The Financial Hiring Report: Who Hires Financial Professionals, Why, and What They Plan to Spend
Sam's List Editorial | 2026-10-05
Hiring a financial professional is one of the bigger decisions a business owner or household makes.
Sam's List, a directory and marketplace for financial professionals, analyzed answers from people across the US who used its matching quiz to find an accountant, bookkeeper, fractional CFO, or financial advisor.
Key findings
More than half of people looking want help within two weeks. Of everyone looking, 54% want to start within one to two weeks and 78% within a month.
Nearly half (49%) are hiring a financial professional for the first time. Another 36% are replacing the one they have.
Most people switching professionals say their current one is not meeting their needs. That is the main reason for 55% of people replacing theirs.
The typical yearly budget is $5,000 for an accountant and $60,000 for a fractional CFO. Two in three people looking for an accountant (66%) plan to spend $5,000 a year or less.
Business budgets for an accountant triple once revenue passes $1 million. The typical budget is $5,000 below $1 million in revenue and $15,000 between $1 million and $5 million.
People hiring an accountant for their business plan to spend twice as much as people hiring one for personal taxes. The typical budget is $10,000 a year for business-only help, compared with $5,000 for personal tax help only.
One in 10 people looking want a more affordable option. It is the main reason they started looking.
Bookkeepers are the most urgent hire. Of people looking for a bookkeeper, 70% want to start within one to two weeks, compared with 53% of people looking for an accountant.
People looking for a financial advisor are the most likely to be hiring for the first time. More than half (56%) have never worked with one, compared with 47% of people looking for an accountant.
More than half of people looking for a financial advisor have a net worth of $1 million or more. Among those who described themselves, 54% do. The help they most often want is financial planning (58%).
Who is hiring
Most people looking want an accountant (71%), followed by a financial advisor (15%), a bookkeeper (9%), and a fractional CFO (5%).
Among people looking for an accountant, bookkeeper, or fractional CFO, 50% want help with their business only. Another 28% want help with both their business and their personal finances, and 22% want personal tax help only.
People looking for a bookkeeper or a fractional CFO are almost all hiring for a business.
Who the help is for | Accountant | Bookkeeper | Fractional CFO | Everyone |
Business only | 40% | 99% | 100% | 50% |
Business and personal | 33% | 0% | 0% | 28% |
Personal only | 27% | 1% | 0% | 22% |
Solo workers are the largest group. Among people who described themselves, 38% are solopreneurs or freelancers, 27% have a net worth of $1 million or more, 16% invest in real estate, and 14% invest in crypto.
Most businesses looking are small: 59% of those that gave their revenue make under $1 million a year. Nearly half (46%) make under $500,000, while 11% make $5 million or more. Single-member LLCs are the most common structure (31%), ahead of S-corporations (20%), and half (51%) describe themselves as an established small or medium business.
Technology and software is the most common industry (13%), followed by consulting and e-commerce (10% each). California accounts for 22% of people who gave a state, followed by New York (11%), Texas (10%), and Florida (7%).
Industry | Share |
Technology and software | 13% |
Consulting | 10% |
E-commerce | 10% |
Media and creators | 7% |
Real estate | 7% |
Advertising and marketing | 6% |
Construction and trades | 6% |
Finance | 5% |
Healthcare | 5% |
Professional services | 3% |
All other industries | 28% |
Why they are hiring
Nearly half of people looking (49%) are hiring a financial professional for the first time, and 36% are replacing the one they have. The rest already have one and want more support, or are just exploring.
Already working with one? | Everyone | Business only | Personal only | Business and personal |
No, hiring for the first time | 49% | 45% | 56% | 43% |
Yes, replacing their current one | 36% | 36% | 33% | 48% |
Yes, want additional support | 7% | 10% | 5% | 3% |
Just exploring | 8% | 9% | 6% | 6% |
Switching is most common among people who want help with both their business and their personal finances (48%). More than half of people who want personal tax help only (56%) are hiring an accountant for the first time.
More than one in three people (35%) say their main reason for looking is to improve their financial strategy, and 24% say their current professional is not meeting their needs. Among people replacing their current professional, that share rises to 55%.
People who want personal tax help only are more than twice as likely to say they need help with a complex situation (22% compared with 9% of people hiring for a business only). People hiring for a business only are twice as likely to say their current professional is not meeting their needs (28% compared with 14% of people who want personal tax help only).
