The Accounting Talent Shortage in Numbers: 340,000 CPAs Left Since 2019

Between 2019 and 2024, approximately 340,000 accountants and auditors left the profession in the United States. That number comes from Bureau of Labor Statistics data showing a decline from roughly 1.44 million to 1.1 million professionals in accounting and auditing roles. In the same period, CPA exam candidates dropped 33%, from about 84,000 first-time candidates in 2019 to roughly 56,000 in 2024.

These are not projections or estimates from an industry report trying to sell something. These are headcount numbers from federal labor statistics, and they paint a picture that every firm managing partner already feels: there are not enough accountants to do the work that needs to be done.

Breaking Down Where They Went

The 340,000 departures fall into several categories. Retirement accounts for the largest share. The AICPA has noted that 75% of its members reached retirement eligibility by 2020. Many of those retirements were accelerated by the pandemic. But retirement only explains part of the decline.

A significant number of mid-career professionals left for adjacent roles in finance, technology, and consulting. Corporate FP&A roles, fintech companies, and management consulting firms actively recruit experienced accountants and often offer 20-40% salary increases over public accounting. The move typically comes with better hours and no busy season, which for someone billing 55+ hours per week from January through April, is a compelling combination.

The third category is career-changers who left the profession entirely. Surveys from the AICPA and various state societies suggest that 15-20% of departures since 2020 were professionals who moved to completely different fields. Teaching, real estate, entrepreneurship, and technology development were the most common destinations.

The Pipeline Problem

Departures are only half the equation. The pipeline of new accountants is also shrinking. The 150-hour education requirement for CPA licensure, which most states mandate, is increasingly seen as a barrier. Students face an additional year of education costs (roughly $30,000-50,000 at typical universities) for entry-level salaries that lag behind other business disciplines.

Starting salaries for public accounting staff positions range from $55,000-70,000 depending on market. Starting salaries for computer science graduates average $80,000-95,000. For MBA graduates entering consulting, $95,000-115,000. When you add the extra year of education cost to the lower starting salary, the financial case for choosing accounting weakens considerably.

Accounting program enrollments have declined at 65% of universities that offer accounting degrees, according to a 2024 survey by the Center for Audit Quality. The programs that maintained enrollment often did so by adding data analytics or technology tracks that make graduates competitive in adjacent fields, which means those graduates may not enter traditional accounting roles.

What This Means for Firms Right Now

The practical impact varies by firm size. The Big 4 can still attract talent through brand recognition, global opportunities, and competitive compensation packages. Mid-size regional firms are feeling the squeeze most acutely. They compete with the Big 4 for top graduates and with industry for experienced staff, often without the resources to match either on compensation.

Small firms (under 20 professionals) report the most acute hiring difficulties. A 2024 survey by CPA Practice Advisor found that 82% of small firms had at least one open position they could not fill for more than six months. Many are extending partner retirement ages, increasing outsourcing, and deferring growth rather than turning away clients without staff to serve them.

The impact on client service is measurable. Audit report delays increased by an average of 12 business days between 2019 and 2024, according to data from Audit Analytics. Tax return extensions have increased, with the percentage of individual returns filed on extension rising from 13% to 18% over the same period.

Technology as a Response, Not a Solution

Firms are increasingly looking to automation and AI tools to bridge the capacity gap. The logic is straightforward: if you cannot hire more people, make the people you have more productive. A firm that automates bank reconciliation, AP processing, and transaction categorization can handle 30-40% more clients with the same staff.

But technology is not a complete answer to a workforce shortage. Audit engagements still require professional judgment. Tax planning still requires understanding each client's unique situation. Advisory services, which are the growth area for most firms, require relationship skills and business acumen that no software provides.

The firms navigating the talent shortage most effectively are combining technology investment with changes to their work model. Flexible schedules, remote work options, compressed busy seasons (by spreading work more evenly throughout the year), and sabbatical programs are becoming common. Some firms have abandoned the traditional busy season model entirely, negotiating with clients to spread filing deadlines and close dates throughout the year.

The Compensation Adjustment

Market forces are working, albeit slowly. Starting salaries in public accounting have increased roughly 15-20% since 2019, and senior-level compensation has risen even more. Some firms are experimenting with profit-sharing models that give staff and seniors a meaningful share of the firm's financial performance, not just partners.

A few innovative firms have restructured their compensation to directly compete with technology and consulting roles. One firm in Seattle offers a base salary plus a production bonus that allows top performers to earn 30-40% above base, bringing total compensation in line with comparable tech roles. Their retention rate for staff and seniors is 90%, compared to the industry average of about 70%.

Looking at the Numbers Honestly

The accounting profession is not going away. Businesses will always need financial reporting, tax compliance, and audit assurance. But the delivery model is changing because it has to. A profession that lost nearly a quarter of its workforce in five years cannot continue operating the way it did when talent was abundant.

The firms that will thrive in this environment are the ones that treat the talent shortage as a structural change rather than a temporary inconvenience. That means investing in technology to eliminate low-value manual work, restructuring compensation to be competitive with alternative career paths, and redesigning work patterns to reduce the burnout that drives the departures in the first place. The 340,000 who left are not coming back. The question is whether the profession can adapt fast enough to serve its clients with the people it has.