Median sale prices for US small businesses rose across key categories in Q1 2026, according to BizBuySell's Insight Report. Retail businesses led the data set with median sale prices up 9% year-over-year to $262,500, with median cash flow climbing 6% to $110,000 in the same period.
The national average sale price multiple across all small businesses tracked by BizBuySell was 2.7 times earnings in Q1 2026. Retail businesses exceeded that benchmark, trading at 2.9 times. Home services, technology-enabled businesses, and healthcare services commanded the highest multiples, driven by private equity demand for recurring revenue and resilient cash flow profiles.
Transaction volume in Q1 reflected a 3% sequential improvement from Q4 2025 as delayed deals cleared. Year-over-year, closed transactions were down 1%. The BizBuySell report notes that most buyers in the current market are self-funded or SBA-financed entrepreneurs rather than institutional acquirers, with individual buyers accounting for the majority of sub-$1 million transactions.
Home services businesses continued to attract buyer attention in 2026, with landscaping, HVAC, plumbing, and property maintenance businesses among the most actively listed and closed categories on the platform.
Source: BizBuySell -- https://www.bizbuysell.com/insight-report/