This page is about buying or selling a whole online business: a content site, an Amazon FBA brand, a KDP catalog, a SaaS product, an app, a YouTube channel or an online store. If you're looking for places to sell products, like Amazon or Etsy, this isn't that list.
Some comparisons of these marketplaces are written by one of the marketplaces, which may rank itself first. We don't broker deals and none of these companies pays us today. We read each one's own pricing pages and terms, wrote down the date, and did the math at four sale prices, so you can see dollars instead of percentages.
What changes your answer
- Your business nets less than $2,000 a month, averaged over the last 12 months? Empire Flippers' published screen rules it out today. That says nothing about what your business is worth. It only rules out one route.
- You're selling for less than about $66,667? Empire Flippers charges a flat $10,000 below that line. At $40,000, that's 25% of your price.
- You want someone else to run the sale? You want a broker-led route: Empire Flippers, Flippa's broker service (its pricing page shows it from $100,000 asking), Guided by Acquire (profitable SaaS with $100,000 or more in trailing-twelve-month revenue), FE International's advisory team or Quiet Light.
- You're buying? The first gate is often proof of money, not a subscription. Empire Flippers lets you unlock listings up to 1.5 times the funds you verify.
- Part of the price will be paid later? On Acquire.com, the fee on that later money is due at closing, before you've received it.
What you keep after fees at four sale prices
The same sale can leave you $30,000 or $39,801, depending on the route. Fees come in three shapes: a broker commission with a minimum, one rate for the whole price that changes by price band, or a flat listing fee. This table shows what each route's published fees leave you at four prices. It's a scenario, not a valuation.
| Route (alphabetical) | $40,000 sale | $150,000 sale | $400,000 sale | $1,200,000 sale | How the fee is built | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acquire.com (standard marketplace) | $36,725 | $137,925 | $371,850 | $1,127,700 | 8% of the whole price under $250,000, 7% from $250,000 to $1 million, 6% above; plus $25, $50 or $100 a month while listed (3 months counted here) | Provider published terms, Oct 24, 2026 (seller pricing) |
| Acquire.com (Guided by Acquire) | $37,600 | $141,000 | $376,000 | $1,128,000 | 6% at closing, no upfront fee. Only for profitable SaaS with $100,000+ trailing-twelve-month revenue | Provider published terms, Oct 24, 2026 (Guided by Acquire) |
| Empire Flippers | $30,000 | $127,500 | $340,000 | $1,055,000 | $10,000 flat up to $66,666.66; then 15% of the first $700,000, 8% from $700,000 to $5 million, 2.5% above. No listing fee | Provider published terms, Oct 24, 2026 (commission calculator, seller FAQ) |
| ExitBid | $39,801 | $149,801 | $399,801 | $1,199,801 | $199 one-time listing fee, 0% commission. You settle escrow and transfer with the buyer yourself | Provider published terms, Oct 24, 2026 (listing page) |
| FE International (self-serve marketplace) | $38,000 | $142,500 | $384,000 | $1,164,000 | 5% under $250,000, 4% from $250,000 to $1 million, 3% above, set by asking price | Provider published terms, Oct 24, 2026 (seller pricing). The tier is advertised by asking price; the fee applies to total transaction consideration under the platform terms. Whether a negotiated price change resets the tier: Not verified |
| FE International (advisory) | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published | Quoted per engagement | Not verified. Ask for a written quote |
| Flippa | $35,951 | $134,601 | $359,501 | $1,102,701 | Under $100,000 asking: 10% plus a self-service package ($49–$599 at this price; $49 used here). From $100,000, the pricing page shows broker service only: 10% down to 5% by price band, plus $399–$1,499 upfront | Provider published terms: every band in Flippa's pricing-page text, checked Oct 24, 2026 |
| Investors Club | $40,000 (DIY); $32,000–$38,000 (Full Service) | $150,000 (DIY); $120,000–$142,500 (Full Service) | $400,000 (DIY); $320,000–$380,000 (Full Service) | $1,200,000 (DIY); $960,000–$1,140,000 (Full Service) | DIY listing free, 0% success fee. Full Service 5–20%; individual rate requires a quote | Provider published terms, Oct 24, 2026 (seller page) |
| KeyQuire | $37,600 | $142,500 | $380,000 | $1,146,000 | 8% under $25,000, 6% to $100,000, 5% to $500,000, 4.5% to $2 million, 4% above. Free to list | Provider published terms, Oct 24, 2026 (homepage fee FAQ) |
| Microns.io | $36,800 | $141,000 | $376,000 | Not applicable | 10% from $1,000, 8% from $10,000, 6% from $100,000. Lists $1,000 to $1 million | Provider published terms, Oct 24, 2026 (sell your startup) |
| Motion Invest (marketplace) | $34,000 | $139,500 | $372,000 | $1,140,000 | Whole-price rates: 20% under $20k; 15% $20k–$50k; 10% $50k–$100k; 7% $100k–$500k; 5% above $500k. No listing fee | Provider published terms, Oct 24, 2026 (current seller page) |
| Quiet Light (published 2019 schedule) | $15,000 | $125,000 | $360,000 | $1,082,000 | $25,000 minimum; 10% of first $1M, 9% of next $1M, then 8%, 7%, 6%, 5%, 4% on successive $1M portions and 3% above $7M | Provider published terms, effective Jan 1, 2019; still linked from its official guide when checked Oct 24, 2026 (fee document). Confirm the current engagement |
Investors Club's Full Service figures show its published rate range, not a quote. Quiet Light's figures illustrate the dated schedule still linked from its official guide; neither calculation establishes acceptance at the illustrated price.
Assumptions: The asking price and final sale price both equal the amount shown, and the sale is all cash. No inventory sold separately. Acquire.com's monthly charge is counted for three months listed; yours will differ. Flippa's lowest package in the band is used unless noted. Amounts exclude optional add-ons, debt, tax, earnouts, legal and escrow costs. The scenarios do not establish that a provider would accept the business. A quote or signed agreement overrides any published schedule. These educational examples are not legal, tax or investment advice.
At an exact tier boundary, confirm the rate. Acquire.com's published wording differs at $250,000 and $1 million; FE International's differs at $1 million. Motion Invest's printed bands overlap at $20,000, $50,000, $100,000 and $500,000. The four examples avoid those boundaries.
Three things a percentage hides
1. The $66,667 line. Empire Flippers' own seller FAQ lists a flat $10,000 commission for sales up to $66,666.66. Below that line you're not paying 15%. At $50,000 you're paying 20%. At $40,000, 25%. If your business is small, that one number decides the route.
2. Between $100,000 and $499,999, Flippa's broker rate is 10% and Empire Flippers' is 15%. On a $400,000 sale, that's $19,501 more in your pocket with Flippa's broker package. That's real money. So is the difference in what each one does for you, which is the next section.
3. Some fees have cliffs. Acquire.com sets the final rate by the final price. Say you ask $260,000, which falls in the 7% tier, and accept $245,000, which falls in the 8% tier. At $260,000 you'd keep $241,800. At $245,000 you keep $225,400. A $15,000 price cut costs you $16,400. Flippa's bands make the same shape at $500,000: on its pricing page, a $499,000 sale costs $50,399 and a $501,000 sale costs $45,989. Ask Flippa whether your asking or final price sets the band. Empire Flippers' rates are layered, so its fee has no cliff.
