This report synthesizes acquisition multiple data from GF Data and other published market benchmarks, including a GF Data dataset covering more than 5,600 cumulative observations across its historical transaction universe. The benchmarks combine data from different private-company and middle-market transaction datasets, with deal-size coverage varying by source. The analysis spans average EBITDA multiples across industries, EBITDA levels, and sub-sector categories – with targeted depth in food & beverage, manufacturing, and technology services, where middle-market M&A activity and valuation trends remain significant areas of buyer and investor interest. All multiples are expressed as enterprise value divided by trailing twelve-month (TTM) adjusted EBITDA unless otherwise noted. The data draws on benchmarks published by GF Data, the International Business Brokers Association (IBBA), and Axial, each covering different transaction universes and time periods. The benchmarks below are intended to give founders, operators, and exit-minded business owners a working framework for understanding where their business may fall in today's acquisition landscape – and what separates businesses that transact at the low end of a range from those that command a premium.

Average EBITDA Acquisition Multiples by Industry – 2026

The multiple a buyer pays is shaped first by industry. Different sectors carry different risk profiles, growth assumptions, and buyer demand – all of which factor into how buyers price earnings. The table below draws on two distinct sources with different transaction universes. GF Data figures reflect full-year 2025 averages from PE-sponsored transactions in the $10M–$250M enterprise value range; Axial figures reflect indicative ranges from LOI data across private transactions of varying size and period. They are presented together for context but should not be read as a single unified dataset.

The Average EBITDA Multiple for Acquisitions by Industry – 2026

GF Data figures: CIBC US Middle Market Monitor, Q1 2026; CapitalPad, Q3 2025 GF Data industry series. Axial figures: "EBITDA Multiples by Industry: How Much Is Your Business Worth?" (2024). These datasets cover different universes and time periods and should not be treated as a single 2025 average.

Key Insights:

• Among GF Data's five reported sectors for full-year 2025, Healthcare Services averaged the highest at 8.5x, followed by Business Services at 7.4x and Distribution at 6.9x. Manufacturing held at 6.6x and Technology at 6.4x – the lower end of the five sectors, reflecting the compression that occurred in the PE-sponsored tech universe relative to prior years.
• Technology's full-year 2025 average of 6.4x (GF Data) compares to a range of 7.9x to 10.3x across 2021–2024 in the same dataset – indicating meaningful compression in this sector within the PE-sponsored, $10M–$250M TEV universe. Whether a specific technology business falls at the lower or upper end of its applicable range depends on factors including revenue type, profitability, growth rate, and buyer competition.
• Axial's LOI data illustrates the wide internal variation within sectors. Food & Hospitality, for example, spans 2.4x to 12.0x – a range driven by differences in scale, business model, revenue quality, and buyer demand across the sector. The median of approximately 7x is a useful directional reference, but the spread reflects how significantly company-specific factors determine where any individual business lands within a range.

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EBITDA Acquisition Multiples by EBITDA Level – 2026

Company EBITDA level – rather than revenue – consistently shapes how buyers price an acquisition. GF Data's longitudinal dataset of PE-sponsored deals from $10M to $500M in enterprise value reports average multiples at four EBITDA size bands. For smaller transactions below that threshold, separate data from the IBBA and from GF Data's $1M–$25M TEV small-deal universe provide additional directional context, though these datasets cover different deal populations and should not be combined with the figures above.

The EBITDA Acquisition Multiples by EBITDA Level – 2026

Note: GF Data's primary dataset begins at approximately $3M EBITDA and $10M TEV. For transactions below that threshold, separate data applies: GF Data's $1M–$25M TEV small-deal universe tracked the sub-$10M enterprise-value tier at approximately 5.5x–5.6x through H1 2025. IBBA Market Pulse Q3 2025 (as compiled by FISART) reports indicative multiples of approximately 4.0x for the $2M–$5M EBITDA range and 6.5x for the $5M–$50M range across broader private-company transactions. These smaller-deal figures come from different datasets and methodologies; they are not directly comparable to the GF Data figures above.

