By: Dr. Tamara Patzer
Tax season is the busiest stretch of the year for an accounting firm, and the records it produces, from engagement emails to billing and scheduling data, pile up every month. Mode, a company that buys agreed copies of company-owned operating records for AI research and training, sets its entry line for accounting businesses at 15 employees, compared with 50 for most others. For a New York firm with a few partners, a staff of preparers and an office manager, that may put it in range.
Key Takeaways
- Mode lists 15 employees as the minimum for accounting businesses, against 50 for most other businesses and nonprofits.
- About 14,939 U.S. accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping and payroll companies had 10 or more employees in 2021, according to Census Bureau survey data published by the National Science Foundation.
- CPA Trendlines reported in 2024 that about 85 percent of accounting firms have fewer than 10 employees.
- New York has roughly 427,000 employers, and the State Comptroller reports that more than 80 percent have fewer than 10 workers.
- Mode advertises $100K to $5M, calls its calculator indicative only, and generally expects about three months to payment.
How Many Accounting Firms Are in Range
The National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, using the Census Bureau’s Annual Business Survey, counted 109,075 accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping and payroll companies with employees in 2021. The size bands:
- 1 to 9 employees: 94,137 companies
- 10 to 49 employees: 13,138 companies
- 50 to 249 employees: 1,472 companies
- 250 or more employees: 329 companies
Adding the last three groups gives 14,939 companies with at least 10 employees. Mode’s line is 15, and the survey does not break out that exact point, so the number at 15 or more is somewhat lower. The category also includes bookkeeping and payroll businesses, not only CPA firms. The CPA Trendlines Almanac for 2024 put the total at about 46,000 CPA firms and said over 90 percent have fewer than 20 employees. Most accounting firms are small, which is why a firm that has reached 15 may be more unusual than its partners think.
The New York Picture
The Office of the New York State Comptroller reported on March 17, 2026 that the state had 422,137 businesses with fewer than 500 employees in 2023, or 98.9 percent of all businesses. More than 80 percent had fewer than 10 workers. Professional offices that clear 10 or 15 employees are therefore a minority of the state’s employers, but a meaningful one. Mode applies lower lines to accounting, finance, medical and legal businesses, and it does not say why.
What Mode Says It Wants
Mode’s pages, read Nov. 7, 2026, list these kinds of company-owned records:
- Email and documents
- Chat messages
- Calls and transcripts
- Customer relationship management data
- Billing and operations records
Several years of records strengthen an application, and the company must be based in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom or Australia. For an accounting firm, administrative email, scheduling, billing data and internal documents are the likelier candidates than client workpapers. Scope would be set in a written agreement. Mode’s eligibility rules lay out the application path.
Client Confidentiality and Tax Information
Accounting firms hold sensitive financial information for their clients, and it is protected by professional obligations and by law. Mode says it removes sensitive material and removes or transforms personal identifiers before onward delivery. A firm will want to know in writing exactly what that covers and to review it with its own attorney and its state society of CPAs. The Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz law firm wrote on Oct. 6, 2026 that holding data does not automatically mean having the right to sell it. This article is not legal advice.
Questions Firm Owners Are Likely to Ask
Does a firm of 15 qualify?
It meets the published size line for accounting businesses. Mode’s team makes the final decision after reviewing size, history and systems.
Would client tax returns be included?
Mode lists operating records, not client files by name. A firm decides with its counsel what to propose, and a written agreement sets the scope.
Is the dollar range a promise?
No. Mode calls its calculator “indicative only,” and a fixed offer follows a review of the firm’s records.
Price and Process
- The firm’s team shares size, history and systems.
- Mode’s team reviews the offer, and the firm approves scope, value, terms and date ranges.
- Mode exports and de-identifies the agreed copy and pays under the written terms.
The headline range is $100K to $5M, and Mode says it charges no broker fee. It generally expects about three months from first conversation to payment. Owners can try Mode’s estimate tool, remembering that an estimate is not an offer.
What Stays in the Firm’s Hands
For a firm that guards its clients’ trust, the first question is often what leaves the building. Mode’s pages, read Nov. 7, 2026, say a company keeps its original records and systems, and that the approved systems and date ranges are agreed before any export. The page also says no operational changes are required, so a firm would not need to alter how it files, bills or schedules.
Mode says a firm’s team signs in to the approved systems itself, and no passwords are handed over. It says AI developers receive only the filtered copy, not unfiltered records, and that it does not publish source records or sell them as reports about a company. That is Mode’s description, and a firm will want the same assurances in the written agreement, which Mode says defines the scope of the copy and any exclusivity.
A partner might also ask who inside the office would handle the work. The answer will differ from firm to firm. An office manager who knows where the email, billing and scheduling data live may be the natural point person, with a partner and the firm’s attorney reviewing the terms. Firms that believe they may qualify can read Mode’s guidelines, take stock of their records and apply. Mode’s team decides after its review.
An Off-Season Checklist
The quiet months after filing deadlines are a good time to take stock. Count everyone on payroll, including seasonal staff counted as employees. List the systems that hold email, documents, billing and scheduling. Note how many years of history each one covers. Review engagement letters and vendor contracts for sharing limits. Then read Mode’s company data page and decide, with advisers, whether to apply.
Dr. Tamara Patzer is a publisher and former newspaper editor who writes about AI and business data.
Sources (all read November 7, 2026)
- Mode, company data page and eligibility rules (ai.mode.inc)
- National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, “Table 35: Companies, by company size and industry: 2021,” from the Census Bureau’s Annual Business Survey
- CPA Trendlines, “CPA Trendlines Almanac: Key Data Points for the Tax, Accounting and Finance Profession,” 2024
- Office of the New York State Comptroller, “DiNapoli: Small Business Owners Are Backbone of New York’s Economy,” March 17, 2026
- Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz, via Mondaq, “Selling Company Data for AI Training: What to Know Before You Say Yes,” Oct. 6, 2026
Disclaimer: The author is a referral partner of Mode. This article is information, not a promise of money, and not legal advice.
