Market report · October 2026 edition · Updated monthly
Business-for-Sale Market Report
How many US businesses are for sale, what sellers are asking, and how that moves month to month. Built from every listing on 12 marketplaces and 7,500+ brokerages, with each business counted once. Data as of October 20, 2026.
54,794
$370K
2.7x
11,783
Business-for-Sale Market Report: October 2026
54,794 distinct US businesses for sale across 12 marketplaces, a median Main Street asking price of $370K, a 2.7x median multiple, and about 2,100 new businesses a week. Industry and state breakdowns from our October 2026 snapshot.
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By industry
Download all 73 industries (CSV)| Industry | For sale | Median asking | Median cash flow | Median multiple |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Food & Beverage | 11,312 | $295K | $142K | 2.5x |
| Services | 7,345 | $338K | $179K | 2.5x |
| Home Services | 4,419 | $400K | $218K | 2.5x |
| Franchise | 3,173 | $250K | $121K | 2.8x |
| Healthcare | 2,082 | $550K | $286K | 2.9x |
| Retail | 1,644 | $313K | $139K | 2.8x |
| Auto Services | 1,622 | $650K | $200K | 3.0x |
| Beauty | 1,526 | $174K | $110K | 2.1x |
| Delivery Routes | 1,501 | $450K | $203K | 2.8x |
| Manufacturing | 1,401 | $796K | $264K | 3.5x |
| Construction | 1,202 | $1.3M | $420K | 3.3x |
| Gas Station & Convenience | 1,089 | $447K | $151K | 2.5x |
| E-Commerce & Online | 912 | $300K | $182K | 3.0x |
| Childcare & Education | 862 | $550K | $152K | 3.2x |
| Liquor Store | 773 | $480K | $150K | 3.0x |
| Accounting & Tax | 564 | $514K | $220K | 2.4x |
| Fitness | 553 | $200K | $103K | 2.8x |
| Distribution | 537 | $933K | $321K | 3.5x |
| Pet Services | 465 | $200K | $100K | 2.6x |
| Senior Care | 407 | $360K | $201K | 3.0x |
By state
Download all states (CSV)| State | For sale | Share | Median asking | Median multiple |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florida | 5,001 | 12.3% | $350K | 2.7x |
| California | 4,922 | 12.1% | $340K | 2.6x |
| Texas | 3,475 | 8.6% | $350K | 2.7x |
| New York | 2,675 | 6.6% | $425K | 2.6x |
| New Jersey | 1,532 | 3.8% | $389K | 2.5x |
| Arizona | 1,487 | 3.7% | $295K | 2.5x |
| Georgia | 1,402 | 3.5% | $350K | 2.6x |
| North Carolina | 1,331 | 3.3% | $335K | 2.7x |
| Pennsylvania | 1,309 | 3.2% | $375K | 2.6x |
| Illinois | 1,177 | 2.9% | $400K | 3.1x |
| Ohio | 1,127 | 2.8% | $365K | 2.6x |
| Michigan | 1,107 | 2.7% | $400K | 2.8x |
| Colorado | 1,049 | 2.6% | $352K | 2.7x |
| Massachusetts | 944 | 2.3% | $399K | 2.6x |
| Virginia | 942 | 2.3% | $300K | 2.7x |
| Washington | 902 | 2.2% | $350K | 2.7x |
| South Carolina | 838 | 2.1% | $300K | 2.7x |
| Tennessee | 711 | 1.8% | $325K | 2.7x |
| Maryland | 702 | 1.7% | $375K | 2.8x |
| Missouri | 639 | 1.6% | $463K | 2.9x |
Cite this report
Free to use with credit under CC BY 4.0. Please link to this page, which always has the latest edition. Press and data questions: ben@joinaccredited.com.
Every edition
Common questions
Questions, answered.
- How many businesses are for sale in the US?
- 54,794 distinct businesses as of October 20, 2026, from 74,402 live listings across the 12 marketplaces and 7,500+ brokerages Accredited indexes. A business posted on several marketplaces is counted once.
- What is the median asking price for a small business?
- $370K for a Main Street (not online) business, based on the listings that state a price. Asking prices are what sellers want, not what businesses sell for.
- What multiple of cash flow do businesses sell for?
- Sellers ask a median of 2.7x the cash flow they report, for Main Street businesses. Multiples outside 0.2x to 25x are left out as likely data errors.
- How often is this report updated?
- Monthly. A snapshot is taken on the 20th of each month, and each edition compares with the month before. Every past month stays available below, with its data.
- Can I use these numbers?
- Yes. The data is free to use under CC BY 4.0: cite "Accredited Business-for-Sale Market Report" and link to https://joinaccredited.com/market-report. Press questions go to ben@joinaccredited.com.