Big Four Accounting Firms: History, Services, and Careers

The Big Four accounting firms have a rich history that dates back to the late 19th century. Deloitte was founded in 1845, making it the oldest of the four.

Each of the Big Four - Deloitte, Ernst & Young, KPMG, and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) - offers a wide range of services, including auditing, tax consulting, and financial advisory services. These services help businesses and organizations navigate complex financial landscapes.

The Big Four firms are known for their large scale and global reach, with offices in over 150 countries. This allows them to serve clients across the world.

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The Big Four accounting firms are professional services networks, not single firms. Each network is a collection of independently owned and managed firms that share a common name, brand, intellectual property, and quality standards.

In 2020, KPMG changed its legal structure from a Swiss association to a UK limited company, joining Deloitte and PwC, which have been UK limited companies all along. Ernst & Young's co-ordinating entity is also a UK limited company.

These networks are similar to law firm networks, with each member firm usually practicing in a single country and structured to comply with local regulations.

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The company has undergone several mergers and acquisitions over the years. One notable example is the merger with Company A in 2010, which significantly expanded their product offerings.

In 2015, they merged with Company B, resulting in a major restructuring of their operations. This move allowed them to streamline their processes and improve efficiency.

The merger with Company C in 2018 brought new technologies and expertise to the table, enabling them to expand their services.

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The Big Four accounting firms are not what they seem. They're actually professional services networks, comprising multiple firms owned and managed independently.

Each network has a global entity that coordinates the activities of the member firms. These networks share a common name, brand, intellectual property, and quality standards.

KPMG International changed its legal structure from a Swiss association to a UK limited company in 2020. This move marked a significant shift in the firm's organizational setup.

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Deloitte, PwC, and Ernst & Young have their co-ordinating entities as UK limited companies. These entities don't perform external professional services or own member firms.

In many cases, each member firm operates in a single country, structured to comply with local regulations. This allows them to adapt to the unique regulatory environment in each country.

Ernst & Young has separate legal entities managing its three geographic areas: the Americas, Asia-Pacific, and EMEIA groups. These entities coordinate services performed by local firms but don't perform services or hold ownership in the local entities.

There are exceptions to this convention, such as KPMG's merger of four internationally distinct member firms in 2007 to form KPMG Europe LLP.

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The Big Four accounting firms are Deloitte, PwC, EY, and KPMG, and they're the largest in the world, with joint revenue of $212 billion in 2024.

These four firms have a huge presence, with each having a presence in at least 160 countries and employing over 1.5 million people.

Deloitte is the largest of the Big Four, with a workforce of 460,000 employees and annual revenue of $67.2 billion in 2024.

PwC is the second largest, with $55.4 billion in revenue in 2024 and over 370,000 employees worldwide.

The Big Four firms have a long history, with Deloitte being founded in 1845 and PwC being formed through a merger of two large accounting firms in 1998.

EY was formed in 1989 through the merger of Ernst & Whinney and Arthur Young, and KPMG was founded in 1987 after two firms joined forces.

These firms offer a range of services, including audit, consulting, tax, and advisory services, and have a huge influence on research and accounting standards.

The Big Four firms have a strong presence in the global market, with Deloitte boasting premier clients such as Adobe and Boeing.

In 2021, PwC had $45.1 billion in revenue and employed over 295,000 professionals worldwide.

KPMG is the smallest of the Big Four, but still has a significant presence, with $38.4 billion in revenue in 2024 and around 275,000 employees.

The Big Four firms have a strong commitment to professional development, with EY offering training and career growth programs to its employees.

The Big Four accounting firms offer a wide range of services to their clients. These services include audit, assurance, consulting, financial advisory, risk management, and tax compliance.

Big Four firms also provide assistance with mergers, acquisitions, corporate restructurings, and forensic accounting. Each firm has a dedicated in-house legal department to support these services.

During busy season, typically from January to April, employees often work long hours, sometimes doubling their usual workload. This period is characterized by intense auditing or tax compliance activities to meet strict deadlines.

Audit work typically generates over a third of total revenue for the Big Four firms, making it their major line of service. Advisory work and tax work follow closely behind in terms of revenue generation.

One advantage of hiring a Big Four firm is that they can bring an astronomical amount of both depth and breadth to the table. This allows them to offer a full suite of services from strategy through execution, a rarity among professional services firms.

The Big Four accounting firms are known for their massive revenue and global presence. They have a combined revenue of around $212 billion in 2024.

Deloitte is the largest firm, with revenues of $67.2 billion in 2024, followed closely by PwC with $55.4 billion. EY and KPMG trail behind, with revenues of $51.2 billion and $38.4 billion respectively.

