The accounting industry is filled with several financial giants with billions of dollars in revenue and asset. Within these thousands of companies, there are a handful of firms that stand out from the rest. Each of these top accounting firms provides its clients accounting services of different flavors due to their business model, reach, and capacity.
Among the TOP-15 best accounting firms in the world, four firms are considered the big four of the industry. These companies are Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdeler (KPMG), and Ernst & Young (EY). Each of these firms is an institution that has a wide network of accounting services and companies at its disposal. Amongst these four, PwC is considered by many experts the best accounting firm in the world.
In no particular order, the TOP-15 accounting firms in 2023 are listed and discussed below.
- Deloitte
- PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC)
- Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdeler (KPMG)
- Ernst & Young (EY)
- RSM International
- BDO Global
- Baker Tilly International
- CBIZ MHM
- CohnReznick
- Plante Moran
- Grant Thornton International
- Smith and Williamson
- Moore Stephens
- Mazars
- Haines Watts
Deloitte
Deloitte is one of the largest accounting companies that is operating at the moment. Established in 1845, it has thousands of offices and employs, directly and indirectly, hundreds of thousands of people. Similarly, this firm was able to generate a revenue of over $45 billion in the previous year. Deloitte offers its clients a wide range of accounting services such as tax services, assurance, and much more.
Amongst the four big accounting firms, Deloitte has one of the best salary packages for its entry-level workers. On average, a new worker at Deloitte can earn more than $70,000, which is amongst the highest in the industry.
PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC)
Arguably, PwC is the biggest accounting firm in the world. This firm came into existence in 1998 after the merger of two accounting companies. Last year alone, PwC generated over $40 billion, which was only surpassed by the earning of Deloitte. In addition, the accounting firm offers its clients financial services such as financial consulting, general auditing, assurance, and tax services.
PwC has an open university that allows it to offer both its workers and other potential accountants the opportunity to develop into outstanding experts.
Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdeler (KPMG)
KPMG began operating in 1987. Within the last 30 years, this accounting firm has slowly occupied the position of being amongst the four big accounting firms in the world. Within almost 160 countries, KPMG has over 700 offices, with multiple offices in certain locations. The size of this organization allows it to generate a revenue of over $29 billion last year alone. The company’s financial buoyancy is tied to the firm’s ability to expand and merge with other accounting firms to create a hybrid accounting network that can provide distinct and credible services to its clients.
Ernst & Young
Ernst & Young, like the four other accounting firms, operates as an accounting network. This business generates over $35 billion on average. Ernst & Young began operations in 1989 after the merger of two other accounting firms. The creation of this new company led to its expansion into hundreds of countries all across the world. Also, the firm has hundreds of offices, which offer general financial services such as financial transactions, taxes processing, advertising, and much more.
Just like other accounting firms that are referred to as the big four, Ernst & Young has an inclusive workforce due to its size and reach. The company makes an effort to keep its staff educated and up-to-date with current trends within the accounting and financial sectors.
RSM International
Although RSM US is not amongst the big four accounting firms, it is a fairly decent accounting company. This firm provides consulting tax and audit services to a large number of companies, which are generally described as mid-market financial institutions or businesses. This company has its headquarters in London, England. With annual average revenue of over $5 billion, this company has several offices in America, Canada, and other countries within Europe. Additionally, the firm employs thousands of workers across these countries.
BDO Global
BDO is an accounting firm that was founded in 1964. When it was opened, this firm had its headquarters in New York. However, the main office was moved to Chicago after some years. The global branch of the company operates out of Belgium. As the company expanded, it has been able to grow into an established accounting firm that averages almost $10 billion in revenue over the past five years.
In addition, BDO Global has over 1,000 offices across 130 nations. Each of these offices is a subsidiary of the mother company. In particular, BDO Global is localized in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, and China. Some of these subsidiaries have been engaged in mergers with other accounting firms.
Baker Tilly International
Baker Tilly is another accounting agency that was established in 1988. This firm has its headquarters in London, the capital of England. Also, it operates within almost 150 countries with multiple branches within each nation. Last year, the company recorded a revenue of over $4 billion, which made it amongst the top 10 accounting firms in terms of revenue.
CBIZ MHM
CBIZ MHM is a big accounting company with thousands of workers. It offers its global clients a wide range of financial services such as audit, assurance, and much more. CBIZ MHM makes a decent amount of revenue that sums up to about $10 billion annually. This company has its headquarters in Cleveland, Ohio. However, it has several offices in different countries across America, Europe, and Asia.
CohnReznick
CohnReznick LLP is an international accounting company with its head office in New York. It is one of the largest accounting firms in the world and amongst the biggest in the United States. CohnReznick was created in 2012 when two accounting companies – J.H. Cohn and Reznick Group – merged into one. This merger significantly increased the company’s reach as it can serve thousands of clients from around the world.
