1. Scope
The One-Person SaaS Valuation Calculator estimates the sale price a solo-operated SaaS might fetch in the current micro-acquisition market. It uses revenue multiples (most common for smaller / higher-growth businesses) and profit multiples (more common above $500K ARR and slower-growth) anchored to published data from Acquire.com / MicroAcquire, FE International, and Quiet Light Brokerage. It is an indicative valuation, not a formal appraisal.
2. Inputs and outputs
Inputs: ARR (annual recurring revenue), SDE (owner earnings after expenses), MRR growth rate, monthly churn rate, tech-stack quality (modern/legacy), customer-concentration (top 10 as % of revenue), age of business, owner hours per week, and a sellability score for factors like documentation and SOPs.
Outputs: revenue-multiple value, SDE-multiple value, a blended estimate with a low / mid / high band, and adjustment-factor explanations (what drove the estimate up or down).
Engine source: src/lib/one-person-saas-valuation/engine.ts.
3. Formula / scoring logic
# Base multiples (editorial bands, anchored to published micro-acquisition data)
# ARR < $500K, <20% MoM growth: 2.5x – 3.5x ARR, or 2.0x – 3.0x SDE
# ARR $500K – $5M, healthy churn: 3.0x – 5.0x ARR, or 3.0x – 4.5x SDE
# SaaS with >30% annual growth: stretches +0.5x – 1.5x
revenue_multiple_adj = base_revenue_multiple
* growth_modifier # +15% / +30% / +50% for 20/40/60% MoM ARR growth
* churn_modifier # +10% for <3% churn; -15% for >8%
* concentration_modifier # -20% when top 10 customers > 50% of revenue
* tech_stack_modifier # -10% for legacy PHP/jQuery; +5% for modern
* sellability_modifier # -15% for no docs/SOPs; +10% for comprehensive
revenue_value = ARR * revenue_multiple_adj
sde_value = SDE * sde_multiple_adj
blended = weighted_average(revenue_value, sde_value)
(weight revenue higher for high-growth SaaS; weight SDE higher for mature)
# Output as low/mid/high band by spreading ±15% around blended
4. Assumptions
- Micro-acquisition population. Base multiples target solo-operated SaaS with < $2M ARR. Larger businesses trade through different broker pools (FE International, Quiet Light above ~$500K; investment banks above ~$5M) with different multiple bands.
- Revenue multiple is most informative for high-growth or low-margin businesses. SDE multiple is more informative for steady-state owner-operator businesses where margin is already extracted.
- Sellability is a real adjustment. A SaaS with documented SOPs, clean code, and low owner time-per-week commands a 15–25% premium over an identical business that requires the founder to operate it.
- Growth multiples are time-sensitive. A 40% YoY grower trades 1.5–2× a 5% grower. Peak-cycle growth premiums (2020–2021) have compressed.
- Customer concentration is punitive. If one customer is > 20% of revenue, most acquirers apply a 20–30% discount.
5. Data sources
- Acquire.com (formerly MicroAcquire) — aggregate micro-SaaS deal data, self-reported multiples. Base reference for < $1M ARR.
- FE International — valuation reports — mid-market SaaS deal multiples (typically $500K–$20M revenue).
- Quiet Light Brokerage — industry reports — SaaS and content-site multiples by size and growth tier.
- Bessemer State of the Cloud 2024 — public-SaaS revenue multiples; useful as a cycle reference but should be heavily discounted (20–40%) for private micro-SaaS.
6. Known limitations
- Multiples are self-reported and biased toward successful closings. Acquire.com aggregate data reflects deals that closed; failed / withdrawn listings are not included.
- Narrow sample size at the extremes. Very-high-growth micro-SaaS (> 100% YoY) and very-old micro-SaaS are both outside the typical marketplace sample; multiples here are more editorial than data-driven.
- Sellability scoring is subjective. Two founders will score their own business differently. Pair the output with a third-party audit if the decision is material.
