How Veterinary Practices Are Valued
The veterinary M&A market has been transformed by corporate consolidation. Mars Veterinary Health (Banfield, BluePearl, VCA), National Veterinary Associates (NVA), and dozens of PE-backed platforms have acquired thousands of veterinary practices over the past decade. This has created a two-tier market: private buyer valuations and corporate buyer valuations.
Private Buyer Valuation (Vet to Vet)
When one veterinarian buys another's practice, the standard framework is a percent-of-revenue (or equivalently, an SDE-based) approach. Pricing is calibrated nightly against recent disclosed vet-to-vet transactions in our database. Run a valuation to see your specific range against the current private-buyer comp set.
Corporate/PE Buyer Valuation
Corporate consolidators value practices on EBITDA. Corporate / PE pricing is materially above the private-buyer comp set, but corporate deals typically require the selling vet to stay on as an employee for 3-5 years. Run a valuation to see both ranges side-by-side for your practice.
Key Value Drivers
Revenue per DVM is the metric corporate buyers watch most closely. Practices generating $700K+ per veterinarian are highly attractive. This indicates efficient scheduling, good case acceptance, and appropriate pricing.
Emergency and specialty services command premium valuations. Practices offering emergency/after-hours care or specialty services (surgery, dermatology, oncology) are worth 20-40% more than general practice-only clinics.
Associate veterinarian retention is critical. Practices with only the owner-DVM face the same dependency problem as dental and medical practices. Having 2+ associate veterinarians who are likely to stay post-sale dramatically increases value.