The threads worth reading
Google's #1 result for "small business valuation". The first Reddit discussion most owners researching valuation actually land on.
Effectively the Reddit reference on SDE multiples, ranking #3 for "SDE multiple" and ranking for "SDE multiples by industry".
The main Reddit destination for the EBITDA-versus-SDE question, ranking #2 for "SDE vs EBITDA".
One thread dominating the what-is-my-business-worth cluster: top 10 for roughly a dozen phrasings including "how much is my business worth" and "how to calculate business valuation".
A buyer questioning a seller's discretionary-earnings presentation, ranking #1 for "what is seller discretionary earnings". Healthy skepticism about add-backs, from the other side of the table.
Google's #1 result for "how much do businesses sell for". An owner preparing to sell asks the sold-price question directly.
The "real price" framing says it all: the community's standing belief that asking prices and sold prices are different numbers. On that, it is correct.
The valuation-skepticism debate: whether anyone really believes earnings-multiple valuation. It ranks for dozens of EBITDA-multiple queries.
BridgeBook is not affiliated with Reddit, Inc. The threads above are public discussions on reddit.com, linked directly. Thread titles are rendered from thread URLs, and where Reddit shortens a long title the entry ends with an ellipsis. Summaries describe what each discussion covers and how it ranks in Google search; they are editorial descriptions, not quotes. Accessed July 2026.
Where the threads are right
Small businesses are valued on SDE, not revenue.
Correct, and it is the single most important thing these threads teach. SDE is pre-tax profit plus one full-time owner's compensation, interest, depreciation, and true one-time expenses. It is the standard basis for owner-operated businesses, used in the vast majority of transactions under $5,000,000.
Asking prices are not sold prices.
The "what's the real price" instinct is exactly right. Listing sites show what sellers hope for. Sold-transaction data consistently comes in lower, which is why our calculator and multiples tables are built from sold comps, not asking prices.
Distrust aggressive add-backs.
Buyers and SBA lenders discount or reject add-backs that cannot be documented. The top-ranking SDE thread is a buyer questioning a seller's adjusted number, and that is how every buyer reads an aggressive add-back schedule. Defensible add-backs survive diligence; creative ones kill trust and then kill deals.
Where the threads oversimplify
"Businesses sell for 2x to 5x revenue."
Owner-operated businesses trade on earnings, roughly 1.5x to 3.5x SDE depending on industry and size. A revenue multiple applied to a main-street business can be off by several hundred thousand dollars in either direction. If someone quotes a revenue multiple on a $500,000 SDE business, stop listening.
"Private equity pays 4x to 9x EBITDA, so my business is worth that."
Those multiples describe management-run companies where a market-rate manager is paid before the earnings line. If you work in your business full time, SDE is your metric and the honest multiple is lower, because the buyer must fund their own living out of that cash flow. The same business can show $700,000 SDE and $500,000 EBITDA.
"A calculator or rule of thumb gives you "the number"."
Multiples are a starting range, not a verdict. The closing price is driven by verifiable financials, transferability, owner dependence, and, on financed deals, what an SBA lender will underwrite. If the bank cannot verify the earnings, the buyer cannot pay the price, no matter what any formula said.
Frequently asked questions
What SDE multiple do small businesses actually sell for?
Main-street businesses generally sell for roughly 1.5x to 3.5x SDE, with the exact multiple set by industry, size, growth, owner dependence, and the quality of the books. Multiples rise with earnings: a business with $200,000 in SDE usually sits near the low end of its industry range, while one with $1,000,000 or more in SDE can command the top of it. Our multiples page lists sourced, per-industry ranges.
What is the difference between SDE and EBITDA, and which applies to my business?
SDE adds back one full-time owner's total compensation; EBITDA assumes a market-rate manager is paid first. If you work in your business every day, SDE is your metric. Quoting an EBITDA multiple against an SDE number, a common mix-up in these threads, produces a valuation no buyer or lender will honor.
Why do Reddit threads warn that broker valuations can be inflated?
Because some brokers quote high numbers to win the listing, and those listings then sit unsold. The fix is not avoiding brokers, it is demanding honest pricing: a valuation built from sold comparables and provable SDE, even when it is lower than you hoped, is the one that attracts real buyers and closes.
Why does financing cap what my business is worth?
Most deals under $1,000,000 in SDE close with an SBA 7(a) loan, a seller note, or both. The lender underwrites the cash flow they can verify in tax returns, and the loan payment plus a living wage for the buyer must fit inside it. If the bank cannot verify the earnings, the buyer cannot pay the price.
Why do owners overestimate what their business is worth?
Three patterns repeat: emotional anchoring to years of sweat equity, revenue-multiple folklore repeated online, and marketplace asking prices that were never realistic. The honest formula is verifiable SDE times a market multiple, adjusted for transferability and risk. Owners who accept an honest number are the ones whose deals actually close.
Multiple ranges: BridgeBook sold-comp dataset (IBBA Market Pulse, BizBuySell sold-transaction data), July 2026. See the multiples page for full sourcing.
Thread rankings verified via Semrush organic SERP reports, US database, July 2026.
Reddit gives you the questions. Sold data gives you the answer.
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