Is a 15% broker worth it? The price it has to beat
A higher fee pays for itself only if the broker gets you a higher price, saves a deal that would otherwise die, or saves you work you'd value at more than the gap. Here's how much more an Empire Flippers sale must bring to leave you what the cheaper routes leave at $400,000.
| Route | You keep at $400,000 | Empire Flippers price needed to keep the same | How much higher |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flippa broker service | $359,501 | $422,942 | 5.7% |
| Acquire.com standard (3 months listed) | $371,850 | $437,471 | 9.4% |
| Guided by Acquire (if you qualify) | $376,000 | $442,353 | 10.6% |
| FE International self-serve | $384,000 | $451,765 | 12.9% |
We have no data showing any broker gets a higher price, and nobody should promise you one. So make the call on the other two questions. Will the deal actually close? And what's your time worth? If you've never sold anything, a deal that closes at 15% beats one that dies at 4%. If you've sold before, your books are clean and you're comfortable talking to buyers, the lower-fee routes start to earn their place.
If your 12-month average net profit is $2,000 a month or more and you want a broker to run the sale and the handover, start with Empire Flippers' published requirements. If you're under that line, or you'd rather run the sale yourself, Flippa's pricing page shows the package for your price band.
Check Empire Flippers' listing requirements
These are ordinary links to the providers' own pages. None of our referral links is active today (affiliate disclosure).
How to compare online business marketplaces in four questions
Ask four questions, in this order: who runs the sale, do you meet the published screen, what's left after the fee, and what work stays with you. The order matters. A low fee on a route you don't qualify for, or can't run yourself, is worth nothing.
1. Who runs the sale?
Pick the kind of help before the brand. Three of the four big names sell two different services under one logo, so "I'm listing on Acquire" or "I'm using Flippa" doesn't tell you who will do the work.
| Route | Who does the work | Examples (checked Oct 24, 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Broker or adviser support | The service helps prepare the listing, assess buyers, negotiate and plan the handover. The exact division of work varies; you supply records, answers and decisions | Empire Flippers; Flippa's broker service (from $100,000 asking); Guided by Acquire (qualifying SaaS); FE International advisory; Quiet Light |
| Assisted marketplace | You lead the sale. Listing tools, NDAs (non-disclosure agreements), documents, payment arrangements and transfer help vary by service | Acquire.com standard; FE International self-serve; Microns.io; KeyQuire |
| Self-service marketplace | You write the listing, answer buyers, negotiate and transfer everything | Flippa under $100,000 asking; Investors Club DIY |
| Auction | Buyers bid for a set window. You settle with the winner yourself | ExitBid (5-day auction) |
| Direct buyer | The platform buys the business itself. Compare the actual cash offer with marketplace proceeds | Motion Invest direct offer (no listing or success fee) |
| Known buyer | A competitor, partner or customer you already know. No platform fee; you handle every step, usually with a lawyer and an escrow service | None |
Escrow means a third party holds the buyer's money until agreed release conditions are met. Check who holds the money and what must happen before it is released; independent escrow and a broker holding funds are different arrangements. On some routes, you're the one who sets it up.
2. Do you meet the published screen?
Several routes look at your last 12 months. If your chosen route needs that history and you don't have the records, your exit starts with bookkeeping.
| Route | What it publishes | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Empire Flippers | Average net profit of $2,000 a month over 12 months; 12 months of revenue; analytics installed 3+ months; ad and affiliate sites on the same domain 12 months; some niches restricted | Listing requirements |
| Flippa broker service | 12 months of steady monthly net profit (6 months of monetization for YouTube); 12 months of trading history; 12 months of financials. Says it may still consider a business that isn't yet profitable if growth or customers make it attractive | Pricing page |
| Guided by Acquire | Profitable SaaS with at least $100,000 in trailing-twelve-month (TTM) revenue | Guided by Acquire |
| Acquire.com standard | No number published. Listings are approved before going live; since April 2025 it says it accepts profitable online businesses of most kinds, not only SaaS | Acquire blog, Apr 7, 2025 |
| Investors Club | At least $30 a month in average revenue over 12 months; 12 months of verifiable revenue and traffic; ethical niche | Sellers FAQ |
| Microns.io | Profitable, at least 5 months old, with paying customers; asking price $1,000 to $1 million | Sell your startup |
| ExitBid | Moderation review; accepts SaaS, ecommerce, Shopify apps, mobile apps, games, newsletters, browser extensions, bots, AI tools, dev tools and agencies. Content sites, KDP and YouTube aren't on its list | Listing page |
| KeyQuire | Says no revenue minimum; identity, listing and offer requirements still apply | Homepage, terms |
| FE International, Motion Invest, Quiet Light | No universal numeric earnings/history screen established in the pages we checked | Not verified |
Net profit is not revenue. Net profit is what's left after every cost: tools, contractors, ads, platform fees, refunds. A site with $5,000 a month in revenue and $3,200 in costs nets $1,800. That's below Empire Flippers' line even though the revenue looks well over it.
Failing a screen means that route doesn't fit yet. It doesn't mean your business is worthless. And meeting a screen means you may meet the published criteria. Only the provider decides whether to take you.
3. What's left after the fee?
Among percentage fees, there are two shapes. Empire Flippers and Quiet Light's published schedule layer their rates: each slice of the price has its own rate, so there's no cliff. Flippa, Acquire.com, FE International, Microns.io, Motion Invest and KeyQuire use one rate for the whole price, set by the band you're in, so crossing a line can change your fee by thousands. The money table shows both at four prices.
4. What work stays with you?
Check the work included as carefully as the fee. On a DIY route, you answer the buyers, arrange settlement and move the accounts yourself. The next table shows what each of the big routes takes off your plate.
Seven routes from the four big names: who each suits
Acquire.com, Empire Flippers, FE International and Flippa offer several ways to sell, and three of them run two different services. Pick the service, not the logo. Here's who each route suits, who it doesn't, how the fee works and what stays with you.
