Most accounting and bookkeeping firms are still flying blind when it comes to pricing, and it's eating into their margins.
Before I stepped into accounting tech, I spent years helping SaaS companies bring products to market across multiple industries. Even when we were launching disruptive technology, we always had something today's accounting firms readily lack: transparent price benchmarks. We could see what the market was charging, test value and adjust accordingly.
And pricing is still largely a guessing game in accounting today.
Walk into any firm and you'll find services are mainly priced based on gut feel or fear of client pushback, rather than data. Undercharging is rampant. And when pricing is one of the most powerful levers for profitable and sustainable growth, that's a real problem.
Data is the fear killer
Most firm owners I talk to aren't bad at pricing; they're simply flying without instruments. They know their value, but they lack the visibility and confidence to back it with data.
That's why so many firms default to low flat fees or hourly rates just to avoid awkward client conversations. But pricing shouldn't be emotional; it should be empirical. This lack of pricing transparency is especially relevant considering
That's not just inflation. It's a fundamental shift. Firms are finally realizing they can't just scale on "what feels right."
So what's holding them back? Fear of losing clients: 28% of firms cite this as their top reason for not increasing prices. But that fear disappears when you have data to stand on. Seeing what similar firms charge gives context and justification. It replaces fear with facts.
AI turns data into direction
While pricing surveys are valuable, the next leap is personalization. It allows the industry to move from static price benchmarks to insights that are dynamically tailored to each firm.
AI makes that possible. We've already seen it help firms analyze reports, draft proposals and summarize meetings. Now, imagine pointing that same intelligence toward pricing.
In other industries, we're already seeing companies leverage AI for pricing. In e-commerce, AI is analyzing purchasing behavior, automating discounts and powering dynamic pricing. In hospitality, it is used to adjust fares and hotel rates based on predicted demand. In insurance, AI analyzes risk, helps detect fraud and recommends adjusting premiums.
However, AI is only as good as the data behind it. You need up-to-date data that's constantly refreshed and reflects real-world prices clients are paying to power AI pricing intelligence.
When AI meets a robust dataset, you unlock real-time, firm-specific pricing guidance, helping accounting firms understand not just what others charge but what they could charge. Pricing stops being a guessing game and starts becoming a growth engine.
Intelligent pricing also relies on business context, client relationships and the value delivered. Comparing pricing for accounting services isn't apples-to-apples. Factors such as location, firm size and the scope of work also need to be considered. The AI model needs to be trained to look at more than just the service name and description. And it needs to be able to draw upon dynamic, ever-changing pricing data. Static surveys won't cut it. This is how accounting firms can go beyond pricing with gut feel to pricing that's backed by data that's highly relevant to them.
Above all, AI pricing tools should be transparent, rather than a black box that doesn't back up suggestions with reasoning. And it's not a silver bullet on its own as pricing should always be reviewed by a human. The "art" of pricing isn't an art at all. It's data. It's technology. It's science. And it's actionable.
AI-powered pricing for the accounting industry
This is where pricing intelligence built specifically for accounting is heading, and it's a reality now. It's already possible to draw upon proprietary proposal data to deliver tailored AI-driven price benchmarks and suggestions for services that are unique to each firm, with clear rationale.
For firms relying on generic benchmarking or plug-and-play AI, the insights simply won't go far enough. The accounting industry requires more nuance. Firms aren't selling a "one-size-fits all" approach; they're providing services that vary based on their market and clients. Firms evaluating prices need strategic pricing recommendations contextualized for each firm's services and market position. Most importantly, AI doesn't replace human judgment: it informs it.
When firms combine professional intuition with pricing intelligence, they can finally price with clarity, confidence and control.
As Al-Nesha Jones, CPA and founder of the ASE Group said, "Even as a firm owner that felt pretty confident in our pricing, having a range of pricing to compare services to before we send a proposal to a client, as well as some suggestions to make the service more attractive, is an instant profitability boost."
From guessing to growing
Your pricing model should do more than cover costs: it should drive margins, reflect your value and evolve with your business.
When firms stop guessing and start pricing smarter, that's when the real growth begins.
