A main-street business in Idaho typically sells for 1.5 to 2.5 times the owner's true annual earnings. Idaho keeps the selling process fairly simple, but its successor liability rule and its unusual liquor license law both reward owners who plan a few months ahead.
Your tax returns almost always prove a higher number.
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| Business type | Revenue multiple | Owner-earnings (SDE) multiple |
|---|---|---|
| Hair salon / Barbershop | 0.35 to 0.65 times yearly revenue | 1.5 to 2.5 times owner earnings |
| Cleaning service | 0.5 to 0.9 times yearly revenue | 1.8 to 2.8 times owner earnings |
| Landscaping / Lawn care | 0.45 to 0.85 times yearly revenue | 1.8 to 2.8 times owner earnings |
| Restaurant / Cafe | 0.25 to 0.45 times yearly revenue | 1.3 to 2.2 times owner earnings |
| Auto repair / Detailing | 0.4 to 0.75 times yearly revenue | 1.9 to 3.1 times owner earnings |
| Retail shop | 0.3 to 0.6 times yearly revenue | 1.8 to 3 times owner earnings |
| Other service business | 0.35 to 0.7 times yearly revenue | 1.5 to 2.5 times owner earnings |
Idaho Code section 63-3628 makes unpaid sales and use tax your buyer's problem. If your business owes any, the buyer must hold that amount back from the purchase price and send it to the Idaho State Tax Commission, or they become responsible for it themselves. Experienced buyers protect themselves by asking the Tax Commission for a successors' liability clearance letter before they close.
The Tax Commission generally has thirty days to answer a written inquiry, and if it stays silent past the statutory deadlines, the buyer is released from the duty to withhold. In practice, a seller who shows up with a clean clearance letter in hand removes a whole round of back and forth. Ask for yours as soon as you decide to sell.
Idaho enforces non-compete agreements that are reasonable in time, territory, and scope, and its courts are noticeably more forgiving when the agreement comes with the sale of a business rather than an ordinary job. Idaho decisions have upheld sale covenants as broad as fifty miles and five years. So when your buyer asks you to stay out of the same line of work locally, assume every term will hold. Have a licensed Idaho attorney review it before you sign. That is normally a single flat-fee engagement, and it can be paid out of the sale proceeds.
Idaho issues full liquor-by-the-drink licenses on a population quota, roughly two per city plus one for every 1,500 residents, which made existing licenses scarce and valuable for decades. A 2023 law changed the market: licenses issued after July 1, 2023 cannot be sold, leased, or transferred, and older licenses were given limited transfer rights.
If part of your asking price assumes the buyer keeps your license, confirm exactly what your license can still do before you quote a number. The rules have shifted more than once, so verify your specific license with Idaho's alcohol beverage licensing authorities rather than relying on what was true when you bought the place.
Gather your last three years of business tax returns before you talk to anyone. Most small business buyers borrow to buy, and SBA lenders will not underwrite a deal without three years of returns on the table. Run your free valuation range below, then get the number documented before you float a price to your first prospect.
Most main-street businesses sell for 1.5 to 2.5 times the owner's true yearly earnings, or their replacement value, whichever is higher and can be proven. True earnings means salary plus profit plus the personal things the business pays for. Most owners forget those add-backs count, so most owners guess low.
SBA lenders require three years of business tax returns to finance a buyer. Three years also shows a trend, not a snapshot. We saw a salon whose latest year looked like decline. Three years proved it was one expensive staffing year, and that was worth tens of thousands on her price. Fewer years looks like hiding. More rarely changes the number.
No. YourBizWorth is not a broker, appraiser, or law firm. We prepare your analysis and drafts. We flag exactly which steps need a licensed attorney, usually one flat-fee engagement at closing, often payable from the sale money. We make the lawyer cheaper, not absent.