Lehman Scale Calculator

Free Lehman scale calculator: classic tiered success fee on $1M slices, optional Double Lehman, minimum fee, retainer credit, blended %, tranche charts, scenario rows—M&A education, not legal advice.

Lehman Scale Calculator | M&A Success Fee (5-4-3-2-1) + Charts

Important: The Lehman formula (often called the Lehman scale) is a historic tiered success-fee model for M&A and brokerage contexts—real engagements add retainers, fee caps, collars, carve-outs, and counsel. This page is an educational estimator, not legal or investment advice, and not a commitment from any bank.

Summary: Enter transaction value (enterprise or equity—your label). The tool applies the classic 5% · 4% · 3% · 2% · 1% schedule on successive $1 million slices, shows blended %, optional Double Lehman, a minimum fee floor, and two charts (fee share by tranche + dollar bars) plus scenario rows.

Lehman scale calculator (classic & double fee)

If you are a founder hearing “we work on Lehman” for the first time, you are not alone—this jargon is older than most SaaS products. The widget below turns the staircase into numbers you can sanity-check before your lawyer redlines the engagement letter.

Classic schedule (what the script implements)
  • 5% of the first $1,000,000
  • 4% of the next $1,000,000
  • 3% of the third $1,000,000
  • 2% of the fourth $1,000,000
  • 1% of everything above $4,000,000
Deal inputs

Success fee, blended rate, and charts will appear here.

For modified schedules, fairness opinions, and why your lawyer still earns their retainer, read Lehman scale fees in plain English below.