All around the globe, CohnReznick has close to 5,000 workers across 2 dozen locations. In addition, it has several subsidiaries in different countries. In particular, this accounting firm has a team of tax professionals, assurance, and advisors in several specialists. Apart from its core role of accounting services, CohnReznick promotes policies in corporate governance, social justice, sustainability, and renewable progression. This enterprise also champions many community service outreach programs.
Plante Moran
Plante Moran is a big financial institution with revenue that averages $500 million annually. This company offers several services such as investment banking, auditing, resource management, and much more. Established in 1924, Plante Moran has its corporate headquarters in Michigan. Now, the company has several branches all around the world.
Elorion Plante was founded by Plante Moran. This accounting firm continued to operate until 1950 when Frank Moran became a partner. From then on, the business started by Elorion Plante became Plante Moran as it is known today. Before starting the business, the pair meet when Moran was tutoring Plante’s daughter. Since their joint venture, Plante Moran has grown to become among the top accounting firms in the world.
Plante Moran has a workforce of over 3,000 employees across almost 30 offices. These offices are spread across North America, Asia, South America, and Europe. Also, this enterprise is part of Praxity, which is a consortium of accounting firms from different countries. In addition, Plante Moran is firmly within the top 100 list of the Fortune 500 companies. In particular, several surveys show workers love being employed by this accounting firm.
Grant Thornton International
With headquarters in London, Grant Thornton was established in 1980. It has a large income fee, which puts it within the top 10 in that category. This firm also has one of the most numbers of employees in the accounting industry. As such, this business employs in excess of 50,000 workers. In terms of services, Grant Thornton offers tax services, advisory services, assurance, and more. Likewise, this business gets an average of $6 billion globally.
Smith and Williamson
Smith and Williamson is another accounting firm with headquarters in London. However, this company initially started operating in 1881 in Glasgow. Since then, the firm has grown to have hundreds of offices in more than 100 countries. Over the years, Smith and Williamson has been involved in several mergers. In recent years, the firm has merged with other accounting companies in 2018, 2020, and 2022.
Moore Stephens
As the de facto headquarters of accounting firms, London is also home to Moore Stephens. Starting in 1907, this financial institution has over 600 offices on all continents. Plus, it employs nearly 30,000 workers. Predominately, Moore Stephens offers financial services in food and agriculture, aviation, education, energy, and much more. This business works within this industry by establishing roots within a community.
Mazars
Although Mazars operates out of Paris, it has a global outlook in almost 100 countries. It has many joint ventures and partners globally. It is also involved in accounting, auditing, and general financial consulting. In addition, this firm employs a little over 40,000 professionals who are experts in what they do. In 2014, Mazars made a global turnover of over $1 billion, which steadily kept increasing.
Haines Watts
With its head office in London, Haines Watts is among the top 20 accounting firms around the world. It has hundreds of offices globally and thousands of workers. In addition, Haines Watts is part of the Geneva Group, which is an international association of law, accounting, and consulting firms. This accounting business has participated in several mergers. The most recent one involved a company named Ocean Consultancy.
Biggest Accounting Firms in the US
As the economic center of the world, America is full of accounting firms. However, there are a handful of firms considered the biggest in the US, which are Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), Ernst & Young (EY), Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdeler (KPMG), and Binder Dijker Otte (BDO).
Deloitte
As it stands now, Deloitte is the largest accounting business in the country, as it receives an average yearly revenue that exceeds $50 billion. Deloitte gains most of its revenue from financial advisory, consulting, tax preparation, and audit from businesses involved in financial services, technology, and healthcare provision.
PwC
PwC comes in second as the largest account organization in America. It also averages a yearly revenue in excess of $40 billion. In general, this firm offers similar services to what Deloitte provides to its customers.
EY
Right after Deloitte and PwC are EY with an average yearly revenue in excess of $30 billion. With its main headquarters in London, EY offers specialized accounting services to its clients in the US.
KPMG
Every year, KPMG generates nearly the same amount of revenue as EY, which averages close to $30 billion. As such, this firm offers a wide range of account services across the country.
BDO
BDO is another big accounting firm that operates in the US. However, this financial institution is further away from the big four in terms of revenue as it makes an average yearly income of $10 billion.
TOP Audit Firms in the World
Within accounting firms, there are a few firms that specialize in auditing the accounts of businesses. In general, these audit firms are responsible for examining the financial accounts of a business independently. At the moment, the top audit firms in the world are the same Deloitte, PwC, EY, KPMG, and BDO.
Big Four Ranking in 2023
In 2023, the big four accounting firms are none other than Deloitte, PwC, EY, and KPMG. These businesses are called the big four because they are the biggest and most dominant firms in the industry. In addition, these businesses share a large portion of the market share of the industry. Generally, this ranking does not change much as these firms compete to remain dominant.
Due to the dominance and market monopoly of the big four, these firms are increasingly being watched by regulators. In response to this pressure, these businesses have enhanced their accounting and auditing capacity by investing in technology that minimizes error and increases quality. In turn, this pressure has become a blessing in disguise as the firms seem to get better every year.
