2.6× The typical bar, pub or nightclub for sale in the US asks 2.6 times its yearly cash flow.
We read nearly 1,100 bars, pubs and nightclubs listed for sale on a major online marketplace and compared each asking price with the cash flow its seller reported.
The findings in eight sentences.
- The middle half of bars, pubs and nightclubs ask between 2.1 and 3.4 times their yearly cash flow.
- Bars, pubs and nightclubs ask what the typical business for sale asks, 2.6 times.
- The typical asking price for a bar, pub or nightclub is $439,000.
- Measured against revenue, the typical bar, pub or nightclub asks 0.5 times its yearly sales.
- 26% of bars, pubs and nightclubs for sale offer seller financing, against 22% overall.
- 32% of owners who say why they're selling are retiring.
- 32% of bars, pubs and nightclubs for sale show no revenue, cash flow or EBITDA, against 18% overall.
- 14% of the bars, pubs and nightclubs for sale are listed in Florida, 11% in California and 6% in Texas.
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Of the food and drink industries, bars, pubs and nightclubs ask more than most.
Quick service restaurants ask the most, 2.7 times their yearly cash flow, and Korean restaurants the least, 1.7 times.
- Quick service restaurants: median 2.7×, middle half from 2.1× to 3.4×
- Bars, pubs and nightclubs: median 2.6×, middle half from 2.1× to 3.4×
- Cafes, bakeries and delis: median 2.5×, middle half from 1.9× to 3.3×
- Restaurants: median 2.3×, middle half from 1.7× to 3.0×
- Catering companies: median 2.3×, middle half from 1.8× to 2.9×
- Mediterranean restaurants: median 2.1×, middle half from 1.6× to 2.7×
- Korean restaurants: median 1.7×, middle half from 1.4× to 2.2×
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In 2019, before ChatGPT, the median asking multiple for bars, pubs and nightclubs was 2.5× cash flow. Measured the same way today, it is up 7%. How every industry moved since
62% of bars, pubs and nightclubs ask between two and four times their yearly cash flow.
22% ask less than two, and 16% more than four.
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Bars, pubs and nightclubs ask 2.5 to 2.8 times at each size.
The typical ask is 2.8 times below $100,000 of yearly cash flow, 2.5 times at $100,000 to $250,000 and 2.7 times at $250,000 to $500,000.
- Under $100k: median 2.8×, middle half from 2.1× to 4.2×
- $100k to $250k: median 2.5×, middle half from 2.0× to 3.3×
- $250k to $500k: median 2.7×, middle half from 2.0× to 3.2×
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What bars, pubs and nightclubs for sale say they run on.
18% of bars, pubs and nightclubs for sale say what they run on, and 89% of those name a point-of-sale or payment system. The brands named most are Toast and Square for point of sale. 2% of bars, pubs and nightclubs for sale pitch technology as a way to grow.
- Point-of-sale or payment system: 89%
- Scheduling, dispatch or industry software: 18%
- Online booking, ordering or store: 13%
- Accounting or payroll software: 2%
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Each bar is a share of the listings that say what they run on. A listing can name several.
What a bar, pub or nightclub like yours would ask.
The middle half of similar listings ask
$327,000 to $530,000
The typical one asks $406,000, 2.5× its yearly cash flow.
Based on bars, pubs and nightclubs with $100k to $250k of yearly cash flow. These are asking prices, not sale prices or appraisals.
After the close.
We write the software a newly bought business runs on, one process at a time, such as quoting, scheduling or billing, and the new owner keeps the code. How we work with buyers and operating partners.
The data.
We read the listings on September 24, 2026, and their full details from September 25 to 30, 2026.
Questions
What multiple of cash flow do bars, pubs and nightclubs sell for?
Bars, pubs and nightclubs listed for sale in the US ask a median 2.6 times their yearly cash flow (seller's discretionary earnings), and the middle half ask between 2.1 and 3.4 times. Sale prices usually come in lower.
How much does it cost to buy a bar, pub or nightclub?
The typical bar, pub or nightclub for sale asks $439,000, and the middle half ask between $250,000 and $799,000. Sale prices usually come in lower.
How many bars, pubs and nightclubs for sale offer seller financing?
26% of bars, pubs and nightclubs for sale offer seller financing, against 22% overall.
What multiple of revenue do bars, pubs and nightclubs ask?
The typical bar, pub or nightclub for sale asks 0.5 times its yearly sales, and the middle half ask between 0.3 and 0.7 times.
What software do bars, pubs and nightclubs use?
18% of bars, pubs and nightclubs for sale say in their listing what they run on. Of those, 89% name a point-of-sale or payment system, 18% scheduling, dispatch or industry software, 13% online booking, ordering or an online store and 2% accounting or payroll software. The brands named most are Toast and Square for point of sale.
What POS system do bars, pubs and nightclubs use?
In listings of bars, pubs and nightclubs for sale that name a POS brand, Toast appears in 58%, Square in 33% and Clover in 12%.
Why are bars, pubs and nightclubs for sale?
32% of owners who give a reason are retiring. 26% are moving on to other businesses or interests, and 15% are relocating.
How we did it
We read every listing on a major US online marketplace for businesses for sale on September 24, 2026, and went back to each one from September 25 to 30, 2026 for its full details. This page covers the 1,060 established bars, pubs and nightclubs among them. 410 show both an asking price and a cash flow, and 344 of those are left after the exclusions below.
Older listings use a flat list of named categories, and newer ones a two-level list whose subcategories have no names. A listing without its own photo shows its category's default photo. Each default photo almost always shows up in a single newer subcategory, so each named category joins the subcategory where its photo appears. Listings filed as bars, pubs and taverns and nightclubs and theaters are on this page.
A multiple is the asking price divided by the seller's discretionary earnings the listing reports. We left out multiples below 0.3 or above 20, and listings whose price includes the property. Prices and cash flows on this page come from the listings with a multiple. These are asking prices, and a business usually sells for less than it asks. The full method.
The section on what bars, pubs and nightclubs run on counts what listings say. A page has it when at least 30 of its listings say what they run on.
Cite this page
Fulkerson Advisors (2026). What bars, pubs and nightclubs for sale ask. From What Small Businesses for Sale Ask: 39,587 US Listings, September 2026. https://www.fulkersonadvisors.com/research/small-business-multiples/bars-pubs-nightclubs
Use any of these numbers or charts. Credit Fulkerson Advisors and link to this page. The data is under a CC BY 4.0 license.