What an accounting firm website needs

The facts here come from primary sources: the Treasury rule on tax practitioner advertising, 31 CFR § 10.30 (part of Circular 230), the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy's advertising rule 22 Tex. Admin. Code § 501.82 as one state's example, IRS Publication 4557, Safeguarding Taxpayer Data (Rev. 6-2024), and Google's Guidelines for representing your business on Google. This page explains how those rules shape a website. It is not legal or ethics advice: check your own state board's rules before you publish.

The short answer

An accounting firm website needs a page for each service, a clear statement of the clients you work with, team bios with credentials described exactly as your license or IRS status allows, a secure way for clients to send documents, and contact details that match your Google Business Profile. Every claim on it, from fees to testimonials, has to be true and checkable, because both your state board and the IRS rules on tax practice say so.

Services and who you serve

Give each main service its own page: tax preparation, bookkeeping, payroll, audit and review, advisory, IRS representation. Each page should say what the work includes, what the client needs to provide, how the process runs through the year and who the service suits.

Say who you serve. A line such as restaurants and retailers in San Diego County or individuals with rental property helps the right people recognise themselves and the wrong ones move on.

If you publish fees, be careful. The Texas rule counts as misleading any statement that "represents that professional accounting services can or will be completely performed for a stated fee when this is not the case". Our view: publish a starting price only with what it includes and what would change it.

The advertising rules

Two sets of rules apply to most firms. The first is your state board's. Texas, as one example, says a person shall not use "any communication having reference to the person's professional services that contains a false, fraudulent, misleading or deceptive statement or claim". Its definition of misleading includes a statement that "implies educational or professional attainments or licensing recognition not supported in fact", one that "consists of self-laudatory statements that are not based on verifiable facts", and one that "contains testimonials or endorsements that are not based upon verifiable facts". On a website that rules out calling yourself the best CPA in town unless you can prove it, and it means every client quote should be real, used with the client's permission and kept on file.

The second is Circular 230, for anyone who practises before the IRS. Section 10.30 says a practitioner may not use "any form of public communication or private solicitation containing a false, fraudulent, or coercive statement or claim; or a misleading or deceptive statement or claim". It also covers titles: enrolled agents, enrolled retirement plan agents and registered tax return preparers "may not utilize the term “certified” or imply an employer/employee relationship with the Internal Revenue Service". If you list fees, 10.30 lets you publish fixed fees for routine services, hourly rates, fee ranges and the fee for an initial consultation, and a practitioner "may charge no more than the rate(s) published" for at least 30 calendar days after the schedule was last published. So a fee page needs a date, and price changes need care.

Both rules also ask for records. 10.30 says that for "direct mail and e-commerce communications" the practitioner must keep a copy of the communication for at least 36 months, and Texas asks for the same 36 months for electronic and direct mail communications. Our view: keep a dated copy of your fee page and any email campaign each time you change it.

Secure document upload instead of email

Clients will email you tax documents unless the website gives them a better way. IRS Publication 4557 says to "Encrypt all sensitive files/emails" and to "Send only password-protected and encrypted documents if you must share files with clients via email or use Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) to transmit files instead of email."

Publication 4557 also says that under the FTC Safeguards Rule "tax return preparers must create and enact security plans to protect client data", and to "Implement multi-factor authentication for anyone accessing customer information on your system". For the website that means:

• A client portal or secure upload link from a provider built for this, behind its own login with multi-factor authentication.
• A contact form that asks only for name, contact details and the kind of help needed, with a note saying not to type Social Security numbers or attach tax forms.
• A short page that tells clients how you will and will not ask for documents, so a phishing email in your name looks wrong to them.

Our view: do not build file upload into the public contact form. If you need custom upload, our guide to file uploads in web apps covers the risks, and small business website security covers the site itself.

Team bios with credentials

A bio page for each person who works with clients builds trust. Include a real photo, the person's role, what kind of clients and work they handle, and their credentials as they actually hold them: the state where a CPA is licensed, "enrolled agent" with one of the approved descriptions from 10.30, and any other designation with its correct name. Under the Texas rule, a bio may not imply attainments "not supported in fact", so keep bios current when someone's license or role changes.

Matching your Google Business Profile

Google asks that the profile name "reflect your business’s real-world name, as used consistently on your storefront, website, stationery, and as known to customers". Use the same name, address and phone number on the website as on the profile.

Partners may want their own profiles. Google treats financial planners as individual practitioners and says profiles for practitioners "may include title or degree certification (for example Dr., MD, JD, Esq., CFA)". A practitioner should have one only if "They operate in a public-facing role. Support staff should not create their own Business Profiles." Where several practitioners share an office, "The organization should create a Business Profile for this location, separate from that of the practitioner." Our Google Business Profile guide covers setup and the rest of the rules.

A short checklist (our view)

• One page per service, saying what it includes and who it suits.
• No claim you cannot prove: no "best", no made-up comparisons, only real testimonials kept on file.
• Credentials worded exactly as your license or IRS status allows.
• Any fee page dated, with what each price includes, and old versions kept.
• A secure upload or client portal with multi-factor login, and a contact form that asks for no tax data.
• The same name, address and phone as your Google Business Profile.

Law firms and dental practices have matching guides in what a law firm website needs and what a dental website needs, and our website privacy basics covers privacy notices. If you would rather have it built for you, our website development service builds custom WordPress and static websites made to load fast, rank well and be easy for your team to edit.

Frequently asked questions

Can an accounting firm put client testimonials on its website?

Often yes, but check your state board's rule. Texas, for example, treats testimonials that are not based on verifiable facts as misleading. Use real quotes with the client's permission and keep a record of each.

Can an enrolled agent call themselves certified?

No. Circular 230 section 10.30 says enrolled agents may not use the term "certified" in describing their designation, and gives approved wording such as "enrolled to practice before the Internal Revenue Service".

Is it safe for clients to email tax documents?

IRS Publication 4557 says to send only password-protected, encrypted documents if you must use email, or to use secure file transfer instead. A client portal with multi-factor login is the simpler choice for most firms.