How our free opinion-of-value estimate works
In short: the estimate takes what your business earns in its newest complete year, applies an earnings multiple for your industry, takes account of how large and how dependable those earnings are, and gives you a range rather than a single number. This page explains each of those steps in plain words.
By the bizflip team · Last reviewed 3 October 2026
The method, step by step
Earnings first: SDE, or adjusted EBITDA for larger businesses
The estimate starts from earnings, not revenue. Owner-operated Main Street businesses are usually priced on seller’s discretionary earnings (SDE) — earnings plus the owner’s own compensation and benefits. Larger, management-run businesses are priced on adjusted EBITDA instead. The two give very different answers for the same business, so the tool names the basis it used.
Your newest complete year
The estimate works from your fiscal year, which is the calendar year unless your business has chosen otherwise. It anchors on your newest complete year and names the year it used. A buyer will later want that year reconciled to your tax returns.
An earnings multiple for your industry
Small businesses are commonly priced as a multiple of their earnings. The multiple differs from one industry to another, because buyers see different risks and prospects in different trades, and the tool applies one for the industry you choose. This page describes the method; it does not list the multiples. Where our guides quote industry ranges, they name the published source each one comes from.
Size and dependability
Two businesses in the same industry with the same earnings do not always sell for the same price. Buyers generally pay more for earnings that are larger and more dependable, and less for earnings that are small or uncertain. The tool takes account of this from the answers you give about the business.
A range, not one number
The result is a low-to-high range. Reasonable buyers can pay different prices for the same business, and a single figure would suggest a precision that no automated calculation has. Treat the range as the place a conversation starts.
What the tool works from
The figures and answers you enter: your revenue and earnings for the years you have, what you add back, your industry, and how the business runs. The result is only as good as those figures. The tool does not audit them — a buyer’s adviser will, so enter what you can support.
An opinion of value, not a certified valuation
What the tool produces is closest to a broker opinion of value. A certified business valuation is prepared by a credentialed valuer under USPAP, and it is what an SBA lender, the IRS or a court will require.
It does not work out your tax, including how the purchase price allocation will fall.
The US valuation page explains where that line falls, and the notice at the foot of this page sets out what the calculation is and is not.
Further reading
- What is my small business worth? — the US valuation page
- How much is my business worth in the US?
- All US guides
About this calculation
The figure produced by this tool is an automated calculation, prepared using agreed valuation methods — earnings-multiple analysis on Seller's Discretionary Earnings (SDE) or EBITDA — applied to the information you provide. It is framed on the model of a calculation engagement as described in APES 225 (Valuation Services): the scope is limited to the methods and inputs disclosed on this page, and a full valuation engagement, performed by a qualified valuer with wider procedures, may produce a materially different result.
The result is expressed as a range, not a single figure, and estimates the value of the business — its assets and earnings capacity. It is not an opinion on the value of shares or any other financial product, and it is not an offer to buy or sell anything.
The calculation is produced on the date you run it, from the data vintages disclosed in the methodology section of this page. It does not constitute financial advice, tax advice or legal advice, and it does not take your personal circumstances into account. Businesses sell for prices that depend on factors no automated tool can fully assess — negotiation, deal structure, timing, buyer specifics and market conditions. Do not rely on this calculation as the sole basis for any transaction decision. Before acting, obtain advice from a qualified professional — an accredited business valuer, a licensed business broker, or your accountant.
bizflip.co is not a licensed valuer, business agent or financial adviser, and no part of this tool creates an adviser–client relationship.