Thinking about selling
your MSP?

It depends on scale, revenue mix, and risk more than any single rule of thumb. Across 120 disclosed MSP transactions we track, the median is 8.9x EV/EBITDA on a median deal size near $38.5M, but the real range runs from 3 to 5x for subscale, break-fix-heavy shops up to 9 to 14x for MSSPs with proven, monetized AI or security capability. The multiple follows the evidence: clean recurring MRR separated from resale and projects, growth you can tie to real logos and pricing, clients who stay, low concentration, and a team that can run the business without you. Our valuation tool gives you a starting range in about two minutes.

Build the evidence before you go to market, not during it. A monthly MRR bridge, gross revenue retention, client concentration, service-line margins, and a clear plan for your role after close should all reconcile before a buyer ever sees your business. Then run a real process with more than one qualified buyer at the table. Owners who take the first offer from a consolidator that called them directly almost always leave money and better terms behind. Here is how a sell-side advisor differs from a business broker.

Maybe not, if that offer is genuinely strong, and we will tell you honestly if it is. But an inbound approach from a known consolidator is a number designed to work for them, delivered before you had a chance to create competition. Permanent-hold buyers, integrated platforms, and capability buyers can value the same MSP very differently depending on their thesis, integration model, and what they need from your role after close. Before you sign anything, it is worth knowing where you would land with real competition in the room. Here is how strategic and private equity buyers differ.

A well-run process typically takes six to nine months from engagement to close, with first offers usually on the table within 30 days of going to market. For MSPs specifically, diligence tends to run longer than average, because buyers dig into contract terms, security posture, and client concentration in detail. Here is our full breakdown of how long it takes to sell a business in the lower middle market.

You are not too early to have the conversation, but you are likely leaving multiple points on the table if you go to market today. Subscale, resale-dependent MSPs trade in the 3 to 5x range, while pure-play MSPs with healthy managed-services MRR sit at 5 to 8x. The highest-leverage work is usually building the recurring base and the evidence behind it 12 to 24 months before a sale, not fixing it during one. We are based in Chicago and work with MSP owners nationally, and we will tell you honestly whether now is the right time or whether you should wait and build first.