The revenue gap between Deloitte and PwC is significant, with Deloitte generating 18% more revenue than PwC in 2024. EY and KPMG have a smaller revenue gap, with EY generating 8% more revenue than PwC and KPMG generating 25% less revenue than EY.

Here's a rough breakdown of the revenue of each firm in 2024:

The Big Four firms have a significant presence in the global market, with Deloitte employing 460,300 people and PwC employing 370,000 people in 2024.

The Big Four accounting firms have faced intense criticism and ethics concerns in recent years. In 2019, a PCAOB analysis found that the big four bungled almost 31% of their audits since 2009.

The PCAOB's 16-year history has only seen 18 enforcement cases against the big four, despite their high failure rate. This suggests that the firms have largely escaped accountability for their mistakes.

The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has also expressed dissatisfaction with the big four's audit quality. None of the firms managed to surpass the 90% target of its audits, leading to a loss of investors' money and stakeholders' livelihoods.

Multiple ethics scandals and questionable practices have led to multi-million dollar fines and settlements by the big four firms. Despite repeated sanctions from regulators, the firms continue to face challenges to audit quality and ethics.

Here are some notable examples of ethics concerns surrounding the big four:

The lack of accountability and ethics concerns surrounding the big four raises questions about the credibility of audited financial statements and the future of the audit sector.

The Big Four accounting firms - Deloitte, Ernst & Young, KPMG, and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) - are the largest and most influential accounting firms in the world.

These firms are a dominant force in the global market, with combined revenues exceeding $150 billion in 2020.

Deloitte's revenue alone reached $43.2 billion in 2020, making it the largest of the Big Four.

Ernst & Young's revenue was $36.4 billion in 2020, while KPMG's revenue was $29.8 billion.

PwC's revenue was $42.4 billion in 2020, making it the second-largest of the Big Four.

The Big Four firms have a significant presence in the global market, with operations in over 150 countries.

Their combined workforce exceeds 1 million employees, making them some of the largest employers in the world.

These firms are also highly profitable, with net profits exceeding $20 billion in 2020.

Their dominance in the market has led to increased competition among smaller accounting firms, which are struggling to keep up with the Big Four's scale and resources.

The Big Four firms are also major players in the consulting industry, with significant investments in areas like technology and data analytics.

Working for one of the Big Four accounting firms can be a lucrative career choice. Salaries vary depending on the role and firm, but here are some examples.

A Tax Analyst at Deloitte can expect to earn around $88,884 per year, while a similar role at PwC comes with a salary of $86,030. On the other hand, an Auditor at KPMG can earn up to $77,047 per year.

If you're interested in a career in accounting, here are some average salaries for different roles across the Big Four firms:

Note that salaries can vary depending on location, experience, and other factors, but this gives you a general idea of what to expect.

If you're considering a career in finance, you might be wondering what the difference is between an accountant and a CPA. An accountant is a professional with a bachelor's degree in accounting.

To become a CPA, you'll need to earn a CPA license through education, experience, and examination. This typically requires a combination of formal education and on-the-job training.

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The Big 4 firms, including PwC, Deloitte, EY, and KPMG, are highly competitive, and positions are often sourced from top universities.

You can develop key skills like organization, communication, and problem-solving to succeed in securing a role at one of these firms.

PwC values curiosity and relationship-building, Deloitte emphasizes authenticity, creativity, and growth, EY seeks individuals ready to make an immediate impact and demonstrates confidence, and KPMG appreciates diversity and unique personal experiences.

To better understand what each firm values, follow their careers pages and engage in campus events like skills drop-ins and mock interviews.

Each Big 4 firm offers diverse entry points into the industry, including work experience schemes, summer internships, and work placements as part of university programs.

If you're considering a career with the Big Four accounting firms, you'll want to know about the salaries. Deloitte's highest-paying role is the Certified Public Accountant position, with a salary of $88,781.

Salaries for auditors vary across the Big Four, with Deloitte paying $85,213 and PwC paying $81,554. Business analysts at Deloitte can expect to earn $80,724.

The Big Four firms also offer competitive salaries for cybersecurity and IT analysts. For example, Deloitte pays $87,582 for a business analyst position, while PwC pays $80,467. EY's cybersecurity analyst position pays $57,914, but their IT analyst position pays $67,990. KPMG's cybersecurity/IT analyst position pays $100,859.

Here's a breakdown of the average salaries for some key roles across the Big Four firms:

Busy season at a company can be a challenging time for employees. Long hours of auditing or tax compliance work are typical, often doubling the hours worked during the offseason.

Big Four companies are particularly busy during this time, with employees putting in extra effort to meet reporting deadlines. The busy season usually begins at the start of the calendar year, with tax reports and returns due from January to April.

Big Four firms also experience a surge in activity during periods when companies report quarterly or yearly earnings. This can lead to an even more demanding workload for employees.

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