Two in five people (42%) say they do not have anyone yet. Another 15% are unhappy with who they work with, 11% want a second opinion on their current setup, and 10% are looking for a more affordable option.
Main reason for looking | Everyone | Business only | Personal only | Business and personal |
I don't have anyone yet | 42% | 45% | 47% | 27% |
I'm unhappy with who I'm currently working with | 15% | 10% | 16% | 31% |
I want a second opinion on my current setup | 11% | 13% | 8% | 10% |
I'm looking for a more affordable option | 10% | 13% | 5% | 9% |
My situation has changed and I need a new specialist | 6% | 9% | 5% | 9% |
Just exploring for now | 16% | 10% | 19% | 14% |
People who want help with both their business and their personal finances are three times as likely to be unhappy with their current professional as people hiring for a business only (31% compared with 10%). People hiring for a business only are the most likely to be looking for a cheaper option (13%).
How fast they want to start
More than half (54%) want to start within one to two weeks, and 78% within a month. Only 11% are just exploring.
The urgency is the same whether people are hiring for a business, for personal taxes, or for both. It differs by the kind of help: 70% of people looking for a bookkeeper want to start within one to two weeks, compared with 53% of those looking for an accountant, 52% of those looking for a financial advisor, and 45% of those looking for a fractional CFO.
How soon they want to start | Accountant | Bookkeeper | Fractional CFO | Financial advisor | Everyone |
Within 1-2 weeks | 53% | 70% | 45% | 52% | 54% |
Within a month | 26% | 8% | 27% | 20% | 24% |
Within 2-3 months | 11% | 7% | 17% | 9% | 11% |
Just exploring | 10% | 15% | 11% | 19% | 11% |
What they want help with
Three in four people looking for an accountant (74%) want help with tax preparation and filing, and 69% want help with tax strategy and planning. More than one in four (28%) also want bookkeeping.
Services wanted by people looking for an accountant | Share |
Tax prep and filing | 74% |
Tax strategy and planning | 69% |
Bookkeeping | 28% |
Sales tax compliance | 15% |
Payroll | 13% |
R&D tax credits | 9% |
IRS audit help | 8% |
International tax | 6% |
Financial advisor seekers most often want financial planning (58%), investment management (51%), tax strategy (48%), and retirement planning (45%). Fractional CFO seekers most often want help building out a finance team (31%), with an acquisition or merger (24%), or with better visibility into their numbers (24%).
Among people who want personal tax help, 46% describe their tax situation as moderate, such as investments or rental property, and 29% as complex, with several sources of income.
Most people are happy to work remotely: 41% have no preference on how they meet and 35% want virtual meetings only, while only 7% prefer to meet in person. Among businesses that answered the software question, 48% use QuickBooks Online and 25% use none.
What they plan to spend
The typical yearly budget for an accountant is $5,000, and for a fractional CFO it is $60,000. Two in three people looking for an accountant (66%) plan to spend $5,000 a year or less, and about one in five (19%) plan to spend $20,000 or more.
Who the help is for | Typical yearly budget | Plan to spend $5,000 or less | Plan to spend $20,000 or more |
Business only | $10,000 | 48% | 34% |
Personal only | $5,000 | 76% | 14% |
Business and personal | $5,000 | 80% | 4% |
People hiring an accountant for their business only report a typical budget of $10,000 a year, twice the $5,000 reported by people who want personal tax help only. One in three of them (34%) plan to spend $20,000 or more, compared with 14% of people who want personal tax help only.
The budget ladder: accountant budgets by revenue
Annual revenue | Typical yearly budget | Plan to spend $20,000 or more |
Under $100k | $5,000 | 4% |
$100k-$500k | $5,000 | 5% |
$500k-$1M | $5,000 | 13% |
$1M-$5M | $15,000 | 46% |
$5M or more | $20,000 | 54% |
Budgets barely move until a business approaches $1 million in revenue: the typical figure is $5,000 in every band below that. The typical budget triples to $15,000 for businesses with $1 million to $5 million in revenue, and nearly half of them (46%) plan to spend $20,000 or more. At $5 million or more, it rises to $20,000.
C-corporations and multi-member LLCs are the most likely to plan to spend $20,000 or more a year (28% each), compared with 13% of single-member LLCs. One in four established small or medium businesses (25%) plan to spend that much, compared with 8% of early-stage startups.
