Accountant & CPA Shortage Statistics 2026 (US)

Accountant and CPA Shortage Statistics 2026 (US)

Last updated: 29 Oct 2026

If you run a CPA firm, hiring experienced accountants is probably one of your biggest problems. The AICPA's 2026 survey says the same: for firms with 11 to 30 professionals, it is the No. 1 issue.

We pulled the numbers to see how big the gap really is. Every figure below comes from NASBA, BLS, the AICPA or another primary source, and each one links back to it. Where we did the math ourselves, we show the formula.

The Short Version

How many CPAs and accountants are there in the US?

The US had 650,667 actively licensed CPAs as of 27 Aug 2026, and 1,595,200 accountants and auditors were employed in 2025.

A CPA license is not the same as a seat in a public accounting firm. Only 21% of accountants and auditors work in accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping and payroll services. The rest work in other industries, so your firm competes with them for the same people.

• Actively licensed CPAs in the US: 650,667. (NASBA, as of 27 Aug 2026) Source
• US accountants and auditors employed in 2025: 1,595,200. (BLS, page modified 27 Aug 2026) Source
• Share employed in accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping and payroll services: 21%. (BLS, 27 Aug 2026) Source

How many accounting degrees are awarded each year?

US schools awarded 55,152 accounting bachelor's and master's degrees in 2023-24, down 6.6% from the year before.

That was the third drop in a row. Compound the three (0.926 x 0.904 x 0.934 = 0.782) and the 2023-24 class is about 22% smaller than the 2020-21 class. This is our calculation, not an AICPA figure.

There is one early sign of a turn. Undergraduate accounting enrollment rose 12% in spring 2025. Those students have not graduated yet, so it does not close the gap today.

• Accounting bachelor's and master's degrees awarded in 2023-24: 55,152. (AICPA, 27 Oct 2025) Source
• Drop in degrees awarded in 2022-23: 9.6%. (AICPA, 27 Oct 2025) Source
• Drop in degrees awarded in 2021-22: 7.4%. (AICPA, 27 Oct 2025) Source
• Accounting bachelor's degrees awarded in 2023-24: 40,817, down 3.3%. (AICPA, citing IPEDS, the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System, 27 Oct 2025) Source
• Master's degrees in accounting or taxation awarded in 2023-24: 14,335, down approximately 15%. (AICPA, citing IPEDS, 27 Oct 2025) Source
• Undergraduate accounting enrollment, spring 2025: 266,507, up 12% (29,312 students). (AICPA, citing National Student Clearinghouse Research Center estimates) Source
• New graduates hired in 2024 by firms in the AICPA survey: 11,985, of whom 75% were accounting graduates. (AICPA, 27 Oct 2025) Source
• Firms that hired in 2024 and expect to hire the same or more in 2025: 75%. (AICPA, 27 Oct 2025) Source
• Firms that hired in 2024 and expect lower hiring in 2025: 18%. (AICPA, 27 Oct 2025) Source

How many people are sitting for the CPA exam?

87,660 candidates took the CPA exam in 2025, up from 74,165 in 2024.

That is 18.2% more candidates overall (87,660 / 74,165 = 1.182). New candidates grew faster, up 30.7% from 27,994 to 36,590 (36,590 / 27,994 = 1.307). More people are entering the pipeline.

• Candidates who took the CPA exam in 2025: 87,660. (NASBA, 18 Aug 2026) Source
• New candidates who took the exam in 2025: 36,590. (NASBA, 18 Aug 2026) Source
• Candidates who passed their final exam section in 2025: 23,978. (NASBA, 18 Aug 2026) Source
• Candidates who took the exam in 2024: 74,165, including 27,994 new candidates. (NASBA, 12 Aug 2025) Source
• Candidates who passed their final exam section in 2024: 13,070. (NASBA, 12 Aug 2025) Source
• New candidates entering the pipeline in 2023, the highest since 2016: 42,626. (AICPA, 27 Oct 2025) Source
• New candidates entering the pipeline in the first half of 2025: 16,448. (AICPA, 27 Oct 2025) Source

Which states have the highest CPA exam pass rates?