| Route | Suits you if | Wrong for you if | Published screen | Fee | What they say they do | What stays with you |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acquire.com standard | You'll talk to buyers and negotiate yourself, and want NDAs, a data room, document builders and escrow in one place | You want someone else to negotiate | No universal numeric screen published; listings approved first | 8% / 7% / 6% of the whole price by tier, plus $25 / $50 / $100 a month while listed | Customer support, buyer access controls, deal tools | The listing, buyer talks, negotiation, the handover. Its terms say it does no diligence on buyers or sellers |
| Guided by Acquire | You run profitable SaaS with $100,000+ TTM revenue and want an advisor to help through the process | You're not SaaS, or under $100,000 revenue | $100,000+ TTM revenue, profitable SaaS | 6% at closing, only if it sells; no upfront fee | Marketing, buyer vetting, offer review, data room, due-diligence prep, escrow connection, asset transfer plan, advisor support to close | Accurate records, decisions, running the business until handover |
| Empire Flippers | You net $2,000+ a month, want a broker to handle buyers, negotiation and migration, and your price is well above $66,667 | You're under the screen, selling small, or want to list in several places at once | $2,000/month average net profit over 12 months, plus history rules | $10,000 flat up to $66,666.66; then 15% / 8% / 2.5% layered; no listing fee; inventory not charged | Vetting against its requirements, buyer communication, negotiation, migration (moving the business's accounts and assets to the buyer); holds the buyer's money during the handover | Records, at least two months of exclusivity, answering buyer questions on smaller listings, keeping the business running |
| FE International self-serve | You run a tech business, want a private listing behind an NDA, and will run the deal yourself | You need someone to negotiate for you | None published | 5% / 4% / 3% tiers advertised by asking price, applied to total transaction consideration; confirm repricing treatment | Listing tools, screened buyers, a customer success manager | Diligence, negotiation and closing |
| FE International advisory | You want a team to prepare financials and sale documents and run a tech-business sale | You need a published fee without requesting a quote | Not published | Not published | Financial prep by in-house accountants and analysts, sale memorandum, buyer outreach, transaction support | Disclosure, decisions, running the business |
| Flippa self-service (under $100,000 asking) | You'll run your own sale and want a large buyer audience | You want help with buyers or the transfer | No number for listing | 10% success fee plus a package: $29 to $699 depending on band and package | Listing exposure and package features | Everything: listing, buyers, negotiation, transfer |
| Flippa broker service (from $100,000 asking) | You have 12 months of profit and records and want a broker at a lower rate than 15% | You can't show 12 months of financials | 12 months steady net profit (6 months for YouTube), 12-month history, financials | 10% ($100,000–$499,999), 9%, 8%, 7%, 6%, down to 5% ($50 million+), plus $399–$1,499 upfront for a 6-month term; upfront fit-assessment refund policy, not a no-sale guarantee | A named broker, buyer screening, negotiation, deal structure, coordinating the legal close | Records, answers, decisions, running the business; exclusivity and post-removal restrictions in its terms |
Acquire.com: two different deals under one name
The standard marketplace is for founders who will do the talking. It started as a SaaS marketplace and since April 2025 says it accepts profitable online businesses of most kinds. Know your tier before you list, because the final price sets the rate. Guided by Acquire is a different product: an advisor-led sale at 6% for profitable SaaS with $100,000 or more in trailing-twelve-month revenue, with nothing upfront. If you qualify for Guided, it's cheaper than the standard marketplace at every price in our table and an advisor helps through the process. One thing to know about both: Acquire's terms leave technical, legal and financial due diligence to users, while its seller page describes identity and funds checks. Those are different checks; buyer vetting does not replace diligence.
Empire Flippers: worth its fee when you'd otherwise run the sale and handover alone
Empire Flippers is a full broker. It holds the buyer's money while the business moves over, handles negotiation, and takes no commission on separately priced inventory. You give it at least two months of exclusivity. The fee hurts in two places: under $66,667, where the $10,000 minimum applies, and between $100,000 and $499,999, where Flippa's broker service charges 10% to its 15%. Above $700,000 its layered rate drops to 8% on the next slice, so a $1.2 million sale pays 12.1% in total. Don't expect to stay out of buyer conversations entirely. Its buying-process page says buyers on listings under $300,000 can question sellers directly on the platform, and its seller FAQ draws the line for calls at $100,000. Those are different contact formats, so ask how questions and calls will work for your listing.
FE International: private, screened, tech-focused, and half of it unpriced
FE runs two things. The self-serve marketplace publishes its rate, 5% down to 3%, and keeps listings private behind an NDA. The advisory service doesn't publish a fee, so treat that cost as unknown until you have it in writing. Buyer membership is free. If you're a SaaS founder who can negotiate, FE self-serve is the lowest published rate among the big four at every price in our table.
Flippa: two products, and the line between them is $100,000
Under $100,000 asking, Flippa is a self-service marketplace: 10% plus a package from $29 to $699. From $100,000, its pricing page shows only its broker service: 10% falling to 5% as the price rises, plus $399 to $1,499 paid upfront for a six-month term. Its broker pricing promises an upfront fit assessment and refund if it cannot identify a suitable buyer-and-price fit; it does not promise a refund simply because the business never sells. Its terms separately cover listing-fee refunds for early withdrawal or no qualified buyer contact within 30 days. Flippa also publishes historical median closing times (see timing). For buyers it has a wide range, and plenty of homework.
If you run SaaS and plan to handle buyers yourself, start with Acquire.com's seller pricing to see your tier. If you're profitable SaaS with $100,000 or more in trailing-twelve-month revenue and want an advisor instead, check Guided by Acquire. If a private, NDA-first listing matters more than audience size, compare FE International's marketplace pricing or ask about its advisory service.
See Acquire.com's seller pricing
Six smaller marketplaces that fill specific gaps
The big four don't cover every deal. These six fill specific holes: very small sites, free listings, auctions, micro-SaaS and advisor-led content sales. All facts below are from each company's own pages, checked October 24, 2026.
| Marketplace | Best fit | The catch | Seller fee | Exclusivity or auction term | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ExitBid | SaaS, apps, extensions, bots, newsletters; sellers who want a fixed auction window without a percentage commission | You settle escrow and the transfer with the winning bidder yourself; content sites, KDP and YouTube aren't named on its listing form | $199 one-time; 0% commission; optional hidden reserve price | 5-day auction; exclusivity not established | Provider published terms (listing page) |
| Investors Club | Small sites of most kinds; sellers who want a free listing and no exclusivity | DIY means you do the work; Full Service rate is a range | DIY: free, 0%. Full Service: 5–20% | DIY: none. Full Service: exclusive | Provider published terms, Oct 24, 2026 (seller page) |
| KeyQuire | Sellers chasing a low published rate who are fine with a newer platform | It says itself that it's newer and smaller than Flippa; its comparison page ranks itself first | 8% under $25,000, falling to 4% over $2 million; free to list | Not published | Provider published terms (comparison page, SaaS seller page) |
| Microns.io | Profitable micro-SaaS, apps and newsletters from $1,000 to $1 million with paying customers | Pre-revenue and unprofitable projects excluded; nothing over $1 million | 10% / 8% / 6% by price; no listing fee | Not published | Provider published terms (sell your startup) |
| Motion Invest | Content sites and YouTube channels; owners who want sale and transfer support or a direct offer | Compare a direct cash offer with marketplace proceeds; admission still requires review | Marketplace: 20%, 15%, 10%, 7% or 5% by sale-price band; no listing fee. Direct offer: no listing or success fee | Older official pages say 30 or 31 days; confirm the current agreement | Provider published terms, Oct 24, 2026 (current fees, 31-day article); older help source says 30 days |
| Quiet Light | Owners who want an advisor-led sale | The published schedule is dated 2019; confirm the current engagement | Progressive 10% on first $1M, falling to 3% above $7M; $25,000 minimum | 90 days in the published 2019 document; confirm the current engagement | Provider published terms (official guide, fee document); checked Oct 24, 2026 |
ExitBid charges a flat $199 rather than a percentage of the sale. The catch is real. On ExitBid, you arrange settlement and the account transfers with the buyer, and the five-day clock suits businesses that are easy to understand fast.
