Singapore SME valuation multiples, by sector.
The adjusted-EBITDA multiple ranges Singapore SMEs actually transact at, what moves a business within its range, and how the figures are derived. Open data — cite it freely.
Singapore SMEs typically sell for 2× to 9× adjusted EBITDA, depending on sector. Recurring-revenue businesses — software, healthcare, education — command 4×–9× because earnings are predictable. Project-based sectors such as construction and retail sit at 2×–4×. The table below gives the range for each sector and the drivers that decide where a business lands within it.
Last updated: 28 August 2026 · Next review: November 2026 · Free to cite with attribution to Business Broker In Singapore.
| Sector | Adjusted EBITDA multiple | What moves a business within the range |
|---|---|---|
| Software / technology | 4× – 9× | Recurring licence or subscription revenue, gross margin, net revenue retention, IP ownership. |
| Healthcare / education | 4× – 7× | Licensing and accreditation, practitioner retention, patient or student recurrence, regulatory barriers to entry. |
| Manufacturing / engineering | 3× – 6× | Order book, plant condition and remaining useful life, customer concentration, certifications. |
| Professional / B2B services | 3× – 6× | Contracted vs project revenue, key-person dependence, staff retention, client tenure. |
| Logistics / transport | 3× – 5.5× | Fleet age and ownership, contracted lanes, warehouse leases, customer diversification. |
| E-commerce / online | 2.5× – 5.5× | Traffic sources and paid dependence, repeat purchase rate, platform concentration, brand ownership. |
| F&B / restaurant / food manufacturing | 2.5× – 5× | SFA and liquor licences, lease tenure and rent trajectory, central kitchen capacity, multi-outlet consistency. |
| Distribution / wholesale trade | 2.5× – 5× | Exclusive agency or distribution rights, supplier terms, stock turn, margin stability. |
| Construction / M&E | 2× – 4× | Order book quality, retention sums, licence grade (BCA), project margin consistency. |
| Retail / consumer | 2× – 4× | Lease tenure and location, foot traffic trend, stock turn, brand and online mix. |
How to use these figures
Take your adjusted EBITDA, apply the range for your sector, and treat the result as the opening band rather than a price. A business at the top of its band is typically one that runs without its owner, has diversified customers, holds transferable contracts or licences, and can show three consistent years. A business at the bottom usually has one or two of those working against it — each is fixable, and fixing them before going to market is worth more than negotiating harder once you're in it.
Apply these multiples to your own figures →
Methodology
Ranges are derived from transactions and offers observed in the Singapore SME market in the S$2M–S$20M revenue band, cross-checked against published regional M&A benchmarks for comparable sectors and sizes. They describe owner-managed private companies, so they sit below the multiples listed companies trade at in the same sectors — scale, liquidity and governance are priced separately. Figures are reviewed quarterly; the review date above is when the next revision is due.
These are practitioner ranges published for general guidance, not a valuation of any specific business and not financial advice.
About this data
Adjusted EBITDA — earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation, normalised for the owner's above-market salary, one-off costs and any market-rate expenses the business currently avoids. Applying a multiple to unadjusted net profit, or to revenue, produces a materially different and usually misleading number.
The ranges reflect transactions and offers observed in the Singapore SME market in the S$2M–S$20M revenue band, cross-checked against published regional M&A benchmarks. They are practitioner ranges for owner-managed businesses, not public-company comparables — listed companies in the same sectors trade at higher multiples because of scale, liquidity and governance.
Because the sector sets the band and the business sets the position within it. Two F&B groups with identical EBITDA can sit at 2.5× and at 5× depending on lease tenure, licence portfolio, owner-dependence and whether earnings are consistent across outlets. The drivers column lists what moves a business within its band.
Yes. It is published openly for that purpose. Please attribute it to Business Broker In Singapore, operated by The Funding Assembly Pte. Ltd., and link to this page. The table is reviewed quarterly and carries its last-updated date so you can cite a specific version.
Where does your business sit in its range?
Send us the shape of the business — sector, revenue, rough EBITDA — and you'll get a straight view on where it lands and what would move it up.