iscoverOnce annual revenue reaches $100,000, businesses are much more likely to engage with external accountants, new research has shown.
Use of accountants skyrockets once business revenue hits $100k
12 August 2025
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8 minute read
Market research agency Agile Market Intelligence has provided Accountants Daily with data from its SMB Navigator Report 2025, based on quantitative research conducted between December 2024 and January 2025. The research, commissioned by Intuit, sought and received responses from 506 Australian small businesses and 404 practising accountants.
The findings show that hitting $100,000 in annual revenue marks a major inflexion point in external accountant engagement, jumping from 71 per cent to 85 per cent once that six-figure revenue benchmark has been reached.
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Businesses earning under $50,000 show the lowest engagement rates, at just 49 per cent, and businesses earning over $1 million report the highest engagement, at 87 per cent.
The steep jump in increased likelihood to engage an accountant once $100,000 has been reached, Agile said, appears to prompt a shift in financial management needs, possibly tied to more complex reporting, regulatory compliance, or strategic planning requirements.
Notably, the research agency said, across the different revenues, an increase in engagement from the previous year is observed.
“We consistently see $100K revenue as a tipping point where DIY accounting gives way to professional support,” said Agile Market Intelligence director Michael Johnson.
“It’s a practical threshold, not just a psychological one.”
The research also found that trusts have the highest level of engagement, with 95 per cent using an accountant this year, followed by publicly-traded companies at 85 per cent. Privately-held companies and partnerships weren’t too far behind, at 78 per cent and 76 per cent respectively.
Interestingly, sole traders are an outlier, at 59 per cent – the only group with less than 60 per cent engagement.
While overall accountant engagement rises with revenue and complexity, Agile said, sole traders continue to be the least engaged organisation type, noting that lower perceived need, cost concerns or reliance on informal solutions may be contributing factors.
“Sole traders are a high-potential segment, but they’re harder to reach. It takes education, not just marketing, to shift behaviours in this group,” Johnson said.
Elsewhere, the research found that entities with fiduciary obligations or regulatory oversight are far more likely to seek ongoing accounting support, underscoring the role of governance in shaping demand.
“Business structure is a strong predictor of accounting needs. Trusts and listed entities have too much at stake not to get expert advice,” Johnson said.
The findings follow those from the interim results of the 2025 Agile Market Intelligence Accounting Tech Review, which found that most accountants are tech enablers for their clients, accounting professionals choose tech “by credibility and community”, and that half of accounting firms have not adopted new tech in the last five years.
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