Investors Club is the only route we found that publishes both a free, non-exclusive DIY option and a paid full-service option. For a $40,000 site, DIY keeps the whole price; Full Service costs $2,000 to $8,000.
KeyQuire publishes low rates, 6% at $40,000 and 5% at $400,000, and a mobile app built around fast offers. It's newer. Weigh the rate against how many buyers you need to reach.
Microns.io suits small software and app sellers. At $150,000 its 6% tier leaves you $141,000. It stops at $1 million.
Motion Invest is built for content sites and YouTube channels. Its published marketplace fee runs from 20% under $20,000 to 5% above $500,000. It also describes direct purchases with no listing or success fee; compare the actual offer with marketplace proceeds.
Quiet Light is an advisor-led broker paid only on a sale. Its official guide links a published progressive fee schedule with a $25,000 minimum. The schedule is dated 2019, so confirm the fee in the engagement before committing.
The sale price is not your closing-day bank balance
Two deals at the same price can put very different money in your account on closing day. What's paid later, when the fee is due, and whether inventory is priced separately all change the number. Here are two fictional examples and the published rules for deferred payments.
A few terms first. An earnout is money paid later only if the business hits targets. A seller note is money the buyer owes you and pays over time, like a loan you made them. A holdback is part of the price held back for a set time in case problems show up, then released if they don't.
Example 1: a $100,000 Acquire.com sale with $30,000 paid later
User assumption: fictional deal, standard Acquire.com marketplace, under $250,000 so the rate is 8%.
| Part of the deal | Amount | When you get it |
|---|---|---|
| Cash at closing | $70,000 | Closing |
| Seller note | $20,000 | Over time, if the buyer pays |
| Holdback | $10,000 | Later, if conditions are met |
| Total price | $100,000 | |
| Acquire.com closing fee, 8% of the full $100,000 | −$8,000 | Due at closing |
| Cash in your hand at closing | $62,000 | Closing |
| Listing charges already paid (3 months × $25) | $75 | Paid earlier; don't subtract twice |
| Most you'll ever receive after these charges | $91,925 | Only if every later dollar arrives |
Acquire's terms count earnouts, notes and holdbacks as paid to you at closing for fee purposes, and the fee on them is due at closing (buyer and seller terms, last modified March 18, 2026). So $2,400 of that $8,000 fee is on money you haven't received. If the $10,000 holdback is never released, you've still paid $800 on it. The terms we read don't describe a refund for that. Ask before you sign.
How Empire Flippers takes its fee when money arrives later
Empire Flippers says it receives its commission as you receive payments from the buyer (referral program FAQ). Its terms add one rule: the $10,000 flat portion is due in full when money is first released, even if part of the price comes later (terms of use, effective November 8, 2025). If the buyer cannot send the full payment upfront, Empire Flippers says they can send a down payment of at least 10% or $9,900, whichever is greater; it typically expects the full upfront payment within seven business days. Empire Flippers holds the money while the business moves over (buying process). Ask for the payment schedule and release conditions in writing.
Example 2: inventory priced separately
User assumption: fictional Amazon FBA sale through Empire Flippers, everything paid upfront.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Business price | $100,000 |
| Inventory, priced separately | $20,000 |
| Empire Flippers commission on the business (15%) | −$15,000 |
| Commission on the inventory | $0 |
| What you have after commission, before other costs and tax | $105,000 |
Empire Flippers' terms define the purchase price without inventory, and its referral FAQ says it collects no commission on ecommerce inventory. Don't assume the same for another route. No separate inventory exclusion was verified for Flippa, Acquire.com or FE International. Their fee definitions cover total transaction consideration, so don't assume separately priced stock is exempt; confirm the applicable agreement.
Pick by your situation: eight matched decisions
Find the row that looks like you. Each one runs our Deal Decision Check: your requirement, the published evidence, the rule, the finding and the next step. A route that fails one decisive check is marked "does not fit," however good the rest looks.
The situations are fictional (User assumption). Provider evidence was checked October 24, 2026.
| Your situation | Evidence and rule | Finding | Next step |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Content site netting $1,500 a month on average, 18 months old, hoping for about $40,000, wants help selling | Empire Flippers' screen is $2,000; $1,500 is below it. Flippa shows only self-service packages under $100,000. Investors Club Full Service charges 5–20%; Motion Invest's marketplace rate is 15% at this $40,000 scenario price, or it may make a separate direct offer | Empire Flippers: does not fit. Flippa broker: not applicable at this price. Investors Club and Motion Invest: unresolved until they review it | Want help: ask Investors Club or Motion Invest for terms. Running it yourself: Flippa self-service (10% plus $49–$599) or Investors Club DIY (free). Or grow the 12-month average to at least $2,000 and revisit Empire Flippers |
| 2. Amazon FBA brand averaging $9,000 in monthly net profit over 12 months, 2 years old, about $400,000 plus $60,000 of inventory, wants a broker | Empire Flippers: $60,000 on the business, $0 on inventory. Flippa broker: $40,499 before any charge on the separately priced inventory; no inventory exclusion verified | Profit/history screen: supported by the stated evidence for considering both; acceptance remains open. Flippa inventory: unresolved | Request both valuations. Get inventory treatment and exclusivity in writing before you rely on the $19,501 business-only fee gap |
| 3. Profitable SaaS at $15,000 monthly recurring revenue and $180,000 in trailing-twelve-month revenue, about $400,000, wants an advisor | Guided by Acquire screens for $100,000+ TTM revenue: 6% = $24,000, no upfront fee. Acquire standard: $28,000 plus $50 a month. FE self-serve: 4% = $16,000, but you run it | Guided: supported by the stated evidence for asking. FE self-serve: does not fit the advisor requirement; its tier after a negotiated price change is unresolved | Check Guided by Acquire. If you'd rather run it yourself and pay less, confirm FE's applicable tier and fee base first |
| 4. iOS subscription app earning $3,000 a month, about $100,000 | Apple's eligible app transfer keeps ratings, reviews and the Bundle ID; auto-renewing subscriptions need an app-specific shared secret handled by both sides (Apple). Flippa broker at $100,000: $10,399. Microns.io: $6,000. ExitBid: $199, you run escrow | Apple's eligible-transfer process: supported by the stated evidence. This app's eligibility, backend, analytics and ad accounts: unresolved | Check Apple's transfer criteria for your app first. Then choose the service and fee that fit: broker help through Flippa, Microns.io's transfer service, or ExitBid's auction with settlement arranged by you |
| 5. KDP catalog averaging $2,500 in monthly net profit over 12 months, 14 months old | Empire Flippers' profit screen is met, and it lists KDP businesses. Flippa lists KDP businesses. How titles or accounts move to a buyer depends on Amazon | Empire Flippers' stated profit/history screen: supported by the stated evidence; may meet published criteria, not acceptance. Title transfer: unresolved | Confirm Amazon's current process for moving the titles before you list anywhere |
| 6. YouTube channel monetized for 8 months, $4,000 a month | Flippa's broker service asks for 6 months of monetization for YouTube. Empire Flippers asks for 12 months of revenue | Flippa's six-month monetization screen: supported by the stated evidence; full profit/history eligibility unresolved. Empire Flippers: does not fit yet | Check Flippa's selling options and clarify the remaining record requirements; revisit Empire Flippers after 12 months of revenue and a fresh profit-screen check |
| 7. First-time buyer with $60,000 cash, wants a content site | Empire Flippers unlocks listings up to 1.5 times verified funds: $90,000. Flippa is free to browse. A $60,000 purchase uses all $60,000 | Published unlock calculation: supported by the stated evidence, subject to ID/funds verification. Budget: unresolved until you plan for costs and a reserve | Work out your all-in cash first. A price that uses every dollar you have is a price you can't afford |
| 8. Operator with $500,000, buying SaaS | Acquire Premium covers only businesses up to $250,000 TTM revenue; Platinum, $780 a year, covers all sizes. Empire Flippers: verify about $333,334 to unlock a $500,000 listing. FE buyer membership: free | Published access options: supported by the stated evidence. Individual access remains unresolved until the applicable plan, verification and approval steps are complete | See Acquire.com's buyer plans and FE International's buyer membership |
If you're buying: what it costs to get in, what "verified" means, and the cash you really need
Among the annual buyer plans we verified, access ranges from free to $780 a year. The bigger gates are proving you have the money and understanding that no badge does your homework. Then there's the cash the asking price leaves out.
