Industry group, 5412
Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services
1,091,370 people work in this industry in the US, at mean pay of $93,230 a year (BLS, May 2025). What follows is how much of their working time the best AI models could finish, when, and in which jobs and tasks. Estimates.
of the paid hours. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
a year: 1.2 billion hours at what they cost. Not a forecast of savings.
- 78%
- 17%
- 6%
of the paid hours are within reach now in tasks people already bring to Claude. Another 38% is within reach in tasks not yet seen there.
Across the US: 30% within reach now and 36% by the end of 2028, on the long-run pace at four in five. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
Share of the paid hours within reach, now to 2030
Change assumptionsHide assumptionsLong-run pace, four in five
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
What handing the work over would take
For the 1,054,543 people in jobs so far, 97% of the industry's people; the others are in the totals above and join this split as the review reaches their jobs. Shares of their working time within reach now, at the pace and reliability chosen above. Estimates. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
about 814 million hours a year. The material can be handed to a model and the result handed back.
about 412 million hours a year. The model has to be connected to the system the work lives in.
about 228 million hours a year. Short enough by length. This site leaves conversation with people, so it is not in the totals.
What their work is made of
- 55%
- 23%
- 13%
- 4%
- 5%
Each task's time split among five kinds of doing, judged one task at a time; only documents and systems can count as within reach.
What changes for the people
For the 1,054,543 people in jobs reviewed task by task so far, by the end of 2028 on the long-run pace at four in five: the shares of their working time, from each job page's own map, weighted by how many people here do that job. It says which parts of the work change, never whether anyone keeps a job. Estimates.
Conversation, in-person and hands-on work.
Desk work within reach in tasks where a mistake costs something or a licensed person signs.
Desk work within reach that is small if wrong, with lighter checks.
What most people here would learn first
How many of them have each skill among the first two things to learn on their job's page. Every state, and the US
- Reviewing work you did not do yourself912,337 (87%)
- Briefing a model and checking its drafts760,020 (72%)
- Running AI inside the business systems269,050 (26%)
- The hands-on craft58,197 (6%)
- The conversations50,713 (5%)
- Judgment where errors are severe21,000 (2%)
- Dealing with people outside the organization18,610 (2%)
- Signing off under your license5,930 (1%)
- Handling protected records3,810 (under 1%)
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this industry's paid hours were within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 1%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 27%. Today's estimate: 56%.
A backcast: today's task data with the best model METR had measured by each date. It shows how fast the models have moved, not what anyone forecast at the time.
Robots and the physical work
Anthropic rates 7% of the working time of the people in this industry as physical work. For 6% of the working time, a robot has been shown doing most of the task somewhere: 4% in a purpose-built cell, 1% in a structured facility. 0.07 of 3.
- Not physical 93%
- No robot shown 1%
- In a purpose-built cell 4%
- In a structured facility 1%
Anthropic's rating, not this site's estimate: Claude Opus 5, searching the web, rated each physical O*NET task by the kind of setting in which a robot it could cite (deployed, sold or demonstrated) does most of the task, weighted by its own estimate of each task's share of the time (What work can robots do?, September 30, 2026, data CC BY 4.0; every job ranked). A robot shown somewhere is not a robot in your building: cost, setup and safety decide that. The share within reach on this page still counts no body work. Weighted by the people in each occupation; each job's page names the robot behind each rated task.
Where the hours are
Jobs by hours within reach now. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index. The 40 largest jobs hold 91% of the people.
| People | Pay here | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accountants and Auditors | 330,500 | 45% | 310 million | $81K |
| Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks | 98,500 | 88% | 180 million | $49K |
| Tax Preparers | 72,250 | 80% | 121 million | $52K |
| Financial Managers | 59,650 | 52% | 65 million | $169K |
| Billing and Posting Clerks | 29,230 | 85% | 52 million | $46K |
| Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive | 34,290 | 59% | 42 million | $48K |
| Office Clerks, General | 31,530 | 56% | 37 million | $45K |
| Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel | 28,010 | 59% | 34 million | $82K |
| General and Operations Managers | 29,330 | 45% | 27 million | $127K |
| Customer Service Representatives | 18,920 | 64% | 25 million | $47K |
| Management Analysts | 32,840 | 37% | 25 million | $110K |
| Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks | 14,010 | 85% | 25 million | $50K |
People: BLS counts for this industry, May 2025. Pay here: the median paid for the job in this industry, else its mean, else the national median. 133 smaller jobs (92,460 people) count in every total but are not listed. Task data covers 98% of the industry's people; the rest are in BLS "all other" groups with no task list, or in counts BLS does not publish.
The tasks with the most hours within reach by the end of 2028
Across the whole industry, on the chosen pace and reliability.