Nebraska had the highest CPA exam pass rate in both 2025 (64.7%) and 2024 (61.9%).

Even the best state stayed under 65%.

How are CPA licensure rules changing?

More than 40 jurisdictions besides Minnesota have changed their statute or rules since 2025 to add new routes to CPA licensure.

The goal is to widen who can qualify. The sources we found do not yet show how many extra CPAs these changes will add, so we are not guessing at a number.

• Jurisdictions besides Minnesota that have added CPA licensure pathways since 2025: more than 40. (Minnesota Society of CPAs tracker, updated 12 Aug 2026) Source
• Ohio's governor signed the first pathways law (HB 238) on 8 Jan 2025. (Minnesota Society of CPAs tracker, updated 12 Aug 2026) Source

What is the job outlook and pay for accountants?

The median US accountant or auditor earned $83,680 in May 2025, and BLS projects 5% employment growth from 2025 to 2035.

Two comparisons put that in context. Accountants earn about 64% more than the median worker ($83,680 vs $50,980, a gap of $32,700, or 64.1%). And BLS projects 115,300 openings a year, about 2.1 times the 55,152 degrees awarded in 2023-24 (115,300 / 55,152 = 2.09). Not every opening goes to a new graduate, so read that as a scale comparison, not an exact gap.

• Median annual wage for accountants and auditors, May 2025: $83,680. (BLS, 27 Aug 2026) Source
• Median annual wage for all occupations, May 2025: $50,980. (BLS) Source
• Lowest-paid 10% earned less than $56,020. (BLS) Source
• Highest-paid 10% earned more than $144,090. (BLS) Source
• Median wage in accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping and payroll services: $81,490. (BLS) Source
• Median wage in finance and insurance: $93,290. (BLS) Source
• Projected employment growth, 2025 to 2035: 5%. (BLS) Source
• Projected change in jobs, 2025 to 2035: 79,400. (BLS) Source
• Projected employment in 2035: 1,674,600. (BLS) Source
• Projected annual openings: 115,300. (BLS) Source

How hard is it for firms to find and keep staff?

Hiring experienced staff is the No. 1 current issue for CPA firms with 11 to 30 professionals, according to the AICPA's 2026 survey.

Finding people was also the top issue in the 2024 survey for every firm category except sole practitioners. Keeping them is the second problem: retention shows up as a top five-year issue in every size group except solo practitioners. The pressure is on both ends of the hiring process.

• Respondents in the 2026 PCPS CPA Firm Top Issues Survey, fielded 20 Apr to 22 May 2026: 629. (AICPA, 23 Jun 2026) Source
• Top current issue for firms with 11 to 30 professionals: hiring experienced staff (No. 1). (AICPA, 23 Jun 2026) Source
• Top five-year issue across all firm-size groups: technology and AI change management (No. 1). (AICPA, 23 Jun 2026) Source
• Firm-size groups that list staff retention as a top five-year issue: all except solo practitioners. (AICPA, 23 Jun 2026) Source
• Five-year issue lists, of six size groups, that include staff recruitment: 4 of 6. (AICPA, 23 Jun 2026) Source
• Top issue in the 2024 survey for every firm category except sole practitioners: finding qualified staff. (Journal of Accountancy, 6 Jun 2024) Source
• Rank of retaining qualified staff for firms with 11 to 20 and 21+ professionals in 2024: No. 2. (Journal of Accountancy, 6 Jun 2024) Source

How many CPA firms face succession challenges?

55% of multi-owner firms were experiencing succession challenges in the AICPA's 2020 survey, up from 26% in 2016.

The share more than doubled in four years. This is the most recent version of the survey we could verify, so treat it as a 2020 snapshot, not a 2026 number.

