THE SHORT ANSWER
Reconcile site results to annual earnings, including necessary labor, supervision and owner replacement. Review actual customer terms and define equipment and working-capital scope. Historical cleaning-market sales offer context across a mixed category; they do not establish a commercial-only multiple, current appraisal or automatic recurring-contract premium.
Reconcile service obligations and annual earnings
Separate routine service, periodic floor work and special projects. Review billed revenue, achieved labor, supplies, travel, subcontracting, equipment costs, credits and supervision. Include agreed service still owed and recurring work outside selected site reports. Contracted revenue, booked invoices and annual earnings describe different things.
SEC adjusted-measure guidance is an issuer-reporting presentation reference.
(SEC: non-GAAP financial measure interpretations)Have the accountant establish the starting measure, period and supported adjustments. Trace expenses actually deducted and necessary continuing costs. Draws, principal, capital purchases and all vehicle or renovation payments are not automatic add-backs. Include necessary scheduling, recruiting, supervision and customer-management replacement consistently using the earnings-basis guide.
Read the historical category within its limits
BizBuySell publishes these national owner-discretionary earnings multiples for reported cleaning and janitorial sales during 2021–2025.
(BizBuySell: reported cleaning and janitorial sales, 2021–2025)| Reported sold earnings statistic | Multiple |
|---|---|
| Lower quartile | 1.57x |
| Median | 2.07x |
| Mean | 2.19x |
| Upper quartile | 2.66x |
Compare the actual company’s activity, ownership model, size, earnings definition and included assets. A mixed national sample is not a commercial-only comparable set. Review relevant transactions and professional judgment before selecting assumptions. Contract duration, account concentration and management coverage require actual evidence rather than fixed price adjustments.
Evaluate actual customer and operating conditions
Review termination, renewal, assignment, ownership-change and customer consent terms using the consent register. Assess revenue and contribution exposed to actual accounts and lost-site scenarios. Keep achieved price or efficiency changes separate from planned renegotiation, recruitment or expansion.
Verify equipment ownership, liens, leases, condition and necessary investment. Review the actual operation’s qualified staffing, site/access and service conditions with responsible specialists. A customer’s contract value or a floor scrubber’s replacement cost is not automatically a separate addition to the business price.
Define delivery and cash timing
SBA sale guidance addresses the agreement, assets and liabilities.
(SBA: closing or selling a business)Define stock, equipment, receivables, payables, deposits, prepaid work and remaining periodic-service obligations. Agree working-capital delivery and adjustments using the delivery guide. Review payroll/supply payment timing alongside customer collections; accounting earnings are not automatically available cash for financing.
Use the seller preparation guide to organize evidence. No universal 2–3.5x range, 3x average, fixed size threshold selecting EBITDA or +/-15 percent qualitative adjustment is established here. The calculator computes a scenario from assumptions; it does not certify an appraisal or verify the company’s actual market price.
Owner questions
Are the historical multiples commercial-only?
The stated category mixes residential, commercial, specialized cleaning and franchise units.
Is 2.19x a current company appraisal?
It is the mean of the specified historical reported sold table, not an appraised current multiple.
Should contracted revenue be treated as annual profit?
Reconcile actual service costs, overhead, duties and financial periods before determining earnings.
Sources and review scope
Source review completed . The sources below support the identified concepts or rules; they do not validate hypothetical amounts or a valuation of your business.
- SEC: non-GAAP financial measure interpretations
Staff interpretations last updated December 2022: recurring operating costs and distinguishing EBITDA from adjusted measures. SEC reporting context, not a universal private-sale rule or automatic acceptance of add-backs.
- BizBuySell: reported cleaning and janitorial sales, 2021–2025
Historical national marketplace-reported sold owner-discretionary earnings multiples across residential, commercial, specialized cleaning and franchise units. Not a commercial-only or independent residential-only comparable set, EBITDA, current 2026 pricing or a company appraisal. Asking observations differ; only primary sold earnings table reproduced.
- SBA: closing or selling a business
Valuation approaches, sale agreements, assets and ownership transfer.
Confirm tax, legal, accounting and lending applications with the relevant professionals. Historical market observations describe the stated period and reported sample.
This is educational material. Industry figures and program rules can change; check the original sources and your advisors before applying them to a transaction. Calculator scenarios are not appraisals, lending decisions, or offers.
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