What it costs to get in
| Marketplace | To see full listings | Cost | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Acquire.com | Paid plan, seller approval and a mutual NDA to see private details | Basic free. Premium $390 a year (businesses up to $250,000 TTM revenue). Platinum $780 a year (all sizes) | Provider published terms (subscription terms, private access) |
| Empire Flippers | Verify your ID, then your funds (connect a US bank account or upload statements dated within three months). Unlock listings up to 1.5 times your verified funds | No fee stated for unlocking | Provider published terms (unlock, funds) |
| ExitBid | Registration | Buyer fees not stated | Not verified |
| FE International | Membership; private access follows its screening/NDA process | Free platform membership; separate professional services are not established as free | Provider published terms (buyer pricing) |
| Flippa | Free account. Premium speeds NDA access and gives the first 21 days of access to new listings valued above $10,000. Listings above $250,000 asking require Funds Verified access, subject to the legacy-buyer exception below | Free; Premium $49 a month or $490 a year. Payment: FlippaPay from 1%, Escrow.com from 1.2% | Provider published terms, Oct 24, 2026: pricing page, terms §§6.3, 14. An older help article (2019) gives FlippaPay from 0.5%: conflicting |
| Investors Club | Free account; new-listing seller contact delayed 7–14 days. Premium gives immediate contact and additional financial/URL details; some listings require NDA | Free; Premium $79/month or $390/year ($32.50/month billed annually). No buyer success fee | Provider published terms, Oct 24, 2026 (buyer page, Premium) |
| KeyQuire | Identity check; an earnest deposit for offers of $25,000+ (amount not stated) | Marketing advertises no buyer transaction fee; terms describe optional Pro subscriptions. Pro price and required scope: Not verified | Provider published terms, Oct 24, 2026 (SaaS seller page, terms); subscription descriptions differ |
| Microns.io | Free public details with a 5-day deal-flow delay; Premium adds private details and direct seller contact | Free; Premium $40/month or $299 per 12 months; no subscription refunds | Provider published terms, Oct 24, 2026 (pricing) |
| Motion Invest, Quiet Light | Not checked | Not verified | Not verified |
Acquire.com's paid plans renew automatically; cancellation does not produce a prorated refund (subscription terms). Microns.io also renews subscriptions until canceled and does not offer refunds (pricing). Check the billing period before paying for access.
Flippa's Funds Verified badge starts at $5,000 in qualifying assets; it does not show that a buyer can afford a particular business. Its terms allow buyers registered before April 1, 2022 who have purchase history to access listings priced at five times that history without the badge. Confidential listings still require the NDA (terms, §6.3).
The proof-of-funds rule that surprises first-time buyers. On Empire Flippers, verify $100,000 and you can unlock listings up to $150,000. To look at a $300,000 business, verify $200,000. To look at $500,000, verify about $333,334. Verifying funds lets you see a listing. It isn't a loan approval, and it doesn't mean you can afford the business plus the cash it needs to run.
What "verified" actually covers
A verification label answers one narrow question. Read what's behind it before you lean on it.
| Provider | What its own pages and terms say | What that leaves to you |
|---|---|---|
| Acquire.com | Terms: it does no technical, legal or financial due diligence on buyers or sellers, isn't responsible for a seller's truthfulness, and its AI due-diligence checklist isn't comprehensive (terms, Mar 18, 2026) | All of it |
| Empire Flippers | Screens businesses against its listing requirements. Terms: it does not independently verify a business's expenses, and the buyer is responsible for investigating (terms) | Expenses, owner work, transfer risk, the future |
| FE International | Self-serve buyers are screened through its network; advisory is a separate signed engagement (seller pricing, platform terms) | Your own diligence on self-serve listings |
| Flippa | "Data Verified": the seller connected read-only data from tools like Google Analytics, Shopify or Stripe. "Vetted by Flippa": for listings of $50,000 or more, a manual review of revenue, primary expenses and traffic (help article) | Profit after every cost, owner hours, ownership, transfer, the future |
Ask which claims were checked, against which records, for which months. "Verified" by itself is too small an answer. And notice what none of these pages say they check: the owner's real hours.
| The listing claims | Ask for | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue is real | Read-only access to the sales source, plus processor or payout reports matched to bank deposits for the same months | Whether sales turn into money after fees, refunds and timing |
| Profit is complete | Monthly profit and loss statements (P&L), invoices, every subscription, contractor and ad cost | Which costs are missing |
| The owner barely works | A task list with hours, who does each task, and what they're paid | What you'll do yourself or pay someone to do |
| Everything transfers | A list of every account, license, contract and supplier, and how each one moves | What you can legally and practically keep running |
| Growth is healthy | Revenue by customer or product, traffic by source and page, month by month | Whether one dependency is carrying the business |
The cash you need beyond the price
Buying a business and being able to run it are two different cash needs. This is the same fictional example as on our homepage, so the two pages agree. Every amount is a User assumption, not a typical cost.
| Item | Amount | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Business price | $180,000 | The business, not the stock |
| Inventory bought at handover | $25,000 | Opening stock, counted once |
| Transaction costs | $6,000 | Legal review, escrow, accounting, access fees. Replace with real quotes; an unknown fee doesn't hide inside this number |
| Working capital | $15,000 | Cash for ads, later reorders, contractors and software; excludes the opening stock and reserve already counted |
| Reserve | $20,000 | Money kept for a bad month or a platform problem. Not spent at closing |
| Capital to have available | $246,000 | $66,000 more than the price |
Then check what the business pays you. Say this business makes $6,000 a month after every recorded cost, but the seller does the customer emails and ad tweaks for free. If you do that work yourself, operating cash is $6,000 before tax, debt, reinvestment and working-capital changes. If you pay someone an assumed $2,000 a month to do it, that leaves $4,000 before those same demands. Don't subtract staff who are already in the books a second time.
| If you… | Monthly amount, before tax, debt, reinvestment and working-capital changes |
|---|---|
| Do the seller's unpaid work yourself | $6,000 |
| Pay someone else to do it | −$2,000 |
| What's left after replacing your time | $4,000 |
If the deal only works when your time costs nothing, you're buying a job. That can still be a good deal. Just call it what it is.
