The Best Podcasts for Buying a Business (2026 Edition)

The best podcasts for buying a business are also the fastest way to compress years of acquisition learning into weeks of listening. The short answer on where to start: Acquiring Minds for buyer stories, Acquisitions Anonymous for live deal analysis, and Think Like an Owner for the operator mindset. Those three cover the full arc from sourcing to running. The 25 additional shows below add depth by stage, niche, and geography.

This list was verified in June 2026. Four shows from the 2022 version of this roundup are now confirmed dead and removed. Eight shows that did not exist in 2022 are added.

Key Takeaways

• The starting trio: Acquiring Minds, Acquisitions Anonymous, and Think Like an Owner.
• Harvard launched Think Big, Buy Small in June 2024, the most academically rigorous ETA podcast yet.
• Codie Sanchez (BigDeal) and Helen Guo (SMB Deal Hunter) are the breakout new voices since 2022.
• Four podcasts from older lists are confirmed dead: skip The Alternative Investor, Right in the Middle Market, The Circle of Competence Podcast, and Big Time Small Business.
• The Messy Marketplace did not die. It evolved into Permanent Podcast by Permanent Equity and is still publishing.
• UK and European searchers now have three dedicated options: Found & Funded, M&A Zing, and the INSEAD ETA Podcast.

The Core Six (Start Here)

These six shows together cover the full acquisition journey. Start with all of them before going deeper.

1. Acquiring Minds

Host: Will Smith | Episodes: 460-plus | Frequency: Twice weekly

The definitive acquisition entrepreneurship podcast. Every episode is a first-person interview with someone who bought a real business: what they paid, how they financed it, what went wrong, what they would do differently. With 460-plus episodes spanning every industry, deal size, and SBA structure, there is almost certainly a buyer on the feed who did what you are trying to do. Start here.

2. Acquisitions Anonymous

Hosts: Bill D'Alessandro, Mills Snell, Heather Endresen, Michael Girdley | Episodes: 505-plus | Frequency: Twice weekly

Instead of interviewing past buyers, the hosts pick a real business currently for sale and tear it apart live: price it, flag the red flags, debate whether they would buy it. Nothing else trains deal instincts faster. The host roster has expanded since 2022 and now includes Heather Endresen alongside the original three.

3. Think Like an Owner

Host: Alex Bridgeman | Episodes: 297 | Frequency: Weekly

Deep-dive conversations with CEOs and operators who acquired and now run small companies. Less focused on deal mechanics, more on what it actually looks like to run a business for years after close. Essential listening for anyone who wants to understand the operator mindset before signing an LOI.

4. BigDeal

Host: Codie Sanchez | Launched: 2024 | Frequency: Weekly

Codie Sanchez became the loudest public voice for "boring business" acquisitions in 2024, and BigDeal is her dedicated podcast. The focus is on service businesses below $10M EBITDA: laundromats, car washes, landscaping, home services. High-energy and accessible for first-time buyers who have not yet found the traditional ETA community.

5. The SMB Deal Hunter Podcast

Host: Helen Guo | Launched: 2024 | Frequency: Weekly

Helen Guo's newsletter (200,000-plus subscribers) made her one of the most trusted voices in self-funded search. The podcast mirrors that: real buyer interviews with a sharp analytical lens on deal sourcing and acquisition mechanics. One of the fastest-growing shows in the space.

6. How2Exit: Buy, Don't Build

Host: Ronald P. Skelton | Episodes: 275-plus | Frequency: Weekly

Strong on creative deal structures, seller financing, and SBA mechanics for businesses valued below $20M. The episode catalog includes Roland Frasier (1,000-plus acquisitions) and other heavy hitters who rarely appear on more academic-leaning shows. Best for buyers who want tactical deal mechanics alongside the storytelling.

New Since 2022: Shows Worth Adding to Your Queue

These eight shows launched or broke through after the original 2022 podcast roundups were written. None appear on most existing lists.

7. Think Big, Buy Small

Host: Prof. Rick Ruback and Prof. Royce Yudkoff (Harvard Business School) | Launched: June 2024

The only Harvard-branded ETA podcast, from the authors of the HBR Guide to Buying a Small Business. Three seasons cover the full arc from search to acquisition to operations and exit. Densely practical, academically grounded, and genuinely useful for searchers who want frameworks alongside storytelling. Season 3 aired December 2025.

