Accounting firms embracing price increases in 2024 new Ignition study reveals

Sydney, Australia, June 5th — Ignition, the leading revenue generation platform for accounting and professional services, today revealed what Australian accounting firms currently charge and planned fee increases for tax and compliance services as part of an in-depth pricing benchmark study.

Based on a survey of 250 accounting decision makers using Ignition, the 2024 Tax and compliance pricing benchmark covers fees for individual tax returns, company annual accounts and tax returns, tax planning, business activity statements and corporate compliance services.

“With 55% of accounting firms looking to increase prices across all services this year, our benchmarking report equips firm owners with valuable insights to guide and inform their pricing strategy this EOFY and beyond to increase revenue and profitability,” says Dave New, Ignition’s APAC Managing Director. “It enables firms to assess their pricing strategy as well as the competitiveness of their pricing.

“When re-evaluating pricing strategies, it’s critical for firms to factor in fee increases within annual client engagements and renewals, and leverage technology to make the process more seamless and eliminate any awkward client conversations. Platforms such as Ignition enable customers to easily incorporate fee increases within their engagement letter terms as well as automatically increase prices when renewing client agreements.”

Firms embracing pricing increases

Whether due to rising business costs, changing business needs, too much client work, or premium pricing strategies, the survey data signals firms are confident in adjusting their pricing strategies to remain profitable and future-proof their revenue streams. Fee increases of 5% or 10% were the most common. 

Key findings include:

• 81% plan to increase prices for basic individual tax returns
• 87% plan to increase prices for company or trust annual accounts and tax returns
• 74% plan to increase prices for tax planning
• 55% plan to increase prices for annual corporate compliance
• 74% plan to increase prices for BAS

Fees vary depending on firm location and services

With fees benchmarked nationally, as well as for capital and regional cities, the report also reveals pricing differences in the services offered as well as the location of firms. Notable trends include a shift toward increasing prices for individual tax returns and tax planning.

Key findings include:

• Individual tax returns: nearly 28% of firms nationally charge $200 to $250 for individual tax returns; over 27% plan to increase fees by 5%, while 23% will up fees by 10%
• Tax planning: nearly 35% of firms nationally charge $500 to $750 annually for tax planning services; around 26% plan to increase fees by 5%, while over 24% will up fees by 10%
• Business activity statements: nearly 39% of firms nationally charge $250 to $350 for BAS; 29% plan to increase fees by 5%, while 22% will up fees by 10%
• Annual corporate compliance: over 37% of firms nationally charge $150 to $250 for annual corporate compliance; 21% plan to increase fees by 5%, while over 16% will up fees by 10%

“When it comes to tax planning, it's great to see that an increase in price is trending,” says Rebecca Mihalic, Director at businessDEPOT and Ignition’s APAC Head of Accounting. “This service has been steadily moving from a “nice to have” to a “need to have” and has been undervalued for years. If you’re really rolling up your sleeves to work with your clients on interim accounts and tax planning, you need to charge appropriately.

“For BAS, it appears the overall pricing hasn't moved a lot in the last decade. I would have expected a greater percentage of firms charging more than $250.”

To download the 2024 Tax and compliance pricing benchmark and other pricing resources, visit ignitionapp.com/tax-compliance-pricing-benchmark.