A working record you can copy
Here's what a checked claim looks like, filled in for a fictional SaaS business. It's the record we'd keep before choosing where to buy or how to sell. Print it, copy it, use the same five columns for your own deal.
| Claim | Source and period | Reconciled result | Still open | Finding |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue is $10,000 a month | Processor receipts for one month, matched to the bank | $10,000 for that month | The other 11 months | Supported by the stated evidence, for one month only |
| Profit is $6,000 a month | P&L shows $4,000 in costs; a separate invoice shows a $500 support contractor missing from the P&L | $10,000 − $4,000 − $500 = $5,500 | Any other missing costs? | Conflicting with the claimed $6,000 |
| The owner's work can be replaced for $2,000 a month | Seller's task list and the buyer's budget, not a quote | $5,500 − $2,000 = $3,500 provisional | A real quote for that work | Unresolved |
| The software and API rights transfer | Asset list doesn't mention licenses or the API provider's terms | No conclusion | The API terms and a test setup under the buyer's account | Unresolved |
| No inventory | Software-only business | No stock line | Confirm the asset list | Not applicable |
| "AI will add $600 a month" | A proposed workflow | Left out of historical profit | A real test | Unresolved |
The next step here isn't a different marketplace. It's fixing the earnings and transfer record. No platform can supply the missing facts.
If your budget covers the price and the cash the business needs to run, pick the source that fits your model and how much help you want. Flippa has a wide range and expects you to do the checking. Empire Flippers provides broker support, with direct seller questions on smaller listings once you've unlocked them (marketplace). Acquire.com suits SaaS and startup buyers who'll deal with founders directly (buyer plans). If you've only budgeted the asking price, finish the capital plan first.
Browse online businesses on Flippa
Field Notes: what the listing leaves out, model by model
The marketplace finds the buyer or the business. The business model decides what Monday morning looks like after the sale. These notes cover what each kind of listing tends to skip, what can break once the seller leaves, and what to check before you choose where to buy or sell. Six come from building and running that type of business; the Shopify note is research-based. None describes buying or selling a business through these marketplaces, which we haven't done. Longer notes on running each model are on our homepage.
Content and affiliate sites
Operator experience.
The listing shows monthly profit, traffic and "two hours a week." What it rarely shows is revenue by page. On the content sites we've built, money bunches up on a small set of pages and a few affiliate programs, so a site can lose half its income without losing half its traffic. Ask for earnings by page and by program, not traffic totals.
The work you don't see is upkeep: refreshing the pages that earn so they keep ranking, fixing dead offers, swapping links when a program changes terms. Skip that upkeep and the "passive" site stops being one.
What breaks after the sale is usually something nobody did wrong: a search update, an affiliate program cutting its rate, or AI answers taking the click (see AI). What doesn't transfer cleanly: affiliate accounts. Check each program's transfer rules and every tracking link. Amazon requires prior written approval to assign its Associates agreement. Rankings come with the domain, but nothing guarantees they stay.
Where to sell or buy one: Empire Flippers and Flippa list content sites at most sizes; Motion Invest and Investors Club are built for smaller ones. ExitBid's listing form does not name content sites; confirm whether yours fits before paying. More on running a content site.
Amazon FBA
Operator experience.
The listing shows revenue, margin and review counts. What matters as much is cash: how much sits in stock, in transit and on order, and whether the price includes it. Empire Flippers prices inventory separately and doesn't take commission on it. Other routes set their own fee bases, so ask.
The week is reorders, ad bids, supplier quality and account health. The profit line can look fine while the next purchase order eats every dollar it made. Ask for ad spend as a share of sales, month by month, and a live look at the account health page. A screenshot alone doesn't verify the figures.
What breaks it: an Amazon policy action, a listing suppression, or a single supplier running late and causing a stockout. How the seller account itself moves is set by Amazon's current rules, so confirm that before you agree a price. Trademarks move by assignment; Brand Registry has to follow. More on the work behind an FBA business.
KDP catalogs
Operator experience.
A listing sells you a title count and a royalty number. The truth sits in the title-level report. In catalogs like the ones we've built, a few titles carry the royalties and the rest are filler. Ask for royalties by title, by month, with ad spend beside each one.
Check the rights to every cover, interior image and manuscript. Licensed is not owned. And ask whether AI-generated content was disclosed to Amazon when each title was published, because KDP requires it (KDP content guidelines) and the account carries that history.
The biggest open question is transfer: titles live in the publisher's account. Confirm Amazon's current process for moving them before you list or buy. Empire Flippers and Flippa both list KDP businesses. More on running a publishing catalog.
SaaS
Operator experience.
The listing shows monthly recurring revenue (MRR), growth and a "low-maintenance codebase." Ask instead: how is revenue spread across customers, why do customers cancel, and who understands the code? A SaaS product is a promise to keep software working. Someone has to keep that promise after the founder leaves.
The week is support tickets, failed payments, security patches, integrations that break when another company changes something, and the feature work that stops customers from leaving. Support load grows with every customer.
What doesn't transfer easily: the payment processor account and customers' saved cards, API keys tied to the seller, and whatever is only in the founder's head. Acquire.com, Guided by Acquire, FE International and Microns.io are built around software. More on the work behind recurring software revenue.
iOS subscription apps
Operator experience. Apple's rules: Provider published terms, checked October 24, 2026.
The listing shows downloads, ratings and trial conversion. What matters is renewal after the first billing period and what it costs to win each subscriber. A spike in trials doesn't prove the subscribers will stay.
The good news on transfer: Apple has a formal app-transfer process. An eligible app transfer keeps its ratings, reviews and Bundle ID, and users keep getting updates. Auto-renewing subscriptions need an app-specific shared secret that the seller and buyer coordinate before the transfer (Apple). What Apple doesn't move: your backend servers, third-party analytics and subscription tools, and ad accounts. Those are separate handovers. Flippa, Microns.io and ExitBid all take apps. More on running a subscription app.
YouTube channels
Operator experience.
The listing shows subscribers, views and ad revenue. The real question: does the audience follow the topic, the format, or the person on camera? If it's the person, the income may leave with them.
The week is ideas, scripts, filming, editing, thumbnails and sponsors. Ask who does each part, and what they're paid. Sponsors usually sign with a person, not a channel.
What breaks it: a change in what YouTube recommends, or a monetization policy. YouTube's "inauthentic content" rule covers mass-produced or repetitive videos and applies to the whole channel (YouTube monetization policies). Flippa's broker service publishes a six-month monetization minimum, alongside its other record requirements; Empire Flippers asks for twelve months of revenue; Motion Invest lists channels. More on the work behind a YouTube channel.
Shopify and ecommerce stores
Research-based. Drawn from Shopify's documentation, not from running a store.
The listing shows sales, conversion rate and the email list. Ask what each customer costs to win through ads, and what share of sales depends on paid traffic. If most sales come from ads or most products from one supplier, a change in either can erase the margin.
Shopify can move store ownership, but a store using Shopify Capital or Shopify Credit can't be transferred, and Shopify Balance has to be emptied and Shopify Support contacted first. Payouts, billing and the payment provider all have to be switched to the new owner (Shopify). Apps, ad accounts and supplier terms each move on their own terms. More on ecommerce stock, ads and handover.