8. HoldCo Builders (now Buyers and Builders)

Host: PrivateEquityGuy | Launched: 2023 | Frequency: Monthly

The only podcast dedicated to the serial acquisition model. Guests have typically bought five to twenty-plus businesses, not just one. If the Constellation Software or Danaher playbook applied to SMBs interests you, this is your show. Active through late 2025.

9. Found & Funded

Host: Carl Lundberg (CEO, Gerald Edelman; Founder, ETA Awards) | Launched: November 2024 | Frequency: Weekly

UK-based but internationally scoped. Carl founded the ETA Awards, which gives him an unusual guest list: people who have won or competed for recognition in the space. Season 3 launched April 2025. Best option for UK and European searchers.

10. M&A Zing

Hosts: Gareth Hawkins and Alfie Lambert (BizCrunch co-founders) | Launched: 2025 | Frequency: Weekly

Weekly SMB M&A insights from the co-founders of BizCrunch, a UK deal marketplace. Topics span sourcing, acquisition, operating, and exit with a European market angle. Absent from all US-centric lists despite solid production quality.

11. INSEAD ETA and Search Funds Podcast

Host: INSEAD | Launched: 2024 | Frequency: Seasonal

The only podcast with a strong European and international ETA focus. Season 2 was recorded live at the INSEAD ETA Conference in Singapore in November 2025. If you are searching outside the US, this is the only show that specifically addresses your market context.

For Operators: Running the Business After Close

Most podcast lists stop at the close. These three focus on what comes next.

12. Owned and Operated

Host: John Wilson (with Jack Carr) | Episodes: 176-plus | Frequency: Three times weekly

The best podcast for home service business acquisition and roll-up strategy. John Wilson is a third-generation home service entrepreneur who has acquired and scaled multiple plumbing, HVAC, and electrical businesses. Practical, no-fluff, and highly specific. If you are buying in home services, this one is non-negotiable.

13. In the Trenches

Host: Steve Divitkos | Frequency: Bi-weekly

CEO-first conversations about the mental and operational realities of running an acquired business. Steve is unusually candid about leadership, loneliness, and the gap between what buyers expect and what ownership actually delivers. The most honest show on this list about the period between closing day and exit.

14. Permanent Podcast (formerly The Messy Marketplace)

Host: Permanent Equity (Brent Beshore) | Frequency: Monthly

The Messy Marketplace evolved into Permanent Podcast, a sharper show about buying, holding, and operating businesses with no exit plan. Permanent Equity manages roughly $1B in assets with a permanent capital model. Episodes are longer, denser, and more philosophical than most acquisition shows. Active through late 2025.

For Online Business Buyers

15. The Quiet Light Podcast

Hosts: Joe Valley and Mark Daoust | Episodes: 358-plus | Frequency: Weekly

The premier podcast for online business acquisition: SaaS, ecommerce, Amazon FBA, and content sites. Quiet Light has brokered 600-plus deals totaling over $300M. If you are buying a digital business rather than a brick-and-mortar one, this is your starting point.

16. Creator Stories

Hosts: Colin Keeley and Brent Sanders | Frequency: Weekly

Two entrepreneurs who buy and build internet businesses compare notes. Practical and candid about the SaaS and content site acquisition world. Covers deal mechanics for acquisitions in the $100K to $5M range that most main-street-focused shows skip.

Deal Mechanics, Valuation, and Financing

17. Business Buying Strategies

Host: Jonathan Jay (The Dealmaker's Academy) | Frequency: Weekly

Jonathan Jay specializes in buying businesses with minimal personal capital through creative structuring: deferred consideration, seller notes, and equity rollovers. UK-based but the mechanics apply globally. Best for buyers who want to understand the full range of deal structures beyond SBA loans.

18. Top M&A Entrepreneurs

Host: Jon Stoddard | Frequency: Weekly

Deep-dive interviews on deal sourcing, valuation, negotiation, and financing. Jon's guests include major M&A practitioners and buyers in the $1M to $100M range. Good complement to Acquiring Minds for buyers who want more analytical depth on deal mechanics.

