OPENFAIR VS OFFDEAL

OffDeal and Openfair, side by side

Both firms run a complete sell-side process with human advisors. Openfair publishes its success fee, prepares the valuation with in-house CPAs, and reaches buyers through a public listing as well as direct outreach.

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OffDeal

13 of 19 stages

Openfair

19 of 19 stages

A sell-side process from valuation through closing.

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THE SHORT ANSWER

The difference is coverage, not whether there is a process

OffDeal is a New York sell-side M&A advisory firm that describes itself as an AI-native investment bank. It represents profitable, owner-led businesses with roughly $5 million to $100 million in annual revenue and at least five years of operating history. A dedicated M&A advisor runs the process, an AI system matches buyers from a curated network, and the firm charges a success fee. It does not publish the rate.

Openfair is an M&A advisory firm covering the United States and Canada. It works across all deal sizes, from main street businesses through the lower middle market, publishes its full fee schedule of 8%, 6% or 4% depending on plan, includes a CPA-prepared valuation and a premium CIM in every plan, and both lists a business publicly and approaches buyers directly. The practical difference for most sellers is coverage: OffDeal states a client range of $5 million to $100 million in revenue, and Openfair takes deals above and below it.

STAGE COVERAGE

Selling a business takes 19 stages

Both firms run a real sell-side process. This is what each one states publicly at every stage, valuation through closing.

The nineteen stages are grouped into Prepare, Market, Negotiate, and Close.
Stage	OffDeal	Openfair
Prepare
Business valuation	AI report in under a minute	CPA-prepared, included in every plan
Financial cleanup and bookkeeping	Not published	Bookkeeping from $497 per month
CIM	Banker-authored CIM	Premium CIM included in every plan
Pricing strategy	Auction-led price discovery	Advisor-set with CPA valuation
Market
Listing creation	Not a marketplace	Managed listing
Marketplace exposure	Private buyer network only	Public listing plus private outreach
Syndication	Not published	Syndicated across major business-for-sale platforms
Proactive buyer outreach	AI matching, 1,000+ matches on average	Direct outreach, phone outreach on Pro
Confidentiality management	Not published	NDAs before details are released
Negotiate
Buyer vetting and proof of funds	Not published	POF qualification on every buyer
Data room and document control	Secure data room	Controlled data room access
Buyer meetings and Q&A	One-on-one buyer meetings	Advisor-managed
Offer solicitation	Competitive auction	Advisor-managed
Letter of intent	Advisor-led	Negotiation support included
Deal structuring	Advisor-led	Negotiation support included
Close
Due diligence management	24-hour diligence question turnaround	Due diligence assistance included
Financing coordination	Not published	Advisor-coordinated
Purchase agreement	Advisor-led	Advisor-led
Closing and transition	Advisor-led	Advisor-led

OffDeal publishes coverage on 13 of the 19 stages. Openfair covers all 19. The gap is narrower here than with a marketplace or a broker. The real difference is which businesses each firm accepts.

BEFORE YOU START

Not sure the business is ready to go to market?

The Seller Readiness Index scores a business across the areas buyers examine first. It takes a few minutes and there is no cost.

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WHAT EACH FIRM PUBLISHES

The terms, compared

Publicly stated company terms, verified August 2026.
Category
What it is	Sell-side M&A advisory firm, describes itself as an AI-native investment bank	M&A advisory firm with in-house CPAs, IBBA member
Deal size range	$5 million to $100 million in revenue	All deal sizes, main street through the lower middle market
Operating history required	At least 5 years	Assessed case by case
Profitability required	Profitable and owner-led	Assessed case by case
Bookkeeping and financial cleanup	Not published	Available from $497 per month
Success fee rate	Not published	8%, 6% or 4% depending on plan
Valuation	AI-generated report, delivered in under a minute	CPA-prepared, included in every plan
CIM	Banker-authored CIM	Premium CIM included in every plan, sold separately at $1,500
Buyer reach	Curated buyer network, 1,000+ strategic matches on average	1M+ vetted buyers, plus syndication across major business-for-sale platforms
Public listing	No, states it is not a marketplace	Yes, public listing plus direct outreach
Buyer qualification	Not published	Proof of funds and NDA before details are released
Geography	Not published, headquartered in New York	United States and Canada, select international
Credentials	Bankers from Evercore, JPMorgan, Barclays and RBC. Y Combinator backed	In-house CPAs, IBBA member, BBB accredited

