BizMetricsHQ

Profitability metrics · published methodology

How to Track Business Profitability Metrics

Clear ranges for revenue, profit margins, owner pay, and valuation—plus key financial performance indicators for small business—across 29 industries and 619 data pages

Try “HVAC”, “Dental”, or “Restaurant”

Popular:HVACRestaurantDental
29Industries
68Benchmarks
619Data Pages
4 CoreMetrics

Browse Industries

Explore benchmarks across home services, healthcare, fitness, food & beverage, and beauty & personal care.

Beauty & Personal Care

5 live · 5 total

View Industry Intelligence Directory

Business Model

Franchise Economics

Explore franchise startup costs, ROI, profit margins, owner earnings, valuation, and benchmarks — organized by industry, not just business type.

Explore Franchise Hub

2025–2026 · Franchise benchmarks rolling out by category

Key Financial Performance Indicators for Small Business

Jump to the metrics busy owners check first—revenue, profit margins, and valuation.

Featured Industry Benchmarks

Interquartile ranges and medians — not single-point estimates. Every figure links to our published methodology.

  • HVAC Industry Economics

    HVAC
    n=420+ businessesUnited StatesUpdated 2025–2026
    Revenue
    $1.2M – $3.8Mmedian $2.4M

    Annual gross revenue for owner-operated HVAC companies with 5–25 employees.

    Net Margin
    8% – 16%median 12%

    Net profit after owner salary, before taxes. Excludes pass-through entities with non-standard comp.

    Owner Salary
    $95k – $185kmedian $145k

    W-2 wages, guaranteed payments, or owner draws normalized to annual salary.

    Valuation
    2.4x – 3.8x SDEmedian 3.1x SDE

    Asking-price multiple on Seller's Discretionary Earnings for businesses under $5M revenue.

    How we calculate this →View full benchmarks

  • Restaurant Industry Economics

    Restaurant
    n=680+ businessesUnited StatesUpdated 2025–2026
    Revenue
    $650k – $1.8Mmedian $1.1M

    Annual gross sales for single-unit, full-service or fast-casual restaurants.

    Net Margin
    3% – 9%median 6%

    Net profit after food, labor, rent, and owner compensation.

    Owner Salary
    $48k – $98kmedian $72k

    Owner-operator take-home pay including reported salary and distributions.

    Valuation
    1.8x – 3.0x SDEmedian 2.4x SDE

    SDE multiple for independent restaurants; franchise and multi-unit deals excluded.

    How we calculate this →View full benchmarks

  • Dental Practice Economics

    Dental
    n=310+ practicesUnited StatesUpdated 2025–2026
    Revenue
    $1.2M – $2.6Mmedian $1.8M

    Annual collections for general dentistry practices with 1–3 operatories.

    Net Margin
    14% – 24%median 18%

    Net income after clinical staff, supplies, lab fees, and owner compensation.

    Owner Salary
    $220k – $360kmedian $285k

    Combined clinical production pay and owner distributions for practicing owners.

    Valuation
    3.2x – 4.5x SDEmedian 3.8x SDE

    SDE multiple for solo and small-group general practices; specialty practices vary.

    How we calculate this →View full benchmarks

  • Gym Industry Economics

    Gym
    n=290+ businessesUnited StatesUpdated 2025–2026
    Revenue
    $520k – $1.3Mmedian $890k

    Annual revenue for independent gyms and boutique fitness studios.

    Net Margin
    10% – 18%median 14%

    Net profit after rent, equipment, payroll, and marketing.

    Owner Salary
    $65k – $130kmedian $95k

    Owner-operator compensation including salary and profit distributions.

    Valuation
    2.2x – 3.6x SDEmedian 2.9x SDE

    SDE multiple for membership-based gyms; franchise resale values excluded.

    How we calculate this →View full benchmarks

Latest Industry Reports

In-depth economics research — not blog posts.

Our Methodology

Transparent benchmarks for owners who want to track business profitability metrics with confidence—how every number is sourced, calculated, and limited.

Last updated June 2026Quarterly refresh15,000+ data points
E

Experience

Real-world business data

Benchmarks reflect actual operating businesses — not theoretical models. We aggregate data from business-for-sale listings, owner surveys, and licensed industry datasets covering Main Street companies ($250k–$10M revenue).

E

Expertise

Defined, consistent metrics

Every metric uses a published definition. Revenue is gross annual sales. Margins are net profit after owner pay. Valuation multiples are based on Seller's Discretionary Earnings (SDE) — the standard for businesses under $5M.

A

Authoritativeness

Multiple verified sources

Data is cross-referenced across business brokerage platforms, SBA loan performance data, industry association reports, and IRS Statistics of Income by NAICS code. Outliers beyond 2.5× IQR are excluded.

T

Trustworthiness

Ranges, not false precision

We publish interquartile ranges (25th–75th percentile) and median values — never single-point estimates presented as facts. Sample sizes, geography, and data vintage are disclosed on every benchmark card.

How benchmarks are calculated

  1. 1

    Collect

    Gather raw data from brokerage listings, surveys, and public filings by NAICS industry code.

  2. 2

    Normalize

    Standardize owner compensation, adjust for partial-year data, and map businesses to our industry taxonomy.

  3. 3

    Filter

    Remove outliers beyond 2.5× the interquartile range and exclude businesses with incomplete financials.

  4. 4

    Calculate

    Compute median (50th percentile) and interquartile range (25th–75th percentile) for each metric.

  5. 5

    Publish

    Display ranges with sample size, geography, and last-updated date. Link to full methodology on every page.

Metric definitions

Revenue Range
25th to 75th percentile of annual gross revenue across sampled businesses in the industry—one of the key financial performance indicators for small business planning.
Net Margin Range
25th to 75th percentile of net profit margin (net income ÷ revenue) after owner compensation. Use this when you want to track business profitability metrics against peers.
Cash Flow vs Profitability
Profitability is accounting profit after expenses. Cash flow is money moving in and out of the business. Understanding cash flow vs profitability for owners matters because a profitable month can still leave you short on cash if customers pay slowly or you buy inventory up front.
Owner Salary Range
25th to 75th percentile of total annual owner compensation, including W-2, draws, and distributions.
Valuation Multiple
25th to 75th percentile of asking price ÷ SDE for businesses listed for sale. SDE = net profit + owner salary + add-backs.
Median
The 50th percentile value — half of businesses fall above, half below. More representative than mean for skewed distributions.

Data sources

  • Business-for-sale marketplace listings (BizBuySell, BizQuest)
  • SBA 7(a) loan performance by NAICS code
  • IRS Statistics of Income — Sole Proprietorship & Partnership returns
  • Industry association benchmark surveys
  • Owner-operator survey panel (n=2,400+)

Limitations & disclaimers

  • Ranges reflect U.S. businesses unless otherwise noted; regional variation can be significant.
  • Smaller sample industries have wider confidence intervals — check sample size on each card.
  • Valuation multiples reflect asking prices, not closed transaction prices.
  • Figures are directional benchmarks for planning — not substitutes for professional valuation or tax advice.

Every industry page includes sample size, data vintage, and metric definitions. Questions about our data? Read the full methodology

Compare Businesses

Side-by-side economics to help you evaluate opportunities.

Easy Small Business Profit Margin Calculators

Run the numbers on margins, valuation, and break-even—benchmarked to your industry.

Track Your Business Profitability Metrics

Search 68 benchmarks across 619 data pages—revenue, margins, salary, and valuation, the key financial performance indicators for small business owners.