Small businesses with reliable earnings are still finding buyers, but owners hoping to sell face a more demanding market. Buyers are scrutinizing financial records, financing has become more difficult, and the gap between strong businesses and struggling ones is widening.

That divide emerged in BizBuySell’s third-quarter 2026 Insight Report , released October 20. The marketplace recorded 2,132 business sales during the quarter, little changed from the second quarter but 7% below the same period in 2025. At the same time, the median sale price climbed 17% year over year to $350,000.

The combination of fewer sales and higher prices does not mean every small business is gaining value. BizBuySell attributed much of the increase to a greater share of transactions involving larger, more profitable businesses.…