Every OffDeal entry is taken from OffDeal’s own published pages. Anything the firm does not state publicly is marked "Not published" rather than estimated. Verified August 2026.

A CLOSER LOOK

OffDeal is a real investment bank

What they do well

Senior bankers with real pedigree. The team includes people who came from Evercore, JPMorgan, Barclays and RBC, and the firm employs them as advisors rather than selling software to other banks.
Speed is a genuine strength. OffDeal states that clients receive qualified offers in under 45 days.
Buyer matching at a scale a small brokerage cannot reach. The firm reports identifying more than 1,000 relevant buyers on an average engagement.
A competitive auction rather than a single negotiation, which is the right structure for a business large enough to attract several institutional bidders.
Buyers receive a banker-authored CIM and a 24-hour turnaround commitment on diligence questions, which keeps a process moving.

Where sellers hit trouble

The revenue floor. A business under $5 million in annual revenue sits outside the client range OffDeal publishes, and most owners exploring a sale are under it.
Three more gates behind the first one. The business also needs at least five years of operating history, current profitability, and owner-led management.
The success fee rate is not published anywhere on the site, so a seller cannot compare the cost against another firm before having a conversation.
No published Canadian coverage. An owner in Ontario or Quebec has no stated answer on whether the firm will take the deal.
Deals go to a private buyer network and the firm states plainly that it is not a marketplace. For a business whose likely buyer is an individual operator rather than a fund, that is a narrower pool than a public listing reaches.

FOUR QUESTIONS

Four questions settle it

Each question uses a requirement OffDeal states on its own site. One "no" and the business falls outside the range it publishes.

Question 1
Is annual revenue above $5 million?
NoOpenfair. The stated client range at OffDeal starts at $5 million in revenue.
YesContinue to question 2.
Question 2
Is the business profitable, owner-led and at least five years old?
NoOpenfair. All three are stated requirements at OffDeal. Openfair states none of them.
YesContinue to question 3.
Question 3
Is the business in Canada?
NoContinue to question 4.
YesOpenfair. Coverage across the United States and Canada is stated. OffDeal publishes no Canadian coverage.
Question 4
Do you want the success fee in writing before you engage anyone?
NoEither firm can run a full sell-side process.
YesOpenfair. The rate is published as 8%, 6% or 4% depending on plan, with 4% the lowest success fee in the market.

$5M. The number that decides most of these deals. Above it, both firms are a genuine option and the choice comes down to fee transparency and buyer pool. Below it, only one of the two will take the business.

WHICH ONE FITS

Choose the process that fits the business

OffDeal is the better fit when

Revenue is comfortably above $5 million with several years of clean, profitable history.
The likely buyer is a private equity firm, a strategic acquirer or a search fund.
An auction among institutional bidders suits the business better than a public listing.
Discussing fees privately during an engagement conversation is acceptable.

Openfair is the better fit when

The business sits outside any one of the four requirements OffDeal states, most often the $5 million revenue range.
The business is in Canada.
You want the fee schedule and the success fee rate in front of you before any conversation.
You want a public listing and syndication alongside direct buyer outreach, because the likely buyer is an individual operator.
You want a CPA-prepared valuation and a premium CIM included rather than an automated estimate.

OPENFAIR IN PRACTICE

A real business sale, from valuation to close

Iron Grill BBQ moved from a valuation conversation to a successful sale with Openfair’s advisors coordinating the work from preparation through closing.