Sources: GF Data ESOP Advisor Special Report, Q3 2025 (via CapitalPad); CIBC US Middle Market Monitor, Q1 2026; IBBA Market Pulse, Q3/Q4 2025 (via FISART)

Key Insights:

• GF Data measured a 0.9-turn average gap between sub-$10M enterprise-value transactions and the $10M–$25M tier through the first half of 2025, based on its separate $1M–$25M TEV dataset. For a business generating $2M of EBITDA, that gap can represent a meaningful difference in enterprise value at closing.
• Companies in the $3M–$5M EBITDA tier averaged 6.7x through Q3 2025 in GF Data's primary dataset. Companies generating over $10M EBITDA averaged 8.3x over the same period. This pattern is consistent with the size premium observed in larger lower-middle-market transactions.
• For smaller owner-operated businesses, buyers may rely more heavily on Seller Discretionary Earnings (SDE) than adjusted EBITDA as a valuation metric. That shift affects how multiples are reported and interpreted across deal sizes, and it is worth understanding before entering a sale process.

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EBITDA Multiple Ranges for Food & Beverage and Manufacturing Subcategories – 2026

Within the food and beverage sector, acquisition multiples vary considerably. The remaining range below comes from Axial's broader sector data. It is an indicative range; the actual multiple for any individual business depends on company-specific factors.

The EBITDA Multiple Range for F&B and Manufacturing Subcategories – 2026

ource: Axial, "EBITDA Multiples by Industry: How Much Is Your Business Worth?" (2024)

Key Insights:

• Axial's broader Food & Hospitality data shows a spread from 2.4x to 12.0x, with a median of approximately 7x. The width of that range – nearly 10 full turns – reflects how much individual business quality, scale, and buyer competition drive outcomes within the same sector.

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Historical EBITDA Acquisition Multiples: 2021–2025

Understanding where multiples stand today requires context from where they have been. The table below draws on GF Data's longitudinal dataset of PE-sponsored transactions in the $10M–$500M TEV range.

The Historical Average EBITDA Multiple for Private Company Acquisitions – 2021 to 2025

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Sources: GF Data ESOP Advisor Special Report, Q3 2025; CIBC US Middle Market Monitor, Q1 2026

Key Insights:

• GF Data's lower-middle-market average held within a 7.2x–7.6x band across 2021–2025, despite significant changes in financing conditions and the broader M&A environment. The relative narrowness of that range over five years reflects the consistency of deal pricing within the PE-sponsored segment at that specific size tier.

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Requesting a Copy of This Report

For founders, operators, and business owners who want to understand how their business compares to these benchmarks – whether for an exit in 12 months or 36 – this data provides a starting framework. A more tailored picture requires reviewing normalized EBITDA, revenue quality, customer concentration, and financial documentation against current buyer expectations in a specific sector.

Yury Zabella is a fractional CFO specializing in manufacturing and tech startups, with a founder-to-exit track record and verified 8-figure revenue outcomes. He works directly with food & beverage, manufacturing, and technology companies to clean up financials, build scalable systems, and remove the founder dependencies that can compress acquisition multiples. If you'd like to discuss how these benchmarks apply to your specific business or request a copy of this report, you can reach out here.

Sources

1. GF Data ESOP Advisor Special Report, Q3 2025 – GF Data, LLC (via CapitalPad) – "Lower Middle Market EBITDA Multiples: Data by Deal Size and Industry" – https://capitalpad.com/lower-middle-market-ebitda-multiples/

2. CIBC US Middle Market Monitor, Q1 2026 – GF Data-sourced; full-year 2025 entry multiples and sector averages – https://gfdata.com/

3. Axial – EBITDA Multiples by Industry: How Much Is Your Business Worth? – Axial Network (2024) – https://www.axial.net/forum/ebitda-multiples-by-industry/

4. IBBA Market Pulse Survey, Q3/Q4 2025 – International Business Brokers Association (compiled via FISART) – https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/the-ibba-and-ma-source-announce-the-market-pulse-q4-2025-survey-results-302691992.html

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