- Tax consequences of sale are not modelled. Asset vs stock sale, ordinary-income vs capital-gains treatment, and seller-note mechanics all materially change net proceeds. Consult a tax professional.
- Market-cycle sensitivity. A 2021 multiple applied in 2024 could be 1.5–2× too high. The tool's base bands are refreshed periodically; check the as-of date.
7. Reproducibility
Input
ARR = $240,000 ($20K MRR), SDE = $180,000, MRR growth = 3% MoM, monthly churn = 3%, age = 3 years, tech stack = modern, concentration = top 10 = 18%, owner hours = 10/wk, sellability = high (full SOPs, documented code).
Expected output
Base revenue multiple ≈ 3.0×, adjusted up ≈ 3.5× with growth/churn/sellability premiums → revenue_value ≈ $840,000. SDE multiple ≈ 3.5× → sde_value ≈ $630,000. Blended (weighted toward revenue given growth): $720K – $870K mid range, low/high band ≈ $600K – $1M. Reality: micro-SaaS of this profile commonly lists in this range on Acquire.com.
8. Change log
- 2026-04-24methodology page first published. Multiple bands anchored to Acquire.com, FE International, and Quiet Light 2024 data.
Worked example
Run live against the same engine this site ships
(/engines/one-person-saas-valuation.js).
The inputs and outputs below are recomputed on every build and
independently re-verified in CI — they are never hand-authored.
Input
- tool
- one_person_saas_valuation
- arr
- 100000
- annual_profit
- 40000
- monthly_growth_rate
- 5
- years_in_operation
- 2
- churn_rate
- 5
- owner_hours_per_week
- 20
Output
- methods[0].name
- Revenue Multiple
- methods[0].multiple
- 2.5
- methods[0].value
- 250000
- methods[0].basis
- 100000
- methods[0].basisLabel
- ARR
- methods[1].name
- SDE Multiple
- methods[1].multiple
- 2.5
- methods[1].value
- 230000
- methods[1].basis
- 92000
- methods[1].basisLabel
- SDE
- methods[2].name
- Profit Multiple
- methods[2].multiple
- 3.5
- methods[2].value
- 140000
- methods[2].basis
- 40000
- methods[2].basisLabel
- Annual Profit
- blendedEstimate
- 209000
- blendedLow
- 140000
- blendedHigh
- 250000
- factors[0].name
- Growth rate
- factors[0].impact
- neutral
- factors[0].detail
- 5% monthly growth is modest. Higher growth commands premium multiples.
- factors[1].name
- Churn rate
- factors[1].impact
- neutral
- factors[1].detail
- 5% monthly churn is typical. Reducing it would directly increase valuation.
- factors[2].name
- Owner dependency
- factors[2].impact
- neutral
- factors[2].detail
- 20h/week is moderate. Automating or documenting processes would improve valuation.
- factors[3].name
- Track record
- factors[3].impact
- neutral
- factors[3].detail
- 2 years is early. More history increases buyer confidence.
- insight
- A $8333.33 MRR SaaS with 5% churn and 5% monthly growth is worth approximately $140,000 to $250,000, using indie/micro-SaaS multiples from platforms like Acquire.com and MicroAcquire.
Frequently asked questions
- What does the One-Person SaaS Valuation Calculator estimate?
- It estimates the sale price a solo-operated SaaS might fetch in the current micro-acquisition market, using revenue multiples and profit multiples anchored to published data from Acquire.com / MicroAcquire, FE International, and Quiet Light Brokerage.
- Is this a formal appraisal?
- No. It is an indicative valuation, not a formal appraisal.
- Can I verify it with a worked example?
- Yes. With ARR = $240,000, SDE = $180,000, 3% MoM MRR growth, 3% monthly churn, 3 years old, modern stack, top-10 concentration 18%, 10 owner hrs/wk, high sellability: revenue multiple ≈ 3.5× → revenue_value ≈ $840,000, SDE multiple ≈ 3.5× → sde_value ≈ $630,000, blended mid $720K – $870K.