What Is a Gas Station Worth?

Gas stations typically sell for roughly 1.4x to 2.8x Seller's Discretionary Earnings for the business, plus inventory, with real estate valued separately if the owner holds it. Because inside sales carry most of the margin, two stations with identical fuel volume can differ substantially in value.

It can dominate it. Buyers and lenders normally require a Phase I environmental site assessment, and tank age and testing history are diligence items that can reduce the price, require an escrow, or stop the deal outright.

Only if you own it, and it should be valued separately. Conflating business value and property value is the most common mistake here. A buyer may purchase the business and lease the property, or buy both, and those are two different prices.

There is no single average, because price tracks earnings rather than revenue. At the midpoint multiple of 2.1x SDE, gas stations at $500,000 of SDE sell around $1,050,000, and at $1,000,000 of SDE around $2,100,000. Typical SDE margin in this category runs near 8% of revenue, so a gas station doing $1,000,000 in revenue would often carry about $80,000 of SDE and land near $168,000.

Take your Seller's Discretionary Earnings and multiply by 1.4x to 2.8x. Where you land inside that band is decided by owner dependence, customer concentration, recurring revenue and the quality of your books. A gas station at the top of the range looks materially different from one at the bottom, and most of those differences can be improved in the twelve months before a sale.

SDE multiples of 1.4x to 2.8x apply to owner-operated gas stations. Once earnings pass roughly $1M to $2M of EBITDA the buyer pool shifts to private equity and strategic acquirers, and pricing restates onto an EBITDA multiple of 4x to 6.5x. The two are not comparable: SDE includes the owner's compensation and EBITDA does not, so the same business shows a higher SDE multiple than EBITDA multiple.

Typically 9 to 12 months from going to market to closing, assuming financials are ready. Environmental diligence dominates. A Phase I assessment is standard and tank age and testing history can reduce the price, force an escrow, or stop the deal. Pull your tank records before going to market so nothing surprises you.

SDE times the industry multiple. For gas stations that multiple is 1.4x to 2.8x, so $250,000 of SDE points to $350,000 to $700,000. Recorded sales of similar businesses serve as a cross-check, and the equipment and inventory value usually sets the floor.

Yes, at the top of this page. It applies the 1.4x to 2.8x band for gas stations, adjusted for owner hours, margin and years in business, and returns a range rather than one number.

To decide whether to sell a gas station, a market valuation: what a buyer would likely pay. A certified appraisal is usually needed only for divorce, estate, tax, litigation or a buyer's SBA loan, and costs far more.