• Multi-owner firms experiencing succession challenges, 2020 survey: 55%. (Journal of Accountancy, 2 Dec 2020) Source
• Multi-owner firms experiencing succession challenges, 2016: 26%. (Journal of Accountancy, 2 Dec 2020) Source
• US-based respondents in the 2020 succession survey: 587 (270 multi-owner firms, 250 sole-owner firms, 62 sole practitioners). (Journal of Accountancy, 2 Dec 2020) Source

How many CPA firms outsource or offshore work?

About 30% of firms outsource domestically and 25% outsource to offshore workers, based on the AICPA 2023 National MAP Survey.

Another 12% said they planned to start offshoring, and 14% said they planned to start outsourcing domestically.

For how firms set up these engagements, see our guide to outsourced bookkeeping for CPAs.

• Firms in the AICPA 2023 National MAP Survey: more than 1,100. (Journal of Accountancy, 1 Nov 2024) Source
• Firms that outsource domestically: about 30%. (Journal of Accountancy, 1 Nov 2024) Source
• Firms that outsource to offshore workers: 25%. (Journal of Accountancy, 1 Nov 2024) Source
• Firms that plan to start outsourcing domestically: 14%. (Journal of Accountancy, 1 Nov 2024) Source
• Firms that plan to start offshoring: 12%. (Journal of Accountancy, 1 Nov 2024) Source

What is happening to bookkeeping jobs?

BLS projects bookkeeping, accounting and auditing clerk employment to fall 6% from 2025 to 2035, a loss of 85,600 jobs.

Put that next to the accountant forecast. Accountant and auditor jobs are projected to grow by 79,400 over the same period, so the two roles together shrink by 6,200 jobs (79,400 - 85,600).

• Bookkeeping, accounting and auditing clerks employed in 2025: 1,532,400. (BLS, 27 Aug 2026) Source
• Projected change in clerk employment, 2025 to 2035: -6%. (BLS) Source
• Projected change in clerk jobs, 2025 to 2035: -85,600. (BLS) Source
• Projected annual openings for clerks: 144,100. (BLS) Source
• Median annual wage for clerks, May 2025: $50,670. (BLS) Source

What does this mean for your CPA firm?

Fewer new graduates are entering the field, and firms say hiring experienced staff is a top problem. A quarter of firms already offshore some work, and another 12% planned to start.

Etisson places dedicated offshore accounting professionals with US CPA firms. Onboarding takes 48 hours, and you can see the work before you commit with a free 40-hour pilot.

Ready to see it on your own client files? Book a free 40-hour pilot call.

Methodology and how to cite this page

Every statistic comes from the organization that produced it: government agencies, regulators and professional bodies such as the AICPA and NASBA. We opened each source page and confirmed the number before listing it. Where a source cites another publisher, that publisher is named in the line. We do not use other statistics roundups. Figures marked as our calculation use only numbers on this page, with the formula shown.

We check source links monthly and refresh numbers as new reports are released.

How to cite: Etisson. (2026). Accountant and CPA Shortage Statistics 2026 (US). Retrieved from https://www.etisson.com/blog/accountant-shortage-statistics

FAQs

How many CPAs are there in the US?

The US had 650,667 actively licensed CPAs as of 27 Aug 2026, according to NASBA.

How much do accountants and auditors earn in the US?

The median annual wage was $83,680 in May 2025, versus $50,980 for all occupations, according to BLS.

Is the pipeline of accounting graduates shrinking?

Accounting degrees awarded fell 6.6% to 55,152 in 2023-24, but undergraduate enrollment in accounting programs rose 12% to 266,507 in spring 2025.

How many people take the CPA exam each year?

87,660 candidates took the CPA exam in 2025, including 36,590 new candidates, according to NASBA.

How many CPA firms offshore work?

25% of firms outsource to offshore workers and 12% plan to start, according to the AICPA 2023 National MAP Survey.