# M&A Advisor Fees

> M&A advisor fees on the Lehman and Double Lehman scales, with the minimum fee and retainer credit that decide what you actually pay.

## Key facts

- The Lehman scale's effective rate falls from 5.00% on a $1M deal to 1.40% on a $25M one, because every scale is a ladder rather than a flat percentage.
- Double Lehman is exactly twice the original at every deal size, which is why quoting a scale without naming which one says almost nothing.
- A minimum fee overrides both below a certain size: a $150,000 minimum on a $1.5M deal is a 10% effective rate whatever scale is printed above it.
- Above $25,000,000 of EBITDA an advisor can no longer rely on the M&A broker exemption and must be a registered broker-dealer.
- Retainers credited against the success fee cost nothing at completion; uncredited ones are additive, and the engagement letter decides which.

## Key pages

- [What are M&A advisor fees on a deal your size?](https://madvisorfees.com/): the main tool, answer above the fold.
- [The Lehman formula, and why Double Lehman replaced it](https://madvisorfees.com/lehman-formula/): The 5-4-3-2-1 ladder, the doubled version now standard in the US lower middle market, and the deal size where each stops making sense.
- [M&A retainers: credited, uncredited, and what each means](https://madvisorfees.com/ma-advisory-retainer/): A retainer credited against the success fee costs nothing at completion. An uncredited one is pure addition. The engagement letter decides, and it is negotiable.
- [The tail clause: paying a fee after the mandate ends](https://madvisorfees.com/engagement-letter-tail/): A tail makes the success fee payable if you sell to an introduced buyer after termination. Standard and reasonable, but its length and its buyer list are negotiable.
- [The minimum fee: what actually applies on a small deal](https://madvisorfees.com/minimum-fee/): Below about $2m, the published scale is decoration and the minimum fee is the real price. How to find your effective rate before signing.
- [What the Lehman and Double Lehman scales cost at US deal sizes, 2026](https://madvisorfees.com/#data): original data table, updated 2026-08-15.
- [Full site content as markdown](https://madvisorfees.com/llms-full.txt)

## Data

- What the Lehman and Double Lehman scales cost at US deal sizes, 2026. Methodology: Every figure is this page's own calculator, run at zero retainer and zero minimum fee, so it shows the SCALE alone with nothing layered on top. The Lehman ladder is 5, 4, 3, 2 then 1 percent on each successive million of deal value; Double Lehman is 10, 8, 6, 4 then 2 percent. Neither is a statutory rate and no source publishes them as one: they are market conventions, which is why they are presented as arithmetic you can check rather than as a measurement. Real engagement letters add a minimum fee, a retainer and a tail, and any of the three can move the effective rate by more than the choice of scale does. Deal-size bands are those used by the IBBA and M&A Source Market Pulse survey, which tracks US business sales up to $50M.
- Last updated: 2026-08-15. Every figure cites its source inline.
- Source: 15 U.S.C. 78o(b)(13), the M&A broker exemption (Cornell LII): https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/15/78o
- Source: IRS, Sale of a Business: https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/sale-of-a-business
- Source: SBA, Close or sell your business: https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/manage-your-business/close-or-sell-your-business
- Source: FINRA BrokerCheck: https://brokercheck.finra.org/
- Source: IBBA and M&A Source, Market Pulse Q2 2025 survey: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/the-ibba-and-ma-source-release-the-market-pulse-q2-2025-survey-302523561.html

## Citation

Cite as: "What the Lehman and Double Lehman scales cost at US deal sizes, 2026", M&A Advisor Fees, https://madvisorfees.com/ (updated 2026-08-15).

## About

- M&A Advisor Fees is a site operated by Ellul Solutions Ltd. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to any advisory firm or regulator named here, and it is neither a law firm nor a tax adviser. Nothing on it is legal, tax or transaction advice. The Lehman and Double Lehman ladders are market conventions rather than statutory rates, and this page prices them as arithmetic you can check; what any particular advisor charges is set by an engagement letter, and the minimum fee, retainer credit and tail in that letter routinely matter more than the scale printed at the top of it. We take no commission from any firm and carry no paid placements.
- Operated by Ellul Solutions Ltd. Contact: enquiries@madvisorfees.com