When I was preparing to sell my creative agency, the first thing I did was Google “EBITDA multiples by industry UK.” What I got back was a mess. American data. Outdated numbers. Vague ranges that could mean anything.
So I asked my broker. Asked other founders who had sold. Spoke to buyers. And slowly built a picture of what UK businesses actually sell for across different sectors.
That picture is what I am sharing here. It is focused on the UK market in 2026, with particular depth on service businesses and creative agencies (because that is what I know). If you are trying to figure out what your business might be worth, this is a good place to start. And if you are thinking about an exit, read my exit planning guide for the full process.
What Is an EBITDA Multiple?
EBITDA stands for Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortisation. It is the standard measure of a business’s operating profit, stripped of accounting decisions and financial structuring.
A multiple is the number applied to your EBITDA to calculate enterprise value. If your adjusted EBITDA is £300,000 and the market multiple for your sector is 5x, your business is valued at £1.5M.
That is the simple version. The complicated version is that multiples vary enormously within the same industry. Two agencies doing £1.5M revenue can sell for completely different prices. The multiple depends on the quality of the earnings, not just the size.
UK EBITDA Multiples by Industry: 2026 Benchmarks
These ranges are based on completed UK deals, broker data, and conversations with M&A advisors active in the UK market. They apply to small to mid-market businesses (typically £500K to £10M revenue).
Creative, Design and Digital Agencies
| Agency Type | Typical Multiple | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Small agencies (under £1.5M revenue) | 3x to 4x | Often includes earnout. Revenue multiple (0.7x to 1.2x) used if EBITDA is thin. |
| Mid-market agencies (£1.5M to £5M) | 4x to 6x | Sweet spot for acquirers. Strong teams and recurring revenue push towards 6x. |
| Specialist/niche agencies | 5x to 7x | Deep niche expertise commands premium. Think: healthcare creative, fintech UX, property marketing. |
| Agencies with SaaS or IP | 6x to 8x+ | Proprietary tools or products shift the multiple towards tech valuations. |
What I see most often: Creative and digital agencies in the UK completing deals at 3.5x to 5x adjusted EBITDA. The ones hitting 6x or above have something exceptional: dominant niche, recurring revenue above 60%, or proprietary technology.
Professional Services
| Sector | Typical Multiple | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Accounting firms | 4x to 7x | Recurring revenue (annual accounts, tax returns) drives higher multiples. Revenue multiple of 1x to 1.5x also common. |
| Management consultancies | 4x to 6x | Similar to agencies. Founder dependency is the biggest discount. |
| Legal practices | 3x to 5x | Highly regulated. Succession planning critical. |
| Recruitment agencies | 3x to 5x | Perm placement firms at lower end. Contract/temp staffing (with recurring margin) at higher end. |
| Architecture and engineering | 3x to 5x | Project-based nature keeps multiples modest. IP and frameworks push higher. |
Technology and SaaS
| Sector | Typical Multiple | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| SaaS (profitable, growing) | 8x to 15x+ | Revenue multiples (5x to 12x ARR) often used instead of EBITDA. |
| SaaS (pre-profit, high growth) | N/A on EBITDA | Valued on revenue multiple or user metrics. Not comparable. |
| IT managed services | 5x to 8x | Monthly recurring contracts are gold. Contract length matters. |
| Software development agencies | 4x to 6x | Closer to agency multiples unless proprietary IP exists. |
Construction and Trades
| Sector | Typical Multiple | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Specialist contractors | 3x to 5x | Depends heavily on order book visibility and client diversity. |
| General construction | 2x to 4x | Lower due to project risk and cyclicality. |
| Building services (M&E) | 4x to 6x | Maintenance contracts boost recurring revenue and multiples. |
E-Commerce and Retail
| Sector | Typical Multiple | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| E-commerce (brand-owned) | 3x to 5x | Own-brand products with loyal customers at the higher end. |
| Amazon FBA businesses | 2x to 4x | Declining from peak. Platform dependency is a discount. |
| Physical retail | 2x to 3x | Property lease terms and location are critical factors. |
Healthcare and Wellness
| Sector | Typical Multiple | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Private clinics | 5x to 8x | Recurring patient revenue and specialist expertise drive premiums. |
| Dental practices | 6x to 9x | One of the highest multiples in UK SME space. NHS contracts add stability. |
| Veterinary practices | 7x to 10x | Consolidation by PE-backed groups has pushed multiples up significantly. |
Manufacturing
| Sector | Typical Multiple | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| General manufacturing | 4x to 6x | Capital intensity and cyclicality. IP and automation boost multiples. |
| Food and beverage manufacturing | 5x to 7x | Branded products and supermarket contracts add premium. |
| Specialist/precision manufacturing | 5x to 8x | Niche capability and regulatory barriers increase value. |
What Drives Multiples Up or Down?
