Utah business data / Original analysis

Utah County's accounting offices grew 26% from 2018 to 2023 while Salt Lake County's held flat

Where are accounting and bookkeeping offices opening along the Wasatch Front? We counted them in the U.S. Census Bureau's County Business Patterns for Salt Lake and Utah counties, every year from 2018 to 2023.

By Inkdrop Bookkeeping · Published October 10, 2026
Data years: 2018 to 2023 · Sources retrieved October 10, 2026

Utah County grew. Salt Lake County held still.

Utah County had 352 accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping and payroll establishments in 2023, up from 279 in 2018. Salt Lake County had 652, against 650 in 2018.

Both counties added businesses. Utah County's employer establishments grew 23.8% and Salt Lake County's grew 9.0%. Per 1,000 employer businesses, Utah County went from 19.66 to 20.04 and Salt Lake County fell from 19.84 to 18.25. By 2023, Utah County had the higher rate.

Accounting, tax, bookkeeping and payroll establishments per 1,000 employer businesses

Salt Lake 2018

19.84

Salt Lake 2023

18.25

Utah Co. 2018

19.66

Utah Co. 2023

20.04

NAICS 5412 per 1,000 employer establishments, Salt Lake and Utah counties, 2018 and 2023, from Census Bureau County Business Patterns data.

Inside Salt Lake County, tax and payroll offices shrank

Salt Lake County's flat total hides movement inside it. Tax preparation offices went from 130 to 123, and payroll services offices from 61 to 55. Payroll offices fell in Utah County too, from 32 to 26.

In Utah County, CPA offices went from 82 to 112, bookkeeping and other accounting from 130 to 168, and tax preparation from 35 to 46.

Most are small offices

In 2023, 437 of Salt Lake County's 652 establishments in the group had fewer than five employees. In Utah County it was 268 of 352.

What this means if you run a business in the south valley

Fewer payroll offices doesn't mean payroll got simpler. If you're hiring, it's worth knowing who will run payroll and file the payroll taxes before the first pay date, not after.

Ask whether your accounts are reconciled every month, and by what date you'll see a profit and loss statement.
Find out what your tax preparer receives at year end, and in what state the books arrive.
If you're hiring, check whether payroll is handled by your bookkeeper or by a separate provider, and who files the quarterly payroll returns.

How we got these numbers

We downloaded the Census Bureau's County Business Patterns county files for each year from 2018 to 2023 and read the rows for Salt Lake County (FIPS 49035) and Utah County (FIPS 49049), Utah. We used the employer establishment count (est) for NAICS 5412, the accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping and payroll services group, and the four industries inside it: 541211 Offices of Certified Public Accountants, 541213 Tax Preparation Services, 541214 Payroll Services and 541219 Other Accounting Services, the code that includes bookkeeping services. The fewer-than-five-employees figures come from the file's n<5 column.

Industry establishments ÷ all employer establishments in the county × 1,000

For example, Utah County in 2023: 352 ÷ 17,568 × 1,000 = 20.04. Percentage changes compare 2018 with 2023 and are rounded to one decimal place.

The 2023 County Business Patterns release is the latest the Census Bureau's dataset directory listed when we checked on October 10, 2026. These are 2023 counts, not 2026 counts.

What this study does not measure

Self-employed accountants and bookkeepers. County Business Patterns covers businesses with paid employees. Sole proprietors with no staff are not in these counts.
Companies. An establishment is one business location. A firm with two offices counts twice.
Where clients are. Firms are counted where they are located. A firm may serve clients in other counties or states.
Demand, quality or prices. These are counts of business locations only.

