Short answer
New Jersey has 3,754 accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping and payroll offices with paid employees, ninth among the states, employing 42,575 people (Census County Business Patterns, 2023). 1,801 are CPA offices. The state's license register lists 2,591 active accountancy firm registrations with a New Jersey address, led by Bergen (442), Morris (285) and Monmouth (266) counties. Verify any firm or CPA in the Division of Consumer Affairs' license verification system.
- 3,754 offices employ 42,575 people at average pay of $104,116; New Jersey ranks ninth by establishments.
- The state register has 2,704 active accountancy firm registrations, 2,591 of them at New Jersey addresses.
- Payroll services employ 12,668 people in 195 offices, 30% of the industry's jobs in the state.
- Morris County's 308 offices employ 7,275 people, almost twice Bergen's total from 577 offices.
- Accountants and auditors in New Jersey earned a median of $100,830 in May 2025.
On this page
This report is for New Jersey businesses and households choosing an accountant, accountants looking at employers in the state, and companies that sell to accounting firms. It combines the Census count with the state's own firm register, explains how to check a firm, and closes with how to prospect them.
New Jersey's accounting industry
County Business Patterns (CBP) 2023, NAICS 5412 (accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping and payroll services), New Jersey:
| Measure (2023) | New Jersey |
|---|---|
| Establishments | 3,754 |
| Rank among the states by establishments | 9th |
| Employees (week of March 12) | 42,575 |
| Annual payroll | $4,432,731,000 |
| Average employees per establishment | 11.3 |
| Average annual pay | $104,116 |
| Share of US establishments | 2.74% of 137,069 |
| Employees | Offices |
|---|---|
| 1 to 4 | 2,541 |
| 5 to 9 | 671 |
| 10 to 19 | 291 |
| 20 to 49 | 148 |
| 50 to 99 | 56 |
| 100 to 249 | 26 |
| 250 to 499 | 8 |
| 500 to 999 | 8 |
| 1,000 or more | 5 |
CBP counts establishments with paid employees, not companies, and leaves out the self-employed.
County by county: Census offices and registered firms
The first two columns are CBP 2023 for NAICS 5412. The third counts active accountancy firm registrations by county from the state's bulk license roster, downloaded on 30 October 2026.
| County | Offices (CBP) | Employees (CBP) | Active CPA firm registrations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bergen | 577 | 3,817 | 442 |
| Middlesex | 358 | 4,215 | 221 |
| Monmouth | 324 | 1,933 | 266 |
| Morris | 308 | 7,275 | 285 |
| Essex | 278 | 3,979 | 190 |
| Union | 253 | 1,374 | 156 |
| Ocean | 249 | 1,747 | 166 |
| Passaic | 231 | 1,076 | 130 |
| Hudson | 208 | 3,266 | 53 |
| Camden | 175 | 1,064 | 116 |
Another 13 establishments with 7,396 employees are coded statewide, with no county. The two sources measure different things: CBP counts every accounting, tax, bookkeeping and payroll office with employees; the register counts accountancy firms registered with the state, whether or not they have staff. Most active registrations run to 30 June 2027.
Payroll is New Jersey's distinctive segment
| Type (NAICS 2022) | Offices | Employees | Pay per employee |
|---|---|---|---|
| CPA offices (541211) | 1,801 | 21,284 | $126,666 |
| Payroll services (541214) | 195 | 12,668 | $105,842 |
| Other accounting, including bookkeeping (541219) | 1,079 | 5,637 | $57,855 |
| Tax preparation (541213) | 679 | 2,986 | $23,392 |
Payroll offices average 65 employees, and the state is home to ADP, whose 10-K for the year to June 2026 gives its principal executive offices as Roseland, Essex County. SEC EDGAR files ADP under computer processing (SIC 7374), not accounting; EDGAR has no accounting industry code, so there are no listed accounting firms to rank. The largest accounting firms are private partnerships; see the Big 4 accounting firms.
Pay per employee is our calculation. Tax preparation reads low because CBP counts staff in the week of March 12, at the peak of filing season.
Which to hire depends on the job. A bank covenant, an investor or a grant that asks for audited or reviewed statements needs a registered CPA firm. Monthly books and invoicing usually go to one of the 1,079 bookkeeping and other accounting offices, at lower rates. A payroll service runs paychecks and payroll tax filings and a tax preparation office does returns; by the Census definitions, neither keeps your books.
