Education and training business valuation benchmarks for New Zealand
Valuation evidence for New Zealand education and training businesses, drawn from 233 verified childcare, vocational training and education business sales recorded by licensed NZ business brokers. Indexed price trends, median time-to-sell, recent comparables and a regional heatmap, covering ANZSIC Division P nationwide.
The state of the NZ education and training business sales market
Education and Training (ANZSIC Division P) covers preschool and childcare, technical and vocational training, adult and community education, and arts education. Bizstats has recorded 233 sales in the category. Auckland leads with around 42% of transactions, and, unusually, Bay of Plenty rather than Canterbury is the second-largest region.
Sale prices have been broadly flat: the indexed median sale price reached 145 by 2025, a cumulative move of just 45% on the 2010 baseline. With a thin annual sample behind each year's median, most of the year-to-year movement is sampling noise.
The clearest signal is a compressed SDE multiple. The index sits at 78, well below its baseline. Childcare and training businesses carry real regulatory exposure, funding settings, licensing, staff ratios and qualification requirements, and buyers price that policy risk into the multiple they will pay per dollar of earnings.
Sale price and SDE multiple figures are indexed to 2010 = 100. The +% values show cumulative change since the 2010 baseline. The full dollar medians, by sub-category, are available in a Bizstats valuation report.
Indexed median education and training sale price
Median sale price for New Zealand education and training business transactions, indexed to 2010 = 100. The underlying dollar medians by sub-category are published in the Bizstats valuation report.
Commentary: The education and training price index reached 145 by 2025, a cumulative move of just 45%, after touching 145 earlier in the period. Headline sale prices have been broadly flat over the long run, with a thin annual sample driving most of the year-to-year movement.
Indexed median education and training SDE multiple
Median SDE (Seller's Discretionary Earnings) multiple paid for New Zealand education and training businesses, indexed to 2010 = 100. The price index tracks what businesses sell for; the SDE multiple index tracks what buyers are paying per dollar of earnings. Actual multiples by sub-category are published in a Bizstats valuation report.
Commentary: The SDE multiple index has compressed, moving within a 49-117 band and sitting at 78 by 2025, well below the 2010 baseline. Buyers price in genuine regulatory and funding risk: childcare and training businesses depend on policy settings, licensing and staff qualification requirements that can shift the economics of the sector.
What buyers pay for in a education and training business sale
The average split of the sale price into tangible assets, stock and intangibles (brand, customer base and other non-physical value) for NZ education and training business transactions, year by year. Each bar is a 100% view: it shows the mix, not the dollar value.
- Tangibles
- Stock
- Intangibles
| Year | Tangibles | Stock | Intangibles |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 13% | 0% | 87% |
| 2011 | 12% | 0% | 88% |
| 2012 | 14% | 0% | 86% |
| 2013 | 18% | 0% | 82% |
| 2014 | 16% | 0% | 84% |
| 2015 | 19% | 0% | 81% |
| 2016 | 10% | 0% | 90% |
| 2017 | 7% | 0% | 93% |
| 2018 | 12% | 0% | 88% |
| 2019 | 13% | 0% | 87% |
| 2020 | 17% | 0% | 83% |
| 2025 | 7% | 0% | 93% |
Commentary: Education and training providers hold few hard assets; their worth is enrolments, accreditation and reputation. By 2025 the median sale split about 7% tangible assets, 0% stock and 93% intangibles, the dominant component. The intangible share has moved from 87% in 2010 to 93% (+6 points): buyers pay for the student pipeline and course accreditation, not the classrooms.
Median time-to-sell for NZ education and training businesses
Median months from listing to unconditional sale for NZ education and training business transactions. A leading indicator of buyer demand. Tighter time-to-sell signals stronger competition for available stock.
Commentary: Time-to-sell has lengthened, from 3.5 months in 2010 to 2 months by 2025. Buyers of childcare and training businesses work through licensing, compliance history and staffing before committing, which extends the path from listing to unconditional sale.
