What is my business actually worth? A UAE owner’s guide to valuation

The first question almost every owner asks is also the hardest to answer honestly: what is my business worth? The truth is there is no single number — value is a range, set by your profits, how transferable the business is, and what a buyer can do with it. But you can get to a defensible figure.

Value is a multiple of earnings

Most small and mid-sized businesses are valued as a multiple of their annual earnings — typically EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation) or SDE (seller’s discretionary earnings, which adds the owner’s pay back in). A profitable, well-run SME in the GCC commonly trades somewhere in the range of 2x to 5x, depending on sector, size, and growth.

Add-backs matter — but be honest

Owner-operated businesses often run personal costs through the company. Genuine add-backs — your above-market salary, one-off expenses, non-business costs — legitimately increase the earnings a buyer will pay a multiple on. But inflate them and a buyer’s due diligence will find it, and trust (and your price) will fall. Document every add-back.

What moves your multiple up

Two businesses with the same profit can be worth very different amounts. Recurring revenue, a diversified customer base, a business that runs without the owner, clean books, and a growing market all push your multiple higher. Heavy reliance on one customer — or on you personally — pushes it down.

Get an independent view before you go to market

A data-backed valuation, grounded in your verified financials, does two things: it sets a realistic asking price, and it gives buyers a number they can trust rather than argue with. That is what shortens negotiations and gets deals closed.