Licensing Register for property industry licences. — Queensland Government (Office of Fair Trading)
- Western Australian Consumer Protection licensing and registration services, covering licences issued under the Real Estate and Business Agents Act 1978. — Government of Western Australia (Consumer Protection)
- Consumer and Business Services South Australia "find a licence holder" search, covering land agent registration. — Consumer and Business Services (South Australia)
- The Property Agents Board of Tasmania publishes its register of property agents. — Property Agents Board of Tasmania
- The ACT issues real estate, stock and station and business agent licences in class 1 and class 2. — Australian Business Licence and Information Service (Australian Government)
- The Northern Territory issues a business agent licence for selling, buying, exchanging, leasing or letting businesses for profit or reward. — Australian Business Licence and Information Service (Australian Government)
- Bsale publishes a free "find a business broker" directory of Australian business brokers. — Bsale
- Bsale sells broker advertising packages alongside its directory, so listed brokers are advertisers on the platform. — Bsale
- BusinessSales.com.au maintains a broker network and platform for Australian business brokers. — BusinessSales.com.au
- bizflip's Australian business broker directory — free profiles, free placement, currently being populated. — bizflip (this site)
Ready for your own number? The valuation calculator is free and ungated, and its methodology is public.