Accommodation and food services: how the industry looks

This page gathers the figures we hold on accommodation and food services. Each section names its own source.

Each source groups industries its own way, so the edges of accommodation and food services differ a little from section to section.

What stands out

  • In July to December 2025, the typical large business paid small suppliers in 18 days in the industry and 23 days across all industries.
  • In 2024-25, EBITDA was 12.0% of sales across the industry and 14.7% across all industries the ABS covers.
  • In 2025-26, 15.7% of the industry's businesses stopped trading, and 13.8% across all industries.

Where a line gives a figure across all industries, it comes from the same source and period as the industry's. The sections below name each source.

Use these figures

  • Set your own EBITDA margin beside the industry's on industry margins.

  • Get your own earnings on the same basis as the deals, and set them against the sector's multiples, in the earnings calculator.

  • Set the days your own invoices take beside the industry's on payment times.

What businesses sold for

The median and the middle half, in times EBITDA. The figure is the median. Under it are the middle half and the number of deals.
  1. Accommodation and food services9.0 times EBITDA, middle half 7.5 to 12.0, 20+ deals
  2. Hotels and accommodation10.5 times EBITDA, 5+ deals
  3. Pubs, taverns and bars10.0 times EBITDA, 5+ deals
Deal details

Accommodation and food services: median 9.0 times EBITDA. The middle half of deals ran from 7.5 to 12.0 times (20+ deals of A$10 million to A$500 million, announced 2003 to 2024).

Hotels and accommodation: median 10.5 times EBITDA (5+ deals of A$10 million to A$500 million, announced 2003 to 2023).

Pubs, taverns and bars: median 10.0 times EBITDA (5+ deals of A$10 million to A$500 million, announced 2005 to 2024).

What multiple will my business sell for?

In Australia, accommodation and food services businesses bought between 2003 and 2024 sold for a median of 9.0 times EBITDA, across 20+ deals.

Source: deals in our database with a published value. Counts by onestepright.

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Cite

onestepright, "Accommodation and food services in Australia: deals, margins and survival", updated October 2026, https://onestepright.com/industries/accommodation-and-food-services#h-multiples. Source: deals in our database with a published value. Counts by onestepright.

See every accommodation and food services figure on its sale multiples page.

How deal activity has moved

Share of deals in our database
  1. 2015-191.5%
  2. 2020-260.9% · Little change

2015-19 against 2020-26, among the deals in our database.

These count deals in our database, not every deal in the market.

Source: deals in our database. Counts by onestepright.

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Cite

onestepright, "Accommodation and food services in Australia: deals, margins and survival", updated October 2026, https://onestepright.com/industries/accommodation-and-food-services#h-deal_activity. Source: deals in our database. Counts by onestepright.

See deal trends across sectors.

Margins

In 2024-25, EBITDA was 12.0% of sales across the industry, and operating profit 8.1%.

Where each dollar of sales goes
  • Purchases32.9%
  • Labour30.3%
  • Other costs
  • EBITDA12.0%

Every business in the industry together, 2024-25.

What is the average profit margin in accommodation and food services?

Across every accommodation and food services business added together, EBITDA was 12.0% of sales in 2024-25, and operating profit 8.1%.

Every business in the industry is added together, so the figures are not a typical business.

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Australian Industry (8155.0). Licensed under CC BY 4.0.

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Cite

onestepright, "Accommodation and food services in Australia: deals, margins and survival", updated October 2026, https://onestepright.com/industries/accommodation-and-food-services#h-margins. Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Australian Industry (8155.0). Licensed under CC BY 4.0.

Compare margins across industries.

How many businesses are still trading

Out of 100 businesses trading in June 2022

About 54 in every 100 were still trading four years later.

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Counts of Australian Businesses, including Entries and Exits (8165.0). Licensed under CC BY 4.0.

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onestepright, "Accommodation and food services in Australia: deals, margins and survival", updated October 2026, https://onestepright.com/industries/accommodation-and-food-services#h-survival. Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Counts of Australian Businesses, including Entries and Exits (8165.0). Licensed under CC BY 4.0.

Compare survival across industries.

Businesses that started and stopped

Started and stopped, 2025-26
  1. Started trading17.1%All industries16.9%
  2. Stopped trading15.7%All industries13.8%

Each is a share of the businesses trading at the start of the year.

Few exits are insolvencies.

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Counts of Australian Businesses, including Entries and Exits (8165.0). Licensed under CC BY 4.0.

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onestepright, "Accommodation and food services in Australia: deals, margins and survival", updated October 2026, https://onestepright.com/industries/accommodation-and-food-services#h-entries_and_exits. Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Counts of Australian Businesses, including Entries and Exits (8165.0). Licensed under CC BY 4.0.

Compare exits across industries.

How fast large businesses pay small suppliers

Days to pay small suppliers
  • This industry18
  • All industries23

The typical large business in this industry, against all industries.

In July to December 2025, the typical large business in the industry paid small suppliers in 18 days, and paid 85% of its invoices within 30 days.

Source: Payment Times Reporting Register. © Commonwealth of Australia. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.

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onestepright, "Accommodation and food services in Australia: deals, margins and survival", updated October 2026, https://onestepright.com/industries/accommodation-and-food-services#h-payment_times. Source: Payment Times Reporting Register. © Commonwealth of Australia. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.

Compare payment times across industries.

What costs did

What wages and input prices did in this industry, and what businesses in it announced. Each comes from its own source and grouping of industries.

What costs did, the year to June 2026
  1. Wages+2.7%
  2. Announced price rises: hospitality and cafes+7.0%

Each bar comes from its own source, named below.

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Wage Price Index, Australia (6345.0), private sector, total hourly rates excluding bonuses. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.

No ABS price series measures this industry's inputs closely enough to show.

Businesses in hospitality and cafes that announced a price rise stated a median of 7.0% across 2019 to 2024.

Source: businesses' own stated price rises, in our database. Medians by onestepright.

Price rises businesses announced

Hospitality and cafes: a median stated rise of 7%, from 5+ statements by 5+ businesses.

Source: businesses' own stated price rises, in our database. Medians by onestepright.

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onestepright, "Accommodation and food services in Australia: deals, margins and survival", updated October 2026, https://onestepright.com/industries/accommodation-and-food-services#h-price_rises. Source: businesses' own stated price rises, in our database. Medians by onestepright.

See all price rises businesses announced.

Small business cost ratios

The ATO publishes cost ranges for these small business industries in the sector.

Show the 9 industries

Source: Australian Taxation Office, Small business benchmarks 2023-24. © Australian Taxation Office for the Commonwealth of Australia. Not endorsed by the ATO.

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Cite

onestepright, "Accommodation and food services in Australia: deals, margins and survival", updated October 2026, https://onestepright.com/industries/accommodation-and-food-services#h-cost_ratios. Source: Australian Taxation Office, Small business benchmarks 2023-24. © Australian Taxation Office for the Commonwealth of Australia. Not endorsed by the ATO.

See small business cost ratios.

See accommodation and food services in New Zealand.

See accommodation and food services in the United Kingdom.

See accommodation and food services in Canada.

See accommodation and food services in the United States.

Who in your business can move a price, and by how much? The pricing check takes about ten minutes.

Accommodation and food services in Australia: deals, margins and survival · onestepright