Enterprise Value to Revenue (EV/Revenue, also called EV/Sales) is one of the cleanest “quick comp” valuation multiples because it values the entire business (equity + debt, net of cash) against the top line. That makes it especially useful when earnings are noisy or negative (common in high-growth, early-stage, or turnaround situations), while still staying comparable across different capital structures.
The table below aggregates industry-level EV/Sales using Aswath Damodaran’s dataset (updated January 2026). It’s best used as a starting benchmark: a fast way to sanity-check whether a company’s valuation “smells right” versus peers, before you go deeper into margin quality, growth, reinvestment needs, and risk.
To apply EV/Revenue correctly, you should pair it with a few quick calculations:
Build or verify enterprise value (not just market cap) using an Enterprise Value (EV) Calculator.
Cross-check with related valuation comps like Price-to-Sales (P/S) Calculator and EV/EBITDA by Industry (profit-based check).
Industry Number of Firms Price/Sales Net Margin EV/Sales Pre-tax Operating Margin Advertising 52 1.64 -0.30% 2.12 10.05% Aerospace/Defense 79 3.17 4.99% 3.57 8.70% Air Transport 23 0.58 2.51% 1.03 4.88% Apparel 35 1.27 3.85% 1.59 9.89% Auto & Truck 33 3.34 1.29% 3.88 2.38% Auto Parts 35 0.64 0.72% 0.82 5.80% Bank (Money Center) 15 4.09 28.89% 8.31 0.08% Banks (Regional) 568 3.67 27.49% 4.28 -0.12% Beverage (Alcoholic) 14 1.75 0.56% 2.45 22.79% Beverage (Soft) 27 3.57 13.40% 4.16 20.63% Broadcasting 24 0.83 2.06% 1.40 12.35% Brokerage & Investment Banking 32 2.87 14.45% 5.78 -0.12% Building Materials 41 1.68 7.42% 2.05 12.80% Business & Consumer Services 155 2.20 7.03% 2.53 12.32% Cable TV 9 0.86 7.08% 2.06 18.24% Chemical (Basic) 29 0.47 -3.73% 0.85 2.86% Chemical (Diversified) 4 0.34 -5.35% 0.84 3.41% Chemical (Specialty) 59 2.12 2.91% 2.65 12.41% Coal & Related Energy 16 2.75 -2.13% 2.54 -3.82% Computer Services 64 1.24 4.45% 1.48 7.63% Computers/Peripherals 36 6.43 17.78% 6.63 22.49% Construction Supplies 40 2.83 10.78% 3.23 15.27% Diversified 20 2.85 16.37% 3.08 22.82% Drugs (Biotechnology) 496 7.31 -5.00% 7.92 8.76% Drugs (Pharmaceutical) 228 5.63 18.54% 6.24 29.54% Education 32 1.74 8.79% 1.99 13.54% Electrical Equipment 112 4.09 0.94% 4.42 9.75% Electronics (Consumer & Office) 8 0.96 -9.42% 0.91 -4.25% Electronics (General) 114 3.02 6.47% 3.21 10.52% Engineering/Construction 48 1.58 5.94% 1.74 6.75% Entertainment 92 3.87 4.43% 4.33 10.38% Environmental & Waste Services 53 3.09 8.24% 3.70 14.85% Farming/Agriculture 35 0.92 3.91% 1.34 5.61% Financial Svcs. (Non-bank & Insurance) 176 5.22 22.19% 18.91 18.54% Food Processing 78 1.05 2.82% 1.47 10.77% Food Wholesalers 13 0.31 1.17% 0.46 2.55% Furn/Home Furnishings 27 0.98 1.10% 1.33 6.88% Green & Renewable Energy 15 3.76 -10.83% 7.87 18.39% Healthcare Products 204 4.36 9.61% 4.76 15.47% Healthcare Support Services 104 0.37 1.25% 0.46 2.99% Heathcare Information and Technology 115 4.70 7.45% 5.31 14.75% Homebuilding 30 1.07 9.47% 1.19 12.63% Hospitals/Healthcare Facilities 31 1.08 6.30% 1.69 12.86% Hotel/Gaming 63 3.26 10.38% 4.33 16.44% Household Products 110 2.67 11.68% 3.06 18.79% Information Services 15 1.70 6.53% 2.21 12.45% Insurance (General) 21 3.53 12.37% 4.32 21.46% Insurance (Life) 20 0.95 7.80% 1.28 10.65% Insurance (Prop/Cas.) 57 1.36 11.13% 1.49 15.30% Investments & Asset Management 283 4.59 18.36% 5.49 25.18% Machinery 105 3.08 10.58% 3.43 16.06% Metals & Mining 73 3.81 10.52% 4.03 23.76% Office Equipment & Services 14 1.02 4.38% 1.43 10.88% Oil/Gas (Integrated) 4 1.58 8.30% 1.75 11.57% Oil/Gas (Production and Exploration) 142 2.00 14.63% 2.68 25.82% Oil/Gas Distribution 23 2.78 13.35% 4.37 26.06% Oilfield Svcs/Equip. 97 0.57 2.34% 0.74 4.85% Packaging & Container 19 1.03 4.48% 1.55 9.79% Paper/Forest Products 6 0.76 3.44% 1.02 6.58% Power 46 2.74 12.73% 4.70 21.36% Precious Metals 56 5.84 28.59% 5.98 40.43% Publishing & Newspapers 19 1.47 8.19% 1.70 9.84% R.E.I.T. 190 5.89 13.23% 10.65 22.21% Real Estate (Development) 14 1.77 7.01% 3.03 21.19% Real Estate (General/Diversified) 12 4.82 23.77% 6.83 22.09% Real Estate (Operations & Services) 54 1.24 1.19% 1.46 2.76% Recreation 49 1.26 -4.72% 1.94 8.06% Reinsurance 1 0.60 3.89% 0.65 7.23% Restaurant/Dining 64 3.34 9.37% 4.17 13.79% Retail (Automotive) 34 0.89 3.36% 1.27 5.84% Retail (Building Supply) 14 1.85 7.84% 2.26 11.82% Retail (Distributors) 62 1.51 6.05% 1.89 10.32% Retail (General) 23 2.01 5.61% 2.11 