Selling Your Accounting Firm or CPA Practice
A confidential, advisor-run process built to create competitive tension among vetted buyers — not a listing on a broker board. Understand what your firm is worth, who is buying in 2026, and how a sell-side process protects your value.
Inquiries are strictly confidential — no public listing of your firm.
A listing is not a process
Search "accounting firm for sale" and you will find listing marketplaces and practice-broker boards. Posting your firm to a board is not the same as running a sell-side process — and the difference shows up in your final number.
4x – 8x adjusted EBITDA
rising to 7x–11x for scaled, advisory-led platforms; smaller practices are often priced at 0.75x–1.5x of gross fees, driven mostly by recurring-revenue and CAS/advisory mix
Who is buying accounting firms in 2026
The buyer universe for accounting and CPA firms has widened. Private equity is now actively building advisory platforms, not just funding succession deals — which is exactly why advisory-heavy, recurring-revenue firms are being bid up.
PE-backed platforms & consolidators
Private-equity-sponsored platforms acquiring for scale, advisory capability, and recurring revenue — Blackstone–Citrin Cooperman, Hellman & Friedman–Baker Tilly/Moss Adams, New Mountain–Grant Thornton, Charlesbank–Aprio. A record 183 PE-backed accounting deals were tracked in 2025. Usually partnership structures with rollover equity and earnouts, not clean exits.
Regional strategic acquirers
Larger firms acquiring to add capacity, talent, and reach — the public consolidator CBIZ (after its $2.3B Marcum acquisition), plus BDO, RSM, CliftonLarsonAllen, and regional strategics. They value continuity of staff and client relationships.
Individual-buyer succession
A single buyer or rising partner acquiring the practice for succession. Best fit for smaller, owner-dependent firms with a clear transition runway.
The CFO Project — a CFO-advisory membership and training platform with 500+ members — partnered with Broadtree Partners (private equity), with SDR Ventures as exclusive M&A advisor.
A clean example of PE buying into the accounting and advisory space, and of a founder-led firm partnering rather than simply closing. Proof that buyers want advisory and recurring revenue — not just compliance hours.
How a sell-side process works, end to end
A structured process is what turns "I got an offer" into "I ran a market and chose the best one." Each stage is designed to protect your confidentiality and your leverage.
- 013–5 weeks
Preparation & positioning
Normalize financials, build the confidential information memorandum, and frame the advisory/recurring-revenue story that moves your multiple.
- 021–2 weeks
Valuation & strategy
Establish a defensible value range and target the right buyer archetype — platform, strategic, or succession.
- 034–6 weeks
Confidential buyer outreach
Approach a curated set of vetted buyers under NDA. No public listing, no exposure to clients or staff.
- 042–4 weeks
Offers & LOI
Drive competitive tension to a deadline, compare structures side by side, and negotiate the letter of intent.
- 054–8 weeks
Diligence
Manage the buyer's financial, client, and quality-of-earnings review while keeping the deal on track.
- 062–4 weeks
Close & transition
Finalize terms, fund, and execute the retention/transition plan that keeps clients and staff in place.
Deal structures owners should understand
Most accounting-firm deals are not all-cash at close. Knowing the levers in advance is how you avoid leaving value — or protection — on the table.
Asset vs. equity sale
Whether the buyer purchases the practice's assets or the entity itself changes tax treatment and liability — a decision worth modeling before you go to market.
Earnouts
A portion of price tied to post-close revenue or client retention. Common in platform deals; the terms decide whether it is fair or a discount in disguise.
Retention & transition periods
Buyers price in your continued involvement to retain clients. Length and compensation are negotiable and material to your net outcome.
Rollover equity
Reinvesting part of your proceeds into the acquiring platform — a "second bite" if the platform grows and sells again. Standard in PE partnership structures.
What to fix before you go to market
The same levers buyers price are the ones you can move beforehand. Addressing them early is the highest-ROI work an owner can do before a sale.
De-risk owner dependence
Buyers discount firms that revolve around one partner. Distribute relationships and document workflows so the practice runs without you.
Document recurring revenue
Make the recurring and advisory/CAS revenue explicit and durable — it is the single biggest driver of a premium multiple.
Clean up realization
Improve realization and collection rates; unbilled and written-down work reads as margin a buyer will not pay for.
Lock in staff continuity
Retention and continuity of key staff protects the client base — and the multiple — through transition.
Frequently asked questions
Through a confidential sell-side process: prepare and value the firm, approach vetted buyers under NDA, drive competitive offers, negotiate the LOI, and manage diligence to close. The goal is to run a market rather than accept a single inbound offer.
Accounting and CPA firms commonly sell for roughly 0.8x–1.5x revenue or 4x–8x adjusted EBITDA, with scaled, advisory-led platforms reaching 7x–11x. Recurring-revenue share, CAS/advisory mix, and client concentration drive where you land. See our accounting-firm valuation guide for current bands.
PE-backed platforms and consolidators, regional strategic acquirers, and individual succession buyers. In 2026, private equity is actively acquiring advisory and recurring-revenue firms, often through partnership structures with rollover equity.
A well-run sell-side process typically runs four to seven months from preparation to close, depending on firm size, diligence complexity, and the transition plan.
Start a confidential valuation conversation
No public listing, no upfront fees. Understand what your firm is worth and what a real sell-side process could deliver. 100% success fee · $0 upfront · $1B+ closed.