Almost half of middle-market companies outsource their accounting

Outsourced accounting is catching on among middle-market companies, a survey from top 30 accounting firm UHY found. Nearly half (45%) of middle-market firms said they outsourced their accounting either partially or entirely. That’s a considerable increase from 2022, when almost eight in 10 survey respondents said they had not even looked into outsourcing.

Accounting firms have made a big push into offering outsourced CFO, controller, bookkeeping, and other services in recent years. According to Accounting Today’s 2024 Top 100 Firms survey, client accounting services, or CAS (a catchall term that includes outsourced accounting) was the #1 niche firms were specializing in. More than eight in 10 (84%) of the responding firms saw higher demand for CAS in 2024.

The UHY survey, which polled more than 275 middle market business owners across a variety of industries, found that 19% of middle market firms had entirely outsourced their accounting, and that 26% outsourced some and did the rest in-house.

More middle-market optimism: Firm owners are feeling positive about their prospects next year, the survey found. A solid majority—81%—said they were optimistic about the US economy in 2025, and a third (33%) said they were “strongly” so. And the vast majority (88%) predicted their companies would see the same or higher growth next year.

A focus on the workforce they’ve already got: From 2019 through 2023, the survey showed that middle-market employers were most focused on recruiting and acquisition as workforce development strategies. In 2024 and heading into 2025, though, employers shifted focus. In the latest edition of the survey, for instance, retention (34%) was the top talent strategy respondents said they were using, followed by upskilling (30%) and offering flexible work (23%). Only 5% said that making “more attractive offers to new hires” was a top strategy.