How to check a New Jersey firm or preparer
- Search the license. The Division of Consumer Affairs' license verification system covers CPAs and accountancy firms; firms are licensed in the business's name, so search the firm name, not a partner's.
- Download the register if you need many. The same system offers a free bulk roster by profession and license type, as a delimited text file.
- Match the credential to the job. Audits and reviews need a CPA firm. For IRS representation in an audit or collection case, you need a CPA, enrolled agent or attorney.
- Check the preparer. The IRS's August 2026 preparer listing, released under the Freedom of Information Act, has 23,326 preparers with New Jersey business addresses: 7,968 CPAs, 2,215 enrolled agents and 665 attorneys; 11,526 (49%) hold no IRS credential and no Annual Filing Season Program record.
- Avoid refund-percentage fees, which the IRS warns against.
For a public company or broker-dealer audit, the firm must be registered with the PCAOB; 646 US firms were at the end of 2025.
Jobs and pay in New Jersey
Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025, statewide:
| Occupation | Employed | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Accountants and auditors | 42,250 | $100,830 |
| Bookkeeping, accounting and auditing clerks | 37,550 | $58,300 |
| Financial managers | 32,510 | $199,110 |
| Tax preparers | 3,220 | $43,420 |
The CPAs in the IRS preparer listing cluster in a few office towns: Florham Park (265), Parsippany (237), Iselin (203) and Morristown (178).
Selling to New Jersey accounting firms
Illustrative example. The company and rates are invented; the counts come from the state register and CBP.
Garden Ledger (gardenledger.example) sells document and e-signature software to CPA firms. It downloads the register's 2,591 active in-state firms, starts with Bergen, Morris and Monmouth (993 firms), and drops firms whose website shows a single practitioner, an illustrative 45%, leaving about 546. It writes to the managing partner in late October, before year-end planning, then follows up in May. At an illustrative 5% reply rate, that's 27 conversations from three counties.
The register gives the firm's name and county, not who decides; the list of accounting firms explains firm roles, and how many accountants there are covers the IRS file. Finding the managing partner and recent changes at each firm is the slow part; Bebop researches each account.
Local sources
| Source | What it gives you |
|---|---|
| NJ license verification and bulk roster | Accountancy firm and CPA licenses, downloadable |
| NJCPA: find a CPA | The state society's public directory |
| Choose New Jersey | The state's economic development organization |
Next step: for the firms across the Hudson, see accounting firms in NYC.
Sources
- County Business Patterns (CBP), 2023, US Census Bureau, accessed 30 October 2026
- North American Industry Classification System, 2022 (industries 541211 to 541219), US Census Bureau, 2022, accessed 30 October 2026
- License verification and bulk download (Accountancy, Firm Registration), New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs, downloaded 30 October 2026
- Automatic Data Processing, Inc. Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended 30 June 2026, SEC EDGAR, 5 August 2026
- PTIN information and the Freedom of Information Act (preparer listings by state), Internal Revenue Service, updated 14 August 2026
- Understanding tax return preparer credentials and qualifications, Internal Revenue Service, accessed 30 October 2026
- 2025 Annual Report (registered firms as of 31 December 2025), Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, 2026
- Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025: state estimates, US Bureau of Labor Statistics, accessed 30 October 2026
Written by the Bebop team at Blackpearl Group. Published .
Questions people ask
How many accounting firms are in New Jersey?
Census County Business Patterns counted 3,754 accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping and payroll establishments with paid employees in New Jersey in 2023, ninth among the states, employing 42,575 people. 1,801 were CPA offices. The state's license register showed 2,704 active accountancy firm registrations on 30 October 2026, 2,591 of them with a New Jersey address.
How do I verify a CPA firm in New Jersey?
Use the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs' license verification system and search the firm's business name, since accountancy firms are licensed in the name of the business. The same site offers a free bulk download of licensees by profession and license type, which lists each firm's license number, status, expiration date, city and county.
Which New Jersey county has the most accounting firms?
Bergen County. Census counted 577 accounting, tax and payroll offices there in 2023, and the state register lists 442 active accountancy firm registrations at Bergen addresses. Morris County has fewer offices, 308, but more employees: 7,275, against 3,817 in Bergen. Middlesex, Monmouth and Essex follow.
How much do accountants make in New Jersey?
Accountants and auditors in New Jersey earned a median of $100,830 a year in May 2025, across 42,250 jobs, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Financial managers earned a median of $199,110 and bookkeeping clerks $58,300. In Census data, pay per employee at the state's CPA offices averaged $126,666 in 2023.