Every county, industry and year

Employer establishments by county, industry and year. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns; rates by Inkdrop Bookkeeping.
Year	County	Industry	Establishments	Fewer than 5 employees	All businesses	Per 1,000 businesses
2018	Salt Lake County	All accounting, tax, bookkeeping and payroll	650	457	32,767	19.84
2018	Salt Lake County	Bookkeeping and other accounting	197	151	32,767	6.01
2018	Salt Lake County	CPA offices	262	192	32,767	8.00
2018	Salt Lake County	Tax preparation	130	93	32,767	3.97
2018	Salt Lake County	Payroll services	61	21	32,767	1.86
2018	Utah County	All accounting, tax, bookkeeping and payroll	279	215	14,192	19.66
2018	Utah County	Bookkeeping and other accounting	130	114	14,192	9.16
2018	Utah County	CPA offices	82	59	14,192	5.78
2018	Utah County	Tax preparation	35	27	14,192	2.47
2018	Utah County	Payroll services	32	15	14,192	2.25
2019	Salt Lake County	All accounting, tax, bookkeeping and payroll	635	446	33,028	19.23
2019	Salt Lake County	Bookkeeping and other accounting	196	153	33,028	5.93
2019	Salt Lake County	CPA offices	249	172	33,028	7.54
2019	Salt Lake County	Tax preparation	133	101	33,028	4.03
2019	Salt Lake County	Payroll services	57	20	33,028	1.73
2019	Utah County	All accounting, tax, bookkeeping and payroll	286	224	14,787	19.34
2019	Utah County	Bookkeeping and other accounting	134	119	14,787	9.06
2019	Utah County	CPA offices	91	66	14,787	6.15
2019	Utah County	Tax preparation	32	26	14,787	2.16
2019	Utah County	Payroll services	29	13	14,787	1.96
2020	Salt Lake County	All accounting, tax, bookkeeping and payroll	653	470	33,829	19.30
2020	Salt Lake County	Bookkeeping and other accounting	216	175	33,829	6.39
2020	Salt Lake County	CPA offices	243	171	33,829	7.18
2020	Salt Lake County	Tax preparation	137	101	33,829	4.05
2020	Salt Lake County	Payroll services	57	23	33,829	1.68
2020	Utah County	All accounting, tax, bookkeeping and payroll	323	248	15,535	20.79
2020	Utah County	Bookkeeping and other accounting	157	139	15,535	10.11
2020	Utah County	CPA offices	97	64	15,535	6.24
2020	Utah County	Tax preparation	36	28	15,535	2.32
2020	Utah County	Payroll services	33	17	15,535	2.12
2021	Salt Lake County	All accounting, tax, bookkeeping and payroll	651	457	34,648	18.79
2021	Salt Lake County	Bookkeeping and other accounting	215	169	34,648	6.21
2021	Salt Lake County	CPA offices	241	162	34,648	6.96
2021	Salt Lake County	Tax preparation	139	102	34,648	4.01
2021	Salt Lake County	Payroll services	56	24	34,648	1.62
2021	Utah County	All accounting, tax, bookkeeping and payroll	338	254	16,210	20.85
2021	Utah County	Bookkeeping and other accounting	157	130	16,210	9.69
2021	Utah County	CPA offices	102	73	16,210	6.29
2021	Utah County	Tax preparation	48	37	16,210	2.96
2021	Utah County	Payroll services	31	14	16,210	1.91
2022	Salt Lake County	All accounting, tax, bookkeeping and payroll	620	416	35,284	17.57
2022	Salt Lake County	Bookkeeping and other accounting	226	177	35,284	6.41
2022	Salt Lake County	CPA offices	237	155	35,284	6.72
2022	Salt Lake County	Tax preparation	108	67	35,284	3.06
2022	Salt Lake County	Payroll services	49	17	35,284	1.39
2022	Utah County	All accounting, tax, bookkeeping and payroll	341	248	17,057	19.99
2022	Utah County	Bookkeeping and other accounting	162	132	17,057	9.50
2022	Utah County	CPA offices	108	78	17,057	6.33
2022	Utah County	Tax preparation	44	27	17,057	2.58
2022	Utah County	Payroll services	27	11	17,057	1.58
2023	Salt Lake County	All accounting, tax, bookkeeping and payroll	652	437	35,732	18.25
2023	Salt Lake County	Bookkeeping and other accounting	232	176	35,732	6.49
2023	Salt Lake County	CPA offices	242	155	35,732	6.77
2023	Salt Lake County	Tax preparation	123	82	35,732	3.44
2023	Salt Lake County	Payroll services	55	24	35,732	1.54
2023	Utah County	All accounting, tax, bookkeeping and payroll	352	268	17,568	20.04
2023	Utah County	Bookkeeping and other accounting	168	141	17,568	9.56
2023	Utah County	CPA offices	112	82	17,568	6.38
2023	Utah County	Tax preparation	46	30	17,568	2.62
2023	Utah County	Payroll services	26	15	17,568	1.48

The CSV download has the same rows with the Census industry codes and county codes.

Sources and update record

U.S. Census Bureau County Business Patterns county files (ZIP), one per year: 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023. Release list: County Business Patterns datasets.

October 10, 2026: first publication. When the Census Bureau releases a newer year, this page is recalculated and reviewed before any figure changes. Spotted an error? Tell us.