Five things we'd tell a friend before they pick a marketplace
Operator experience.
- A business that lives on one platform is a lease, not a deed. Google, Amazon, Apple and YouTube can change the rules on a Tuesday. Price the landlord, not just the tenant.
- The 12-month average hides the direction. A business that peaked nine months ago can still pass a 12-month screen. Ask for every month, side by side.
- "Low owner hours" is the number nobody checks. None of the marketplace pages we read says it verifies hours. Ask for the task list, who does each task, and what they're paid.
- The cheapest route is the one where the deal actually closes. A 0% listing that never sells costs you the months. A broker who closes cleanly can be the cheaper path.
- Your exit starts 12 months before you list. Empire Flippers, Flippa's broker service and Investors Club all look at 12 months. Clean books now are worth more than a better marketplace later.
How AI helps and hurts the business you're buying or selling
AI is making some online businesses cheaper to run and others easier to copy, and Google users click less often when an AI summary appears. Before you buy or sell, test both sides with the business's own records. Don't pay for savings or growth that only exist in a pitch.
The table is our analysis: mechanisms to check, not a forecast.
| Model | Where AI can help | Where AI can hurt | Records that settle it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Content and affiliate | Faster research, editing and page updates | People get the answer without visiting; generic articles are easy to copy | Search clicks by page and engine, earnings per visit, how many pages earn |
| SaaS and iOS apps | Coding help, support triage | A narrow feature becomes easy to rebuild; AI service bills can eat margin | Cancellation reasons, renewal rates, cost to serve each customer |
| KDP | Editing and production help | More competing titles; rights and disclosure problems | Royalties by title, rights records, AI disclosures made |
| YouTube | Editing, captions, research | Templated, repetitive output risks monetization | How videos are made, earnings by video, monetization history |
| FBA and Shopify | Ad creative tests, support drafts | Every competitor has the same tools, so they're not an edge | Return rates, profit after ads, reorder costs |
The clicks problem is measurable. In March 2025 browsing data from 900 U.S. adults, Pew Research Center found people clicked a regular search result on 8% of Google visits that showed an AI summary, and on 15% of visits that didn't. About 1% of visits with a summary led to a click inside it (Pew Research, July 22, 2025; Third-party report). Buying a content site? Ask for a search-console export and see how much traffic comes from "what is" and "how to" questions versus "best," "compare" and "buy" searches. Selling one? Show that split before the buyer asks. It's the first question a careful buyer has now.
Two platform rules, kept narrow. KDP requires publishers to disclose AI-generated text, images or translations; work you wrote and only edited with AI doesn't need disclosure. YouTube's "inauthentic content" rule targets mass-produced or repetitive videos. Neither is a ban on AI.
Screenshots alone aren't verification. A convincing revenue screenshot can be fabricated. Insist on read-only connected data or a live screen-share of the real account. And keep two kinds of AI apart: the AI a marketplace uses (Flippa's pricing page describes AI that drafts sale documents and scores buyers; Acquire offers an AI due-diligence checklist its own terms say isn't comprehensive) and the AI the business uses. Better deal tools don't make the numbers inside the documents true.
| Proposed change (User assumption) | Monthly amount |
|---|---|
| Contractor cost actually removed | +$1,500 |
| AI tools added | −$300 |
| Human checking added | −$600 |
| Possible saving | $600 |
That $600 is real only if a paid cost goes away and the quality and revenue hold. Saving the owner's unpaid hours frees time; it doesn't add cash profit. Sellers: don't price your business on savings you haven't tested. Buyers: don't pay the seller for an improvement you'll have to make yourself. If you can find it, it's your upside.
How long a sale takes, and what exclusivity costs you
Published timing figures cover different stages and groups of deals. Flippa reports a median of 15 days for sales under $50,000, 49 days for $50,000 to $250,000, and 73 days above $250,000, for businesses sold in 2023. Its FAQ does not give the sample count or describe unsuccessful listings. Exclusivity matters just as much, because it decides whether you can try another route while you wait.
| Route | Exclusivity or term | Timing they publish | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Empire Flippers | At least two months; exclusivity continues while listed | No dated, defined payment-time sample established; confirm the release schedule | Provider published terms (seller FAQ, terms) |
| ExitBid | 5-day auction | Listing review up to 24 hours | Provider published terms (listing page) |
| Flippa | Broker package: six-month term. Terms require exclusivity from $25,000 asking or reserve and describe restrictions after removal: 90 days up to $100,000; 180 days above | Medians above cover businesses sold in 2023; sample count not disclosed | Provider published terms (pricing page, terms §10, updated Oct 22, 2026) |
| Investors Club | DIY: none. Full Service: exclusive | Review about 36 hours | Provider published terms (sellers FAQ) |
| Motion Invest | Older official pages say 30 or 31 days; current term unresolved | Advertised averages lack a dated, defined sample suitable for this comparison | Provider published terms (current seller page, 31-day article); older help source says 30 days |
| Quiet Light | 90 days in its published 2019 document; confirm the current engagement | No current comparable closing-time sample established | Provider published terms (fee document); effective Jan 1, 2019, checked Oct 24, 2026 |
| Acquire.com, FE International, KeyQuire, Microns.io | No current exclusivity term established from the inspected pages | No comparable dated closing-time sample established | Not verified |
Exclusivity is a cost that never shows up in the fee table. Two months exclusive with nothing sold is two months gone. If you use non-exclusive routes, you can list in more than one place, but keep the price and numbers identical everywhere. Buyers compare.
A sale also moves through separate milestones, and each one can stall: accepted for listing, buyer access, offer, diligence and documents, payment into escrow, transfer of accounts, release of money, then any later payments. On Empire Flippers, for example, a seller can circulate an accepted below-list-price offer for 24 hours. Competing offers must be at least 10% higher, capped at the list price (buying process, terms). Ask what has to happen before each step and who's responsible for it.
What to ask before you pay or sign
Get the service, the charges and the work in writing. Fast listing doesn't mean fast payment, and a helpful support team isn't the same as someone agreeing to do a task for you.
- Which service am I buying, and who is assigned to my sale?
- What do I pay now, what renews, and what's due if it sells?
- Is the fee charged on inventory, a seller note, an earnout, a holdback, debt the buyer takes on, or pay for my help after the sale? When is each part due?
- Which tasks do you do, which do I do, and what costs extra?
- What becomes public, who can see more, and what NDA rules apply?
- How long is exclusivity, and do I owe you anything if I sell to a buyer you introduced after I leave?
- What happens to the fees I've paid, and the work you've done, if you reject the business or it doesn't sell?
If a buyer has already found you, compare the work that's left against what more exposure would add. If that buyer came through a marketplace, honor whatever introduction terms you agreed to.
