On the Edge of Efficiency: Inside the 2026 AI in Accounting Report
For years, AI was a headline. In 2026, it’s operational and accounting has officially entered its adoption era. An estimated 72% of firms will start or continue using AI this year. In partnership with Woodard, Mango surveyed accounting professionals to see how real firms are using AI right now to work faster, think strategically, and protect the trust that defines the profession.
This post highlights the most powerful insights from the 2026 AI in Accounting Industry Report. With a respondent pool made up of 88% decision-makers and 82% professionals with 15+ years of experience, the findings confirm that change is here and accelerating quickly.
Firms that understand the pace and scope of adoption will lead in growth, efficiency, and client trust as AI becomes the industry’s next great turning point.
From client communication to analytics and reporting, firms are finding where AI drives meaningful gains and where it strengthens (or strains) trust. Straight from the report, here’s what’s driving progress, shaping practice, and redefining the profession.
Key Takeaways from the 2026 AI in Accounting Report
This year’s report offers a snapshot of how AI adoption is unfolding across firms of every size and what it means for the profession’s future.
- AI is no longer experimental in accounting. A majority (59%) of firms are already using it and another 13% plan to adopt it before 2027.
- Most firms use AI to save time and stay competitive. Many cite accuracy and cost reduction as key benefits.
- Firms’ first steps with AI are in client communications and embedded AI. The next phase of adoption centers around advisory, reporting, and client insights.
- Policies will quickly catch up to progress. AI-use policies, client disclosures, and data boundaries are becoming standard as firms balance innovation with integrity.
- Roles are evolving fast. As AI handles lower-value tasks, firms are retraining and hiring for analysis, communication, and client storytelling.
- Trust remains the constant. The firms that lead with transparency and responsible implementation will define accounting’s AI era.
Firms Are Adopting AI—Fast and Strategically
Most firms are making AI part of their workflows. Across firms of every size, adoption is accelerating as part of a deliberate shift toward smarter, more strategic ways of working.
By the Numbers
- 59% of firms already use AI in some capacity.
- 21% are actively exploring its use.
- 13% will adopt AI before 2027.
- Only 8% have no plans to use AI at all.
Smaller firms are typically the most cautious about implementing new technology, but their AI adoption is on pace with the industry average with roughly six in ten solo (56%) and small (61%) firms are already using AI. Enterprise firms are fierce and swift in their adoption with 85% already using it and 14% planning to before 2027.
Those using and exploring AI today are busy testing, refining, and scaling what works rather than overhauling everything at once.
The path to adoption looks different across firm sizes in 2026:
Solo Firms: Embracing by Comfort Level
More than half are already using AI, but this group also contains the largest share with “no plans.” AI adoption in solo firms often mirrors the owner’s comfort level and mindset.
Small Firms: Widespread, Fast Adoption
Small firms are the fastest-moving group for AI adoption with a sizable “exploring” segment. Formal policies and training often lag behind experimentation.
Medium Firms: Strong Adoption, Little Resistance
Medium firms depend less on buy-in and more on structure. They prioritize governance, training, and clear accountability before implementation.
Large Firms: Staging Before Scaling
A heavier “exploring/undecided” segment reads as staging, not resistance. Many are still in exploration mode and testing use cases before firmwide rollout.
Enterprise Firms: Strategy into Systems
Enterprise firms adopt AI with a top-down strategy and show a strong already using/planning mix. Adoption usually means process redesign.
No matter your firm’s size, the question is no longer if you will use AI, but how it can directly benefit the firm and how intentionally you’ll do it.
Your roadmap to responsible adoption starts here.
Discover how firms are implementing AI with purpose, not pressure.
First Curious, Then Confident
Accountants are driven to find ways AI can work within their firm right now. Curiosity leads to experimentation with the tools most readily available: Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT and embedded AI within software accountants already use.
Embedded AI is where many start, and 48% of accountants already use AI inside tools like QuickBooks, Xero, and practice management software.
Why? The barrier to entry is lowest for these AI access points. Accountants are embracing AI-powered features like document summarization in practice management software and transaction categorization in QuickBooks Online. And within minutes, firm owners can create a team ChatGPT account to help write and polish client emails, research clients, and prepare proposals.
These practical uses are the levers more firms are pulling to boost their productivity, accuracy, and client engagement. And as firms automate more routine tasks, they’re slowly shifting into work that drives more client value: analysis, interpretation, and strategic advisory.
What starts as curiosity becomes confidence when AI use cases translate into measurable results.
Benefits & Outcomes Are Driving Adoption
Surveyed accountants were clear about the benefits they were expecting—and what they’re actually accomplishing—with AI. Firms that treat AI as a strategic capability rather than a novelty are already seeing measurable performance gains and competitive differentiation.
Early wins are clear:
- 54% report significant time savings.
- 37% say AI is already a competitive edge.
- 35% spend less time on administrative work.
AI is also changing how teams collaborate. Firms report spending less time on administrative tasks (35%), 31% cite faster client responses, and responses show a noticeable lift in personalization and consistency across communications.
Even modest uses, like summarizing meeting notes or writing client emails, free up time for higher-value work and deeper client relationships.
Overall, firms believe AI delivers when it’s applied with intention. Small, well-structured steps lay the foundation for meaningful gains: more capacity, less stress, and a practice that runs smarter every day.