6.50% Retail (Grocery and Food) 15 0.34 1.32% 0.49 1.85% Retail (REITs) 26 7.82 23.00% 12.04 38.64% Retail (Special Lines) 94 1.43 5.19% 1.63 8.08% Rubber& Tires 3 0.14 -9.49% 0.59 2.57% Semiconductor 66 15.46 30.45% 15.70 35.31% Semiconductor Equip 31 7.49 21.32% 7.61 26.29% Shipbuilding & Marine 8 1.45 9.48% 1.74 13.52% Shoe 11 1.95 6.27% 2.04 9.14% Software (Entertainment) 77 9.01 29.93% 9.13 33.67% Software (Internet) 29 8.76 -0.93% 9.56 3.74% Software (System & Application) 309 11.01 25.49% 11.41 33.21% Steel 19 0.99 1.93% 1.17 4.11% Telecom (Wireless) 12 2.48 12.24% 3.72 19.74% Telecom. Equipment 57 6.13 16.09% 6.52 20.92% Telecom. Services 39 1.39 14.20% 2.61 20.82% Tobacco 10 5.30 26.65% 6.40 43.68% Transportation 19 1.27 8.23% 1.64 7.64% Transportation (Railroads) 4 5.26 24.73% 6.67 37.43% Trucking 26 1.42 3.79% 1.74 7.31% Utility (General) 14 2.90 14.18% 5.25 23.21% Utility (Water) 14 4.43 21.16% 7.16 33.65% Total Market 5994 3.07 9.74% 3.97 12.75% Total Market (without financials) 4822 3.03 8.56% 3.46 13.06%
How to use EV/Revenue benchmarks (practical workflow)
1) Choose the right peer bucket
EV/Sales is driven by business model economics (gross margin, operating leverage, cyclicality). Don’t compare across unrelated industries.
Start inside the closest industry group, then widen only if the unit economics and growth model truly match.
2) Calculate the company’s EV/Sales on the same basis
First compute enterprise value (not just market cap) with the Enterprise Value (EV) Calculator.
Then calculate EV/Sales = EV ÷ LTM Revenue using the EV/Sales (EV/Revenue) Calculator.
If you’re using forward revenue, keep the peer multiple basis consistent (LTM vs forward).
3) Convert peer multiples into an implied enterprise value range
Once you have a peer multiple range, translate it into valuation ranges:
Implied EV = (Peer EV/Sales) × (Company Revenue).
Run this quickly using an Implied Enterprise Value Calculator.
4) Translate enterprise value into equity value
EV is not the value of the equity. To estimate equity value, adjust EV for net debt and other non-common claims.
Start with a Net Debt Calculator, then use an
Equity Value Calculator to bridge from enterprise value to shareholder value.
Sanity checks (so you don’t publish nonsense)
Margin reality check
High EV/Sales usually requires either higher margins (now or credibly later) or faster growth.
Pair the multiple with margin diagnostics:
Gross Margin Calculator and
Operating Margin Calculator.
If the company’s margins are structurally lower than peers, a “peer EV/Sales” multiple can overstate implied value.
Growth reality check
EV/Sales without growth context is incomplete. Validate whether the growth rate supports the multiple using:
Revenue Growth Rate Calculator and
CAGR Calculator.
If growth is decelerating while the multiple is premium, you should demand a stronger margin story (or lower the multiple).
Capital structure check
EV-based multiples help comparability, but leverage still changes risk and can distort peer sets.
Use Net Debt/EBITDA Calculator alongside
Net Debt Calculator to confirm you’re not comparing a low-leverage business to a highly levered one
without adjusting your expectations.
Cyclical warning
Point-in-time multiples can be deceptive in cyclical or commodity-linked industries. If revenue (or margins) is at a peak or trough,
consider multi-year averages or forward revenue instead of a single LTM snapshot before you anchor on a benchmark multiple.
When EV/Revenue is the right tool (and when it isn’t)
EV/Revenue works best when
- EBITDA/earnings are negative or temporarily depressed (growth investment, restructuring, turnaround).
- Revenue is a stable base metric and margins are expected to normalize over time.
- You want a fast, top-of-funnel benchmark before deeper valuation work.
EV/Revenue is weaker when
- Revenue is distorted by accounting timing, one-off spikes, or major recognition changes.
- The sector’s revenue base isn’t a clean operating anchor; additional sector-specific metrics may be needed.
- The business has fundamentally different unit economics than the chosen peer set.
Best practice: don’t use EV/Revenue alone
Use EV/Revenue as the benchmark entry point, then confirm with at least one profit-based and one cash-based view:
EV/EBITDA Calculator and
Free Cash Flow (FCF) Calculator plus
EV/FCF Calculator.
For a full-stack valuation cross-check, use the WACC Calculator and
Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) Calculator.