Where other comparison lists get the numbers wrong
KeyQuire's comparison illustrates the problem: its table and provider profiles contain the first five claims below. Here's what we found on October 24, 2026, and what each provider actually publishes. The final row separates a seller charge from a buyer's budget.
| Claim to check | What the provider's own page says |
|---|---|
| Empire Flippers needs $2,000 a month in revenue | $2,000 a month in average net profit over 12 months (listing requirements) |
| Empire Flippers starts around $100,000 | Its screen is about profit and history, not price. Its $10,000 minimum fee is what makes small sales expensive (seller FAQ) |
| Empire Flippers charges 15% | 15% of the first $700,000 with a $10,000 minimum, then 8% to $5 million and 2.5% above (commission calculator) |
| FE International only works with $1 million+ businesses and has no self-serve option | FE publishes a self-serve marketplace at 5%, 4% and 3% by asking price (seller pricing) |
| Flippa charges 10–15% | Flippa's pricing page shows 10% under $500,000 asking, then 9%, 8%, 7%, 6% and 5% as the price rises, plus a package fee (Provider published terms, pricing page, checked Oct 24, 2026) |
| Treating a seller's commission as an extra buyer fee | Empire Flippers' commission is calculated on the seller's sale price (commission calculator) |
If you think we've got one wrong, tell us. Corrections are logged publicly.
When none of these fit
Sometimes the right answer is not to list yet, or not to use a platform at all.
You don't meet any screen you'd want to use. Spend six to twelve months building clean monthly P&Ls, payout records and a task list. Start with the records list on our homepage.
A buyer already found you. You can sell without a platform: no platform fee, but you handle every step, usually with a lawyer and an escrow service.
The business has a physical side, like a shop or a service business with a website. General business-for-sale sites cover those. The marketplaces on this page are built for businesses that live online.
Nothing here fits your deal. That's a valid result. "No fitting route established here" is better than forcing your business into a route that doesn't take it.
How we checked this comparison
Deal Field Guide helps you buy or sell an online business with clear eyes — comparing the real routes, showing the money after fees, and telling you what owning each kind of business is actually like, with the source behind every number.
Who writes it. Graham Ashler is the editorial pen name of Deal Field Guide's founder and editor. The site is published by Kozi Publishing LLC in Orem, Utah. He has built and run content and affiliate sites, Amazon FBA products, KDP publishing, SaaS, iOS subscription apps and YouTube channels; a few did well and several didn't. He is not a broker and has not sold a business through the marketplaces on this page. Notes labeled Operator experience come from running those businesses. The Shopify note is research-based.
Research note. We checked each provider's public pricing, help, service and terms pages on October 24, 2026, with access limits recorded below. Provider statements about their own service, screening and verification are reported as their claims. We read the published text for every price band on Flippa's seller pricing page; those figures are published terms, not verified transaction charges. We did not see private deal rooms, seller financials, individual quotes or completed sales, and we haven't bought or sold a business through these providers. We did not obtain a current Quiet Light engagement quote or FE International advisory quote, establish every optional buyer-access charge, or verify a separate inventory exclusion for Flippa, Acquire.com or FE International. Quiet Light's dated fee document remains linked from its official guide. Motion Invest's current fee schedule is published, but older official pages disagree on exclusivity; its older help page could not be fully reopened, so that statement relies on the supplied evidence and indexed text. Where providers' own pages disagree, we show both. Our examples state their assumptions and are scenarios, not valuations or predictions. We use software, including AI tools, to help organize research and draft pages; a person reviews every page and checks every fact against its source, and we're responsible for what we publish.
Order and money. Providers are listed alphabetically. Some of these companies pay publishers a referral fee when a reader uses their link and completes a qualifying sale. None pays us today, and fees never decide which providers appear, their order, or whether one fits (affiliate disclosure).
Evidence labels. Provider published terms means the provider's own page, with the date we read it. Inspected by us means we looked at the page or feature ourselves and say what and when. Operator experience means running that kind of business. Third-party report means someone else's research. User assumption means a fictional example. Not verified means we couldn't confirm it. The full method is on our methodology page.
Sources checked: October 24, 2026.
Questions people ask next
Can I list on more than one marketplace at once? Only where you haven't agreed to exclusivity. Empire Flippers asks for at least two months, and Investors Club Full Service is exclusive. Flippa's terms require exclusivity from $25,000 asking or reserve and describe 90- or 180-day restrictions after removal. Motion Invest's older official pages differ between 30 and 31 days, so confirm its current agreement. Quiet Light's published 2019 document says 90 days; confirm the applicable engagement. Investors Club DIY isn't exclusive. If you list in two places, keep the price and the numbers identical.
How much is my business worth? We don't value businesses. Brokers and some marketplaces will give you a valuation; Flippa offers a free valuation tool on its site. A valuation is an opinion, and an asking price isn't a sale price. Compare any number against your 12-month net profit and what a buyer will have to do to run it.
Who pays the marketplace's commission, the buyer or the seller? On the seller-side fees in this comparison, the seller. Empire Flippers calculates its commission on the seller's sale price, and Acquire.com, Flippa, FE International, Microns.io and KeyQuire charge their success fees to sellers. Flippa's terms, §11, also make the buyer liable if it cannot collect its success fee from the seller. Buyers pay the price, any access plan, and the payment or escrow charges allocated to them in the deal.
What does it cost to pay through FlippaPay or Escrow.com? Flippa's current pricing page shows FlippaPay from 1% and Escrow.com from 1.2%. An older Flippa help article, from 2019, gives FlippaPay from 0.5%, so the two disagree. Get the actual quote for your deal before you budget, and don't plan around the lower number.
Start from your side of the deal
Selling? Check your 12-month net profit against the screens above, then go to the route that fits. Buying? Work out your all-in cash before you pay for access to anything.
Compare buyer and seller routes side by side
Sellers can start with the records to gather and the four ways to sell. Buyers can start with the all-in capital example.
Sources
Checked October 24, 2026; the access limit on Motion Invest's older help page is stated beside that source.
- Acquire.com: Seller pricing · Guided by Acquire · Buyer and seller terms (last modified Mar 18, 2026) · Subscription terms · Confirm your closing fee · Private listing access · Scope announcement (Apr 7, 2025) · Buyer plans
- Empire Flippers: Commission calculator · Seller FAQ · Listing requirements · Terms of use (effective Nov 8, 2025) · Referral program FAQ · Buying process · How to unlock a listing · Verify funds · Sell your business
- FE International: Seller pricing · Buyer pricing · Platform terms · Advisory service
- Flippa: Pricing · Terms of service (updated Oct 22, 2026) · Verified listings · Escrow and FlippaPay fees (2019)
- ExitBid: Listing page
- Investors Club: Seller page · Buyer page · Premium pricing
- KeyQuire: Homepage fee FAQ · Terms · Marketplace comparison (updated Oct 15, 2026) · Sell SaaS
- Microns.io: Sell your startup · Buyer pricing
- Motion Invest: Current seller fees · Direct-buy description · Portfolio versus marketplace · Older direct-buy help article (full page inaccessible during this audit; the supplied evidence and indexed text state 30 days)
- Quiet Light: Current official guide linking the fee document · Published fee document (effective Jan 1, 2019; checked Oct 24, 2026) · Contingency fees
- Platform rules: Apple app transfer · Amazon Associates agreement · Amazon Brand Registry · Shopify ownership transfer · KDP content guidelines · YouTube monetization policies
- Research: Pew Research Center on AI summaries and clicks (Jul 22, 2025)