Free acquisition model

Startup acquisition ROI calculator

Stress-test a purchase price using owner earnings, financing, growth, and exit assumptions.

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%
%
years
years
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Base-case annual return (IRR)58.7%5.92ร— MOIC ยท $1,481,154 returned
How the purchase is funded
  • Buyer equity$250,000
  • Acquisition debt$250,000
Annual debt service$62,614
Year-one DSCR2.40ร—Earnings รท debt payment
Net exit proceeds$878,460
Unlevered payback3.3 years
Scenarios
downside34.0%3.08ร— MOIC$770,679 returned
base58.7%5.92ร— MOIC$1,481,154 returned
upside82.4%10.32ร— MOIC$2,580,237 returned

Scenarios adjust starting earnings, growth and exit multiple. Excludes taxes, transaction fees, working-capital adjustments, capital expenditure and unforeseen liabilities. Negative annual cash flow may require more buyer capital.

Frequently asked

What earnings figure should I enter?

Use normalized annual owner earnings or SDE after removing unsupported add-backs and subtracting the cost of replacing necessary founder work.

What is MOIC?

Multiple on invested capital divides total modeled cash returned by the buyerโ€™s initial equity. It does not account for the timing of those cash flows.

What is IRR?

Internal rate of return is the annual discount rate that makes the modeled cash flows equal the initial investment. It is highly sensitive to exit assumptions and timing.

Does this replace acquisition diligence?

No. The model excludes taxes, fees, working capital, capital expenditure, hidden liabilities, and many transaction-specific terms. Verify the business and use qualified advisers.

What the model calculates

The calculator divides the purchase price between buyer equity and acquisition debt, calculates an amortizing annual loan payment, grows normalized owner earnings, and estimates exit value from the final yearโ€™s earnings. Net exit proceeds subtract any remaining modeled loan balance.

MOIC shows total modeled cash returned relative to initial equity. IRR also considers when annual cash flows arrive. Debt can increase equity returns, but it can also create negative cash flow and default risk when earnings underperform.

How the three scenarios differ

The downside case reduces starting earnings, lowers growth by ten percentage points, and reduces the exit multiple. The upside case raises those assumptions by the same framework. These are sensitivity cases, not probability-weighted forecasts. Replace them with evidence from retention, concentration, pipeline, operating costs, and transferability.

Inputs the calculator does not know

A real offer must account for cash, debt-like liabilities, deferred revenue, working capital, transaction costs, taxes, capital expenditure, remediation, seller notes, earn-outs, and escrow. It must also verify that code, contracts, data rights, domains, vendor accounts, and customer relationships transfer.

Start with the buyer due-diligence guide and use the model only after normalizing the underlying earnings.

Sources and further reading