CPA Locator combines official board data, business listing data, IRS provider files, and claimed profile updates. Here's what each source contributes, how we process it, and where the limitations are.
CPA licensing in the US is regulated at the state level. The authoritative source for whether someone is a licensed CPA is their state board of accountancy. CPA Locator uses state board records where available, then layers in business contact information, reviews, and profile updates from other public and first-party sources.
The California DCA maintains public records of licensed CPAs and firms in California. We use this source for core entity identity fields such as name, license number, city, and status information where available.
What this data is best for: confirming the board-level listing identity. What it does not provide well: current marketing copy, website, phone, specialties, or whether the firm is accepting new clients.
DCA Public Records ↗ Verify a CA license ↗Florida DBPR makes CPA and CPA firm data available through its public licensing system. We use this source to create or validate the underlying listing identity for Florida firms and professionals.
DBPR License Search ↗Washington state publishes professional licensing data through the Washington State Open Data portal. We use these API-accessible records to build and refresh Washington CPA and firm listings.
WA Individuals API ↗ WA Firms API ↗Google Places provides business contact details and review aggregates that state board records usually do not include. We use it to backfill fields such as phone, website, address normalization, rating, and review count where a strong entity match exists.
Important: Google Places data reflects what a business has listed on Google and what Google has associated with that business. CPA Locator does not independently verify every third-party contact detail. Claimed profiles can override this information.
Ratings: Star ratings and review counts reflect the Google Maps aggregate rating at time of data retrieval. They are not updated in real time. Always check Google Maps directly for the most current rating.
CPA Locator also uses IRS provider files as a broader public-record source to identify accounting and tax firms that may not appear in our current board-backed datasets. These files are more useful for inventory expansion and contact backfill than for license verification.
Important: IRS provider data is not the same thing as a CPA license record. We treat it as a supporting source, not as proof of CPA credentialing by itself.
When a firm claims its profile, we treat those updates as the best available first-party information for services, specialties, bios, and contact details. We may also use public firm websites to enrich starter or premium profiles where the source is clear and attributable.
Important: Claimed data is provided by the firm. Public-web enrichment is used carefully and can still be stale or incomplete.
Every state board of accountancy maintains a free public license lookup tool. Search for the CPA by name and you'll see their current license status, expiration date, and any disciplinary history.
S-Corp Savings Calculator: Math based on IRC §1401(a) (SS rate 12.4%), IRC §1401(b) (Medicare rate 2.9%), IRC §1402(a)(12) (0.9235 NESE factor), IRC §3111 (FICA), and IRC §3121(a) (distributions exempt from FICA). Social Security wage base $176,100 for 2025 per SSA.gov Notice (October 2024). S-Corp overhead ranges from National Society of Accountants 2020-21 Income and Fees Survey and ADP/Gusto public pricing. Full footnotes on the calculator page.
CPA Cost Estimator: Fee data from National Society of Accountants 2020-21 Income and Fees of Accountants and Tax Preparers in Public Practice Survey (the primary published dataset for US CPA fees). Applied +15% inflation adjustment for 2024-25. Geographic multipliers from Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics for SOC 13-2011 (Accountants and Auditors) by metropolitan area, 2023 data. All sources linked from the estimator page.