Free dataset · CC BY 4.0
Reviewed by Rob Ismoilov · M&A AdvisorTotal duration by prep quality
Seller-side QoE done, accrual books, consents inventoried
Books cleaned up during phase 1; standard consent flow
Cash-basis books, undocumented add-backs, no consent inventory
Months figures are derived from totalMonthsForPrepQuality() — summing phase-level week bands and dividing by 4.345 weeks/ month. Full week totals: excellent 18–32wk, average 25–47wk, poor 48–96wk.
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Same underlying data behind every format.
5 rows · UTF-8
Phase-by-phase durations with prep-quality bands and per-row source citations.
Content-Type: text/csv
RFC 8259 · pretty-printed
Full metadata + rows + derived totals for excellent, average, and poor prep quality.
Content-Type: application/json
1200 × 900 · embeddable
Prep-quality-banded timeline visualization with visible yourexitpath.com attribution baked in.
Content-Type: image/svg+xml
Embed the timeline infographic:
<a href="https://yourexitpath.com/data/business-sale-timeline"><img src="https://yourexitpath.com/data/business-sale-timeline/infographic.svg" alt="Main Street business sale timeline by prep quality" width="1200" height="900" /></a>
5 phases · prep-quality-banded
Each row includes the duration low/high bands under three preparation states plus what typically eats the clock and where deals stall in that phase.
Financials to accrual basis + documented add-back schedule + broker engagement + CIM drafted.
| Prep quality | Duration (weeks) | Duration (~months) |
|---|---|---|
Excellent | 2–4 weeks | 0.5–0.9 months |
Average | 4–8 weeks | 0.9–1.8 months |
Poor | 12–24 weeks | 2.8–5.5 months |
What eats the clock
Where deals stall
Blind teaser distribution to buyer channels + NDA execution + qualified-buyer screening calls.
| Prep quality | Duration (weeks) | Duration (~months) |
|---|---|---|
Excellent | 4–8 weeks | 0.9–1.8 months |
Average | 6–12 weeks | 1.4–2.8 months |
Poor | 10–20 weeks | 2.3–4.6 months |
What eats the clock
Where deals stall
Management presentations + site visits + LOI solicitation + exclusivity negotiation.
| Prep quality | Duration (weeks) | Duration (~months) |
|---|---|---|
Excellent | 3–6 weeks | 0.7–1.4 months |
Average | 4–8 weeks | 0.9–1.8 months |
Poor | 8–16 weeks | 1.8–3.7 months |
What eats the clock
Where deals stall
Quality of Earnings + legal diligence + assignment consents + purchase-agreement negotiation.
| Prep quality | Duration (weeks) | Duration (~months) |
|---|---|---|
Excellent | 8–12 weeks | 1.8–2.8 months |
Average | 10–16 weeks | 2.3–3.7 months |
Poor | 16–32 weeks | 3.7–7.4 months |
What eats the clock
Where deals stall
Final signatures + purchase-price wire + escrow funding + closing-binder delivery.
| Prep quality | Duration (weeks) | Duration (~months) |
|---|---|---|
Excellent | 1–2 weeks | 0.2–0.5 months |
Average | 1–3 weeks | 0.2–0.7 months |
Poor | 2–4 weeks | 0.5–0.9 months |
What eats the clock
Where deals stall
Methodology + license
Ranges represent typical P25–P75 bands aggregated across public quarterly reports (IBBA Market Pulse, BizBuySell Insight Report) for the 2025–Q3 2026 window in the Main Street sub-$5M-revenue segment. This is a synthesis of publicly-available industry data, not proprietary research. Every row declares which primary sources most directly cover its data via the `sources` field. Multiples assume clean books, three years of accrual-basis financials, and no material owner-dependency concentration.
Prep-quality bands are practitioner-derived from working through both ends of the preparation-quality spectrum — well-prepped sellers with pre-executed QoE consistently compress each phase; poorly-prepped sellers repeatedly return to phase 1 mid-diligence to rebuild the data room. The width of the poor-prep band reflects the underlying variance in what specific issues surface.
Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International. Use, adapt, and republish in any format with attribution back to Your Exit Path.
Cite as
Business Sale Timeline Benchmarks (Your Exit Path, 2026). Retrieved from https://yourexitpath.com/data/business-sale-timeline. Licensed CC BY 4.0.
Topic cluster
The seller's playbook — from the decision to sell through choosing a broker, negotiating LOI, and closing.
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Check your prep
The Exit Readiness Score identifies which prep-quality band you're in today across five factors. If you're in the poor-prep column, most of the variance you'd add is preventable with 12-24 months of focused work.