The tables above are ranges, not fixed numbers. Where your business lands within the range depends on these factors:
Factors That Increase Your Multiple
Recurring revenue. The single biggest lever. A business with 70% of revenue on contracts or retainers is worth significantly more than one starting at zero every month. For agency owners, this means retained design work, monthly content packages, ongoing brand management. Not just project-to-project.
Low owner dependency. If you can take four weeks off and the business performs, you are in premium territory. If the business stops when you stop, a buyer is essentially purchasing a job. They will price accordingly.
Client diversification. No single client over 20% of revenue. Ideally, your top 5 clients make up less than 40% combined. I learned this the hard way when my largest client took their work in-house.
Growth trajectory. Buyers pay for momentum. Two years of consistent 15 to 20% growth is more attractive than flat revenue at a higher number. They are buying the future, not just the present.
Clean financials. Monthly management accounts. Adjusted EBITDA clearly calculated. Revenue broken down by client and service. If a buyer’s accountant has to dig through a shoebox of receipts, your multiple drops.
Niche expertise. A generalist agency at 4x is a specialist agency at 6x. Deep vertical expertise (healthcare, fintech, property, education) creates competitive moats that buyers value.
Factors That Decrease Your Multiple
Founder dependency. The most common discount for agency sales. If you are the one selling, managing clients, and directing creative, a buyer has a problem.
Client concentration. Any client above 30% of revenue is a red flag. Above 40% and most buyers will either walk or offer significantly less.
Project-only revenue. No retainers, no contracts, no predictability. Every month starts at zero. This pushes you to the bottom of your sector’s range.
Declining revenue. If the last 12 months show a downward trend, the multiple compresses. Buyers use trailing 12-month EBITDA, so a bad recent quarter drags the whole number down.
Key person risk. If one person (other than you) leaving would seriously damage the business, that is a risk buyers will price in. Spread knowledge. Document processes. Build redundancy.
Messy financials. Mixed personal and business expenses. No management accounts. Tax returns as the only financial record. This screams risk to a buyer and kills deals.
How to Calculate Your Business Value Using EBITDA Multiples
Here is the formula:
Enterprise Value = Adjusted EBITDA x Multiple
Step 1: Calculate Your Adjusted EBITDA
Start with your operating profit from your P&L. Then add back:
- Owner’s salary and benefits (replace with market-rate salary for a managing director)
- One-off costs (legal fees from a dispute, office move costs, that website rebuild you paid for)
- Personal expenses through the business (your car, personal subscriptions, that “team building” trip that was actually your holiday)
- Depreciation and amortisation (non-cash charges)
The adjusted EBITDA should reflect the true earning power of the business under normal ownership.
Step 2: Apply the Multiple
Use the range from your industry table above. Be honest about where in the range you sit.
Example for a creative agency:
- Annual revenue: £1.2M
- Adjusted EBITDA: £240K (20% margin)
- Multiple range: 3.5x to 5x
- Valuation range: £840K to £1.2M
If the same agency had 60% recurring revenue, a non-founder-dependent team, and diversified clients, you would be looking at the top of that range. If it is project-only, founder-dependent, and two clients make up half the revenue, you would be at the bottom. Or below it.
Step 3: Understand What Is Included
Enterprise value is not the cheque you walk away with. From enterprise value, subtract:
- Outstanding debt
- Working capital adjustments
- Tax liabilities
- Advisor and legal fees (typically 3 to 5% of deal value)
Then consider deal structure: most UK agency deals include an earnout (a portion paid over 12 to 24 months based on performance targets). The split between upfront cash and earnout significantly affects what you actually receive and when.
EBITDA Multiples vs Revenue Multiples
For smaller businesses (under £500K revenue) or those with thin or inconsistent margins, buyers sometimes use revenue multiples instead. This is common for early-stage agencies or those going through a transition.
UK revenue multiples for service businesses typically range from 0.5x to 2x annual revenue. The advantage is simplicity. The disadvantage is it ignores profitability entirely. A business doing £1M revenue at 5% margin is worth far less than one doing £800K at 25% margin, but a revenue multiple treats them similarly.
If your margins are healthy (15%+ net), push for an EBITDA-based valuation. It will almost always produce a higher number.
What Should You Do With This Information?
If you run a creative, digital, or service business in the UK, here is the practical takeaway:
- Calculate your adjusted EBITDA. If you do not know this number, everything else is guesswork.
- Benchmark against your sector. Use the tables above to understand the range.
- Identify what is holding your multiple down. It is almost always one of the six factors above: recurring revenue, owner dependency, client concentration, growth, financials, or niche positioning.
- Fix the biggest gap. Twelve months of focused work on the right issue can shift your multiple by a full point. On a £300K EBITDA, that is £300K in additional value.
I work with agency owners on exactly this: identifying where you sit, what is limiting your multiple, and building a roadmap to increase it. If you want to understand where your agency stands, take the free Agency Valuation or book a conversation.
Your EBITDA multiple is not fixed. It is a score. And scores can be improved.