19. Getting the Deal Done

Hosts: John and Jessica Martinka | Frequency: Bi-weekly

Deal-focused conversations from two M&A advisors who work with buyers and sellers in the lower middle market. Practical on negotiation, due diligence, and the mechanics of closing.

20. ValuationPodcast.com

Host: Melissa Gragg | Episodes: 200-plus | Frequency: Weekly

Despite being flagged as inactive in older 2022 roundups, ValuationPodcast.com has been publishing actively through June 2026. Business valuation for buyers, owners, attorneys, and advisors. Useful for understanding how sellers think about price and how to stress-test your own valuation model.

For Sellers and Exit Planners

Listening to these as a buyer is one of the most underrated preparation moves. Understanding why sellers sell, what they care about, and how they evaluate offers makes you a better acquirer.

21. Built to Sell Radio

Host: John Warrillow | Episodes: 549-plus | Frequency: Weekly (Fridays)

Every episode is an entrepreneur who recently sold their business, walking through what they did right, what they would change, and how the deal came together. The longest-running show in this category (since 2015). Critical for buyer psychology: understanding what owners care about in a deal makes you a better bidder.

22. The Deal Board

Hosts: Andy Cagnetta and Jessica Fialkovich | Frequency: Weekly

M&A broker and entrepreneur perspectives on what separates buyers who close from those who waste everyone's time. Practical and broker-eyed.

23. Scale Up With Nick Bradley

Host: Nick Bradley | Frequency: Weekly

Growth, acquisitions, and exits with a focus on moving from $1M to $10M. Includes strong episodes on buy-and-build strategy and preparing a business for eventual exit.

Search Funds and Academic ETA

24. Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition

Host: Brian O'Connor (Polsky Center, University of Chicago Booth) | Frequency: Bi-weekly

ETA fundamentals from one of the leading academic programs in the country. Lower production value than commercial shows but high signal-to-noise for traditional search fund searchers.

25. The Search Fund Podcast

Host: Jake Nicholson (SMEVentures) | Frequency: Monthly

Stories from search fund entrepreneurs globally, including funded and self-funded searchers. Jake brings an international perspective from his work at SMEVentures. Useful for searchers who want to hear from people going through the process right now.

26. Recon Labs

Hosts: Renny McPherson and Alexander Mears | Frequency: Bi-monthly

Two veterans pursuing business ownership through ETA share their process in real time. Niche but genuinely useful for ex-military buyers who want community and context from people with a similar background.

Broader Business and Ownership

27. The Business of Family

Host: Mike Boyd | Frequency: Monthly

Conversations with family business owners about stewardship, succession, and multi-generational wealth. Useful preparation for buyers targeting family-owned businesses: most SMBs for sale are founder- or family-owned, and understanding the emotional dynamics of a seller is underrated pre-LOI work.

Shows We Removed (Confirmed Inactive)

Every show in this section appeared on the 2022 version of this list. All are confirmed dead as of 2026.

Remove these from your podcast app. The feed icons may still appear but the shows are not producing new episodes.

How to Use This List by Stage

The right podcast depends on where you are in the journey.

Pre-search (exploring acquisition for the first time): Start with Acquiring Minds for buyer stories. Add Think Big, Buy Small for frameworks. BigDeal or SMB Deal Hunter if you prefer a more conversational tone.

Active search (sourcing and evaluating deals): Acquisitions Anonymous to train your deal instincts. Top M&A Entrepreneurs and How2Exit for deal mechanics. Business Buying Strategies if you want creative structuring beyond SBA loans.

Diligence and closing (LOI through close): Think Like an Owner for operator mindset. Getting the Deal Done for negotiation mechanics. ValuationPodcast.com to understand how sellers think about price.

New operator (post-close): Owned and Operated if you bought a home service business. In the Trenches for honest content about what running the business actually feels like. Permanent Podcast for long-hold philosophy.

Planning an exit: Built to Sell Radio. Non-negotiable.

Buying online or digital businesses: The Quiet Light Podcast and Creator Stories are the only shows that specifically address SaaS, ecommerce, and content site deal mechanics.

UK or European search: Found & Funded, M&A Zing, and the INSEAD ETA Podcast are the three best options for non-US searchers.

Find the Deals Worth Buying

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