Firms Aren't Ignoring the Risks, But Managing Them
For firms that haven’t adopted AI yet, the main barriers aren’t philosophical, but practical: 55% aren’t sure which tools to use, 18% are waiting to see more benefits, and 15% lack time to explore.
Firms are moving forward with a clear-eyed view of both the opportunities and the risks AI brings. They’re building structure to minimize risk where they can, and in the months ahead, we’ll see more governance and policies surrounding AI usage in accounting firms.
Their biggest concerns:
- Data security (38%)
- Accuracy or trust in outputs (35%)
Accountants understand that trust is the foundation of every client relationship, and they’re applying the same rigor to AI that they do to every system they use.
Respondents recognize the importance of anonymizing data and keeping client information confidential, but few currently have formal AI policies in place (14%). We’ll see this trend shift quickly as more firms create their own AI-use guidelines.
Many are already taking thoughtful first steps like introducing team accounts, limiting data sharing, and defining what’s “in bounds” for client information.
Transparency is emerging as the next marker of trust as AI blankets accounting. About 36% of firms already disclose their AI use to clients, and of those, nearly six in ten report positive or very positive feedback. As familiarity increases, disclosure will likely become standard practice.
The takeaway: As firms formalize policies and strengthen transparency, responsible adoption will set the standard for trust in the AI era.
A New Accounting Skillset Is Taking Shape
As efficiency improves, firms are asking a new question: what skills matter most in an AI-enabled future? AI can now handle many entry-level tasks, which allows staff to refocus on higher-value work. With increased capabilities, even firms with limited staff will be able to accomplish and achieve more with a small team.
Many firms are retraining and hiring for analytical, communication, and storytelling skills, all abilities that turn data into meaning and insight into trust.
As AI takes over more review and administrative work, accountants are moving up the value chain and focusing on interpretation, advisory, and client relationships. These are the human dimensions of accounting that no algorithm can replicate—and why experts in the report agree that AI will support the profession, not replace it.
Accountants who can translate complex data into clear, actionable insight are becoming the profession’s most in-demand talent. Top firms are preparing their teams not just to use AI, but to lead with it.
Empower your team for the AI era.
The 2026 AI in Accounting Report reveals what today’s most in-demand accounting skillset looks like.
Their Insights, Your Next Steps: Implementing AI
Technology that amplifies connection is the real story of AI in accounting. Most firms don’t need sweeping transformation to benefit. Early use cases are those that bring more structure and clarity to everyday operations.
Accounting technology consultant Diane Gilson recommends the “20/20” approach for firms getting started with AI:
“Spend $20/month for a few months [on ChatGPT Plus] and 20 minutes/week testing. You’ll gain more depth, a higher level of usage, and a feel for what’s possible.”
Firms of all sizes can begin with small steps that prioritize data security and efficiency with AI:
- Publish a one-page AI policy that defines allowed tools, data rules, and escalation paths.
- Create 5 starter playbooks that include prompts, steps, and success criteria for tasks like email drafting, meeting minutes, spreadsheet cleanup, tax research (with citations), and KPI snapshots.
- Adopt a “verify-before-send” practice, especially for anything numeric or cited.
- Measure and track from the start: time saved, rework rates, client satisfaction, and team sentiment.
- Build a shared prompt library that is role-specific, versioned, and easy to access.
First Steps That Work by Firm Size
Respondent answers and expert opinions from the report define how different firm sizes can practically implement AI in effective ways.
- Solo Firms: Start with personal productivity. Use AI for meeting recaps, email drafts, and spreadsheet cleanup. Keep a simple Quality Assurance checklist to review AI output (cite sources, reconcile numbers, spot-check items) and adjust tool settings to prevent client data from being used for model training.
- Small Firms: Publish an AI-use policy that defines approved tools and data rules. Standardize a few templated use cases for client communications, meeting notes, and SOP drafts, and hold short weekly peer demos to share what’s working.
- Medium Firms: Form an AI working group that includes IT, risk, and practice leaders to track use cases. Pilot new AI workflows, measure impact, then expand. Offer role-based training to help staff prompt effectively and evaluate outputs confidently.
- Large Firms: Build sandbox environments to test safely, measure pilot KPIs like realization and documentation quality, and codify standard procedures before a full rollout.
- Enterprise Firms: Integrate AI into core systems like workflow, analytics, and document management. Build governed connectors and prompt libraries, and introduce light model-risk controls to safeguard financial data.
Start structured and scale deliberately. The firms that commit to training, experimentation, and safeguarding data will move faster, stay compliant, and see results that last.
See Where AI Takes Accounting Next
As firms weave AI into everyday work, the focus is shifting from how to use it to how well it can serve clients.
The firms that combine innovation with integrity are already redefining what trusted advisory means. They’re using AI to turn accuracy into insight, speed into strategy, and automation into deeper client connection.
But this transformation is just beginning. The 2026 AI in Accounting Report reveals how firms of every size are experimenting, measuring, and finding their edge, sometimes in ways even early adopters didn’t expect.
What's next for accounting?
The answers and actionable insights to guide your next steps are in the full report. Get the complete data, expert and peer perspectives, and practical strategies for your firm’s next steps with AI inside.
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