How are people getting historical NAICS trend data by sector and geography?

April 17, 2026

by a searcher from University of Pennsylvania - The Wharton School in Los Angeles, CA, USA

I am looking for the best way to study an industry by NAICS code across time and geography. Example: QSRs in Columbus, Ohio since###-###-#### I want to understand year over year revenue growth, CAGR, margins, valuation multiples, business count, salaries and broader market trends. In practice, I am trying to answer questions like: • Has this sector actually grown in this market over time? • Are margins improving or compressing? • Are transaction multiples expanding or just broker fantasy fiction? • Is the market fragmented, stable, or getting rolled up? What data source or workflow are people using for this? I have looked at IBISWorld, Census, BizComps, DealStats, and similar tools, but I am still looking for the cleanest repeatable approach. Any recommendations would be helpful.

Reply by an intermediary
from Texas A&M University in Houston, TX, USA

We’ve helped people on SearchFunder before by sharing free comps reports for industries that we’ve represented in the past as a broker. We already have a comps report prepared for QSR. If you send me an email at redacted I’d be glad to share it with you. It includes things like purchase price, revenue, location, and SDE. Also glad to check, if we have comps for the industry you're considering. With small business comps, it’s very easy to overanalyze the numbers. A lot of important details do not show up in the databases, such as owner’s motivation for selling, amount of seller financing, how much inventory was included, near term CAPEX liabilities, how clean were the add-backs, etc. For most SBA-sized deals we represent, there are 200 to 600 inquiries within the first month of going to market. With that level of interest, the multiple is driven by what an SBA lender is willing to finance. That usually comes down to DSCR and other underwriting considerations. A buyer who does not need SBA Financing will sometimes come along and offer more if it's a strong business.

Reply by a professional-advisory
from Seton Hall University in West Palm Beach, FL, USA

@redacted‌ look into Grata. It is very expensive but was highly impressed by their demo. I would just book a demo and see what you can pull out. But data seemed better than Pitchbook for LMM data points. I've used some janky techniques during the Pre-AI era on NAICS.com that might be helpful. Shoot me a DM.

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