- Prepare, examine, or analyze accounting records, financial statements, or other financial reports to assess accuracy, completeness, and conformance to reporting and procedural standards.Accountants and Auditors90 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Develop, implement, modify, and document recordkeeping and accounting systems, making use of current computer technology.Accountants and Auditors72 million hours80% of the task within reach
- Prepare detailed reports on audit findings.Accountants and Auditors52 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Prepare or assist in preparing simple to complex tax returns for individuals or small businesses.Tax Preparers49 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Review taxpayer accounts, and conduct audits on-site, by correspondence, or by summoning taxpayer to office.Accountants and Auditors47 million hours60% of the task within reach
- Inspect account books and accounting systems for efficiency, effectiveness, and use of accepted accounting procedures to record transactions.Accountants and Auditors45 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Compute taxes owed and prepare tax returns, ensuring compliance with payment, reporting, or other tax requirements.Accountants and Auditors44 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Evaluate taxpayer finances to determine tax liability, using knowledge of interest and discount rates, annuities, valuation of stocks and bonds, and amortization valuation of depletable assets.Accountants and Auditors43 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Operate computers programmed with accounting software to record, store, and analyze information.Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks32 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Examine and evaluate financial and information systems, recommending controls to ensure system reliability and data integrity.Accountants and Auditors28 million hours99% of the task within reach
Scan a typical company in this industry
The industry's largest jobs, in the proportions BLS counts across the whole industry, at the pay it pays, run through the company scan. A starting point before you have a roster, or a benchmark for the one you have. Or choose the whole industry: every occupation BLS publishes for it with task data, at its nationwide headcount, the sector report ($249 for the full report, or included in Pro).
Next to this industry
Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
- Computer Systems Design and Related Services2,445,140 people50% now, 74% by 2028
- Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services1,872,730 people47% now, 68% by 2028
- Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services1,719,390 people43% now, 68% by 2028
- Legal Services1,224,710 people52% now, 68% by 2028
- Scientific Research and Development Services931,790 people38% now, 64% by 2028
- Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services881,820 people35% now, 44% by 2028
- Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services481,600 people48% now, 64% by 2028
- Specialized Design Services151,930 people52% now, 68% by 2028
How it is built: BLS counts the people in each job in this industry; each job's tasks and their lengths give its share within reach at a date; the industry's share is those shares weighted by people. Value is pay times 1.43 for benefits and payroll costs. Seen in Claude use splits today's share by whether Anthropic saw people bring each task to Claude in 2025; other AI tools are not counted. How it works
Questions about this industry
- How much of the work in Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services is within reach of AI now?
- An estimated 56% of the paid hours in Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services are within reach of AI models now and 77% by the end of 2028, on METR's long-run pace at four in five (72% to 78% across the three paces the site shows). Within reach means a model could finish work that long at that reliability. It is not a forecast of jobs lost or of savings.
- Which jobs in Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services carry the most hours within reach?
- By hours within reach now (projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index): Accountants and Auditors (330,500 people, 45% of their time, about 310 million hours a year); Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks (98,500 people, 88% of their time, about 180 million hours a year); and Tax Preparers (72,250 people, 80% of their time, about 121 million hours a year).
- Which tasks in Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services carry the most hours within reach by the end of 2028?
- Prepare, examine, or analyze accounting records, financial statements, or other financial reports to assess accuracy, completeness, and conformance to reporting and procedural standards (Accountants and Auditors, about 90 million hours a year); Develop, implement, modify, and document recordkeeping and accounting systems, making use of current computer technology (Accountants and Auditors, about 72 million hours a year); and Prepare detailed reports on audit findings (Accountants and Auditors, about 52 million hours a year).
- What would people working in Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services learn first?
- Among the 1,054,543 people in jobs reviewed task by task, the skills most often among the first two things to learn on their job's page are reviewing work you did not do yourself (912,337 people); briefing a model and checking its drafts (760,020 people); and running AI inside the business systems (269,050 people). By the end of 2028 on the long-run pace at four in five, about 21% of their working time stays with people, 67% becomes checking a model's work and 9% can be handed over with lighter checks. It says which parts of the work change, never whether anyone keeps a job.
- How is this estimated?
- BLS counts the people in each occupation in Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services (May 2025); each occupation's share of working time within reach comes from its O*NET tasks, each with an estimated length checked against GDPval, and METR's measurements of how long a task the best AI models can finish, carried forward to the date from the latest, Claude Mythos Preview (early) in April 2026. The industry's share is those shares weighted by people. Task data covers 98% of its people, and 97% are in occupations reviewed task by task. Data checked November 10, 2026.
Embed these figures on your site
A small card with the share of working time within reach now and at the end of 2027, 2028 and 2030, the date and a link back. Free under CC BY 4.0; the card carries the credit.