Recent education and training business sales in NZ
A sample of recent anonymised education and training transactions. Each row shows ANZSIC sub-category, region, revenue, SDE and sale month, with revenue and SDE rounded to the nearest $100,000. Full anonymised comparables with exact sale prices and SDE multiples are in a Bizstats valuation report.
| ANZSIC | Region | Revenue | SDE | SDE X | Sold |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Technical and Vocational Education and Training | Auckland | $2,200,000 | $300,000 | ••• | Oct 2025 |
| Technical and Vocational Education and Training | Nelson | $700,000 | $200,000 | ••• | Aug 2025 |
| Preschool Education | Auckland | $1,800,000 | $300,000 | ••• | Aug 2025 |
| Preschool Education | Taranaki | $800,000 | $200,000 | ••• | Aug 2025 |
| Arts Education | Auckland | $600,000 | $200,000 | ••• | Aug 2025 |
| Preschool Education | Auckland | $700,000 | $200,000 | ••• | Jul 2025 |
| Adult, Community and Other Education n.e.c. | Taranaki | $1,200,000 | $300,000 | ••• | Jun 2025 |
| Arts Education | Auckland | $200,000 | $100,000 | ••• | Apr 2025 |
| Preschool Education | Auckland | $800,000 | $200,000 | ••• | Mar 2025 |
| Adult, Community and Other Education n.e.c. | Auckland | $1,600,000 | $600,000 | ••• | Feb 2025 |
See what they actually sold for. A Bizstats valuation report unlocks exact sale prices, SDE multiples and time-to-sell for education and training businesses by ANZSIC sub-category.
Create a Bizstats report →Sample drawn from 233 verified education and training transactions, updated as new sales are recorded by our network of licensed NZ business brokers.
Education and training business sales by NZ region
Education and training transaction activity and median time-to-sell mapped across New Zealand's 16 regions. Auckland leads with 98 recorded sales, with Bay of Plenty second. Most regions fall below the reporting threshold for time-to-sell. Switch the metric to compare regions.
| Region | Transactions | Median time-to-sell (months) |
|---|---|---|
| Northland | 7 | Insufficient sample |
| Auckland | 98 | 3 |
| Waikato | 20 | 2.5 |
| Bay of Plenty | 47 | 3 |
| Gisborne | 0 | Insufficient sample |
| Taranaki | 4 | Insufficient sample |
| Manawatu | 4 | Insufficient sample |
| Hawke's Bay | 4 | Insufficient sample |
| Wellington | 10 | Insufficient sample |
| Tasman | 0 | Insufficient sample |
| Nelson | 4 | Insufficient sample |
| Marlborough | 0 | Insufficient sample |
| West Coast | 0 | Insufficient sample |
| Canterbury | 31 | 3 |
| Otago | 4 | Insufficient sample |
| Southland | 0 | Insufficient sample |
Put these education and training benchmarks to work
Apply Bizstats education and training benchmarks to a specific business: your own, a target acquisition or a comparable you're researching. Three free tools, no signup, real insights.
Work out Seller's Discretionary Earnings for a childcare, training or education business, step by step.
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Calculate ROIEducation and training business valuation FAQ
ANZSIC Division P covers preschool and childcare, technical and vocational education and training, adult and community education, and arts education. Bizstats has recorded 233 sales across the category.
Only marginally. Indexed to 2010 = 100, the median sale price reached 145 by 2025, a cumulative move of just 45%. Headline prices have been broadly flat over the long run.
Buyers price in regulatory and funding risk. Childcare and training businesses depend on policy settings, licensing, staff ratios and qualification requirements, all of which can shift the economics of the sector. The Bizstats SDE multiple index sits well below its 2010 baseline as a result. Exact multiples by sub-category are in a Bizstats valuation report.
Median time-to-sell has lengthened, from 3.5 months in 2010 to 2 months by 2025. Buyers work through licensing, compliance history and staffing before committing.
The dataset is updated monthly as new transactions flow in from our network of licensed New Zealand business brokers. Recorded coverage reaches back well over a decade, and the indexed trends on this page are benchmarked from 2010.
About this page
The benchmark figures, charts and recent comparables above are drawn from 233 verified education and training business sales recorded by licensed NZ business brokers. The written analysis is generated from that data and reviewed by the Bizstats team, and is refreshed as new sales are recorded. These are indicative market benchmarks, not a formal valuation. See our Terms of Use.
Benchmarks last updated .
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