A main-street business in Oklahoma typically sells for 1.5 to 2.5 times the owner's true annual earnings. Tulsa or Lawton, the range does not move. Oklahoma's quirks show up after the handshake: a non-compete law with geography written into the statute, and a Tax Commission that can stall your buyer's permits.
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 | 1.7 to 2.6 times owner earnings |
| Retail shop | 0.3 to 0.6 times yearly revenue | 1.5 to 2.3 times owner earnings |
| Other service business | 0.35 to 0.7 times yearly revenue | 1.5 to 2.5 times owner earnings |
Oklahoma law voids nearly every contract that restrains someone from working in their trade. The big exception is aimed squarely at business sales: a person who sells the goodwill of a business may agree not to run a similar one, and the statute itself draws the map, a specified county plus the counties touching it, or a named city or town, for as long as the buyer carries on the business.
So the covenant you sign at closing is real, but only within those statutory boundaries. If your buyer's draft sweeps wider than the law allows, an Oklahoma court will cut it back to the home county and its neighbors. Have a licensed attorney check the language against the statute before you sign. It is a short, flat-fee job.
In Oklahoma, whoever buys your business inherits its outstanding sales tax liability, and the Tax Commission has a lever most sellers never see coming: it can refuse to issue the new owner a sales tax permit for the location until the old debt is settled or a payment arrangement is made. Translation: your back taxes can keep your buyer from legally ringing up a single sale.
Buyers who know this will check your standing with the Tax Commission before closing. Beat them to it. Square your account first and the permit handoff becomes a formality instead of a hostage negotiation.
If you are selling a salon or barbershop, the shop's establishment license from the State Board of Cosmetology and Barbering is issued to the owner who applied for it. Your buyer files for their own establishment license rather than inheriting yours. Get their application moving before closing day so the chairs never sit empty during the switch.
Before you talk to a single buyer, assemble three years of business tax returns. SBA lenders will not underwrite a buyer's loan without them, and most small business purchases run on borrowed money. Run your free range below, then get the number documented so you negotiate from evidence instead of hope.
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.