Business type | Plan to spend $5,000 or less | Plan to spend $20,000 or more |
C-corporation | 52% | 28% |
Multi-member LLC | 59% | 28% |
S-corporation | 56% | 24% |
Single-member LLC | 69% | 13% |
Established small or medium business | 56% | 25% |
Growing or scaling business | 58% | 23% |
Early-stage startup | 77% | 8% |
Businesses that use QuickBooks Online report a typical budget of $15,000 a year, compared with $5,000 for businesses with no accounting software.
People who already have an accountant and want more support report a typical budget of $20,000, and more than half of them (52%) plan to spend at least that much. First-time hires and people replacing their accountant both report a typical budget of $5,000. People who prefer to meet in person report a typical budget of $10,000, double the $5,000 of every other group.
Fewer people planned large budgets during tax season. From January to April, 15% of people looking for an accountant planned to spend $20,000 or more, compared with 22% in the months before.
How accountants, bookkeepers, fractional CFOs, and financial advisors compare
People hiring a fractional CFO, a part-time finance chief, plan to spend far more than people hiring an accountant. The typical budget is $60,000 a year, 12 times the typical accountant budget, and the middle half of budgets sits between about $29,000 and $91,000.
Bookkeepers are the most urgent hire: 70% of people looking for one want to start within one to two weeks. Nearly half (47%) do not have a bookkeeper yet, and 13% are looking for a more affordable option.
More than half (56%) of people looking for a financial advisor are hiring a financial professional for the first time, compared with 49% of everyone looking. Nearly one in five (19%) are just exploring, compared with 11% of everyone looking, and 52% want to start within one to two weeks. Nearly half (49%) say their main reason for looking is to improve their financial strategy, and among those who described themselves, 54% have a net worth of $1 million or more.
Accountant | Fractional CFO | Bookkeeper | Financial advisor | |
Typical yearly budget | $5,000 | $60,000 | N/A | N/A |
Plan to spend $20,000 or more | 19% | 81% | N/A | N/A |
Want to start within 1-2 weeks | 53% | 45% | 70% | 52% |
Hiring for a business only | 40% | 100% | 99% | N/A |
Don't have anyone yet | 35% | 36% | 47% | 49% |
Crypto investors
Nearly half (48%) of crypto investors want personal tax help only, compared with 25% of everyone else. Only 5% are hiring for a business only, compared with 39% of everyone else. Crypto investors are more likely to have a net worth of $1 million or more (38% compared with 25%), and they are about twice as likely to also invest in real estate (28% compared with 14%).
Nearly half (47%) of crypto investors are replacing their current professional, compared with 36% of everyone else. More of them say their main reason is to improve their financial strategy (44% compared with 34%), and 16% need help with a complex situation, compared with 11% of everyone else. Fewer describe their tax situation as basic (19% compared with 32%).
Three in four crypto investors (74%) plan to spend $5,000 a year or less on an accountant, compared with 66% of everyone else. Only 10% plan to spend $20,000 or more, compared with 18% of everyone else. Timing is about the same: 48% of crypto investors want to start within one to two weeks, compared with 50% of everyone else.
Crypto investors | Everyone else | |
Want personal tax help only | 48% | 25% |
Hiring for a business only | 5% | 39% |
Net worth of $1 million or more | 38% | 25% |
Also invest in real estate | 28% | 14% |
Replacing their current professional | 47% | 36% |
Main reason: improve their financial strategy | 44% | 34% |
Describe their tax situation as basic | 19% | 32% |
Plan to spend $5,000 a year or less | 74% | 66% |
Plan to spend $20,000 or more | 10% | 18% |
Want to start within 1-2 weeks | 48% | 50% |
Methodology
Sam's List analyzed anonymized answers from 1,926 people in the US who used the Sam's List matching quiz between January 2025 and October 2026 to find an accountant, bookkeeper, fractional CFO, or financial advisor.
Budgets come from 448 people who gave a yearly budget for an accountant (416) or fractional CFO (32) between August 2025 and April 2026. Financial advisor budgets are not included, and people looking for a financial advisor were not asked whether the help was for business or personal finances.
"Business only" means people who asked for business tax help or gave business details only; "personal only" means people who asked for personal tax help and gave no business details; "business and personal" means people who asked for both. Typical figures are medians. Revenue, budgets, and all other answers are self-reported. Data accurate as of October 2026.