“Openfair gave us a clear path from the first number to the final handoff.”
— Iron Grill BBQ owner

Read the Iron Grill BBQ case study

LOOK PAST THE FIRST INVOICE

What $1,200 buys

There is no honest one-number comparison when one firm does not publish its success-fee rate. Compare the full deal economics, the coverage, and what is included before choosing an advisor.

OffDeal

$0 upfront

Success fee, rate not published

OffDeal states that it charges a success fee when the business sells, but does not publish the percentage on its site.

Openfair

8% / 6% / 4%

Published by plan

Openfair publishes the success fee and includes a CPA-prepared valuation, buyer qualification, negotiation support, and due diligence assistance by plan.

The useful difference

Terms in writing

A lower upfront number is not the same as a lower total cost. Know the success fee before you engage.

OPENFAIR AND OFFDEAL, ANSWERED

Questions sellers ask

What is the difference between Openfair and OffDeal?

Both run a full sell-side M&A process with human advisors. The difference is which businesses they accept and what they publish. OffDeal states that it works with profitable, owner-led businesses with $5 million to $100 million in annual revenue and at least five years of operating history, and it does not publish its success fee rate. Openfair works across all deal sizes in the United States and Canada, publishes success fees of 8%, 6% or 4% depending on plan, and includes a CPA-prepared valuation in every plan.

What size business does OffDeal work with?

OffDeal states that it works with profitable, owner-led businesses across most industries, typically with $5 million to $100 million in annual revenue and at least five years of operating history. A business below that range falls outside the client profile the firm publishes.

Does OffDeal publish its fees?

OffDeal states that it charges a success fee, paid when the business sells. The firm does not publish the percentage anywhere on its site, so a seller cannot compare the cost against another advisor without first speaking to the company. Openfair publishes its success fee as 8%, 6% or 4% depending on plan, with 4% the lowest success fee in the market.

Does Openfair work with businesses under $5 million in revenue?

Yes. Openfair handles deals across all sizes, from main street businesses through the lower middle market, which is where the majority of owner-operated businesses sit. Every plan includes a CPA-prepared valuation, a premium CIM, buyer qualification, negotiation support and due diligence assistance regardless of deal size.

Does either firm serve Canada?

Openfair covers the United States and Canada, and considers select international deals. OffDeal is headquartered in New York and publishes no Canadian coverage, so a Canadian owner has no stated answer on eligibility without contacting the firm directly.

Is Openfair’s valuation prepared by a CPA?

Yes. Every Openfair plan includes a valuation prepared by an in-house CPA, delivered as part of a premium CIM and valuation package that is sold separately at $1,500. This is different from the free Business Valuation Tool on the Openfair site, which is an automated estimate anyone can run. OffDeal offers a free AI-generated valuation report delivered in under a minute.

Can I get a public listing with OffDeal?

No. OffDeal states plainly that it is not a marketplace or a listing platform. Deals are taken to its private buyer network of private equity firms, strategic acquirers, search funds and independent sponsors. Openfair lists a business publicly, syndicates the listing across major business-for-sale platforms, and approaches buyers directly.

Which firm is better for a business worth $1 million to $2 million?

Openfair, because OffDeal’s stated client range does not extend that far down. A business at that value is below the $5 million revenue range OffDeal publishes. Openfair handles deals at that size routinely, and buyers at that level are usually individual operators who find businesses through public listings rather than institutional funds sourcing from a private network.

Every comparison point is based on publicly stated company information. OffDeal details that are not published are not estimated.

OffDeal public information Openfair pricing

Sources: OffDeal homepage and FAQ, about page, buyer network page and valuation tool; Openfair pricing. Verified August 2026. OffDeal is a trademark of OffDeal, Inc. Openfair is not affiliated with OffDeal.

Find out what the business is worth, then decide

Speak to an Openfair advisor at no cost, or run a free valuation first. A published success fee, a CPA-prepared valuation, and deals handled at every size across the US and Canada.

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In-house CPAs. IBBA member. BBB accredited. United States and Canada.