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Productized Service Valuation Calculator

What a productised service or design subscription sells for: retainer revenue, contractor margins and how much it still needs its founder.

Updated · By Niraj Kumar · 4 sources

Revenue

$

Average of the last three months, before payment fees and platform shares.

%
−10%30%

After churn. 2% a month is 27% a year.

%
0%20%

MRR lost each month to cancellations and downgrades, as a share of MRR.

$
months

Months of revenue a buyer can verify.

Costs and margin

%
0%100%

Revenue left after hosting, payment fees, platform shares and model or API costs.

$

Tools, contractors, support staff. Leave out your own pay and marketing.

Acquisition

$

0 if growth is all organic.

Risk and founder

Support, development, marketing: everything a buyer would take over.

$/h

What a buyer would pay a hire or contractor. Used for EBITDA.

Platform dependencyPlatform dependency
%
0%100%
Estimated exit value$203,000Range $148,000 to $257,000
SDE, a year
$93,000
Profit before your pay, valued at 1.85×
EBITDA, a year
-$16,200
After $109,200 to replace your 35 hours a week
MRR multiple
8.1×
0.68× ARR
Revenue cross-check
$274,000
$300,000 ARR × 0.91×; the estimate weighs profit 70%, revenue 30%
LTV:CAC
81.0
LTV $13,500, CAC $167, paid back in 0.2 months
How the multiple is builtTurns of SDE added or taken off, largest first.
FactorTurns
Base: SDE $50k to $100k3.00×
Gross margin under 50%−0.60
Churn 4 to 6% a month−0.40
Founder works 20 to 40 hours−0.30
LTV:CAC 3 or more+0.25
Top customer 10 to 20% of revenue−0.10
Steady, 10 to 30% a year0
Two years or more of history0
Platform risk: independent0
SDE multiple1.85×
From revenue to SDE and EBITDA, a year
ARR (MRR × 12)$300,000
Cost of revenue (55%)-$165,000
Gross profit$135,000
Operating costs-$30,000
Paid marketing-$12,000
SDE$93,000
Founder's time (35 h × $60 × 52)-$109,200
EBITDA-$16,200
SDE multiple for each example businessEach vertical's starting example on these pages. Hover or focus a row for its value and churn.
  1. 1Developer tool / API4.8× SDE
  2. 2B2B SaaS3.8× SDE
  3. 3WordPress plugin3.0× SDE
  4. 4Shopify app3.0× SDE
  5. 5Chrome extension2.1× SDE
  6. 6Productised service1.8× SDE
  7. 7Notion / no-code templates1.5× SDE
  8. 8AI wrapper / GPT app1.5× SDE

How is a micro-SaaS valued?

A design subscription billing $25,000 a month at 45% margin, with a founder working 35 hours a week, is worth about $203,000, 2.2× SDE. Contractor costs and founder dependence put it well below software of the same revenue, at 0.7× ARR.

SDE = MRR × 12 × gross margin − (operating costs + marketing) × 12 EBITDA = SDE − founder hours × hourly rate × 52 SDE multiple = size-band base + growth + churn + founder + age + platform + concentration + LTV:CAC + margin (1.5× to 8×) value = w × SDE × SDE multiple + (1 − w) × ARR × ARR multiple, w = 0 at 10% SDE margin rising to 1 at 40%

This page uses the same method as the Micro-SaaS Valuation Calculator, which explains each term and assumption in full.

Worked example

A productised design subscription billing $25,000 a month at $1,500 per client, growing 2% a month with 5% churn, 45% gross margin after contractors, one client at 18% of revenue, and a founder working 35 hours a week on sales and quality.

  1. 1ARR: $300,000; gross profit at 45%: $135,000
  2. 2SDE: $135,000 − $42,000 of costs and marketing = $93,000
  3. 3Base multiple for SDE of $50k to $100k: 3.0×
  4. 4Adjustments: gross margin under 50% −0.60; churn 4 to 6% a month −0.40; founder works 20 to 40 hours −0.30; lTV:CAC 3 or more +0.25; top customer 10 to 20% of revenue −0.10
  5. 5SDE multiple: 1.85×, so $93,000 × 1.85× = $172,000
  6. 6Revenue cross-check: 0.9× ARR = $274,000; weight on profit 70%

About $203,000, within $148,000 to $257,000: 8.1× MRR, and no positive EBITDA once the founder's time is paid for.

Frequently asked questions

Why is a productised service worth less than SaaS?

Because every dollar of revenue needs people to deliver it. Gross margin after contractors is 40 to 60% rather than 80%, the founder usually sells and checks the work, and clients are larger, so one leaving hurts. Each of those is an adjustment here. The way up is a delivery team that runs without you and a documented process the buyer can keep.

Should I value my service on SDE or EBITDA?

EBITDA, if you work more than about 20 hours a week in it: a buyer has to hire someone for your role, so your time is a real cost. The gap between SDE and EBITDA here is that cost, at the hourly rate you set. Lowering it before a sale, by hiring an operations lead, raises EBITDA and the price buyers will pay.

What multiple does a productised service sell for?

For the business on this page, about 1.8× SDE, or 8× MRR: $203,000 on $25,000 of MRR and $93,000 of annual SDE. Change the inputs above to your own figures; churn, growth and founder hours move the multiple most.

Sources

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