Here’s a breakdown of why we don’t yet have a true “everything” platform for accountants (think: one system that does bookkeeping, tax, payroll, analytics, compliance, client comms, ERP and more):
Accounting touches a ton of domains — from regulatory compliance to financial forecasting to client relationship management. Each area has its own tools, laws, workflows, and user needs. It’s tough to build a single platform that does all of that well.
There are already dozens (if not hundreds) of platforms for:
These platforms often don’t “talk” to each other perfectly, and most firms build patchwork tech stacks using integrations.
Tax and financial regulations vary not just by country, but often by state (USA) or region. A global “everything” platform would need to be hyper-localised, which is expensive and complicated.
A solo bookkeeper, a mid-size firm, and a Big Four audit team all need different things. A one-size-fits-all platform would either be too bloated or too narrow.
A lot of accounting firms still use older software or on-prem solutions. Migrating to a new “do-it-all” platform is risky, time-consuming, and expensive — especially when people are already buried in client work.
That said, I believe we are getting closer.
There are a few platforms trying to be the “hub” for firms (like Karbon, Canopy, Jetpack Workflow, or Client Hub), but they usually focus on practice management, not everything. Some niche startups are trying to build end-to-end systems, but no one has nailed the whole stack yet.
Would you be interested in what a modern “everything” platform could look like or who’s closest to making it happen? Let us know your thoughts.
