Growth is one of the most closely watched measures in the IPA 100, but the headline rate doesn’t show how a firm got there. A firm expanding through pricing, new services and client development is building differently from one adding scale through mergers and acquisitions.
In the latest episode of The INSIDE Public Accounting Podcast, IPA Executive Director Chelsea Summers and co-host Rob Brown compare the 2026 fastest-growing firms by organic growth and all growth. Viewed side by side, the lists show two distinct paths to building momentum and a few firms that are finding ways to combine them.
Organic Growth Rewards Consistency
The 10 fastest-growing IPA 100 firms by organic growth averaged 15.6%, more than twice the 7.0% average across the IPA 100.
That performance rarely comes from a single source. These firms are raising prices, expanding services, winning new clients and doing more work for existing relationships.
“It’s really growth from every direction at once, not typically just a single lever,” Summers said.
Wolf & Company led the organic-growth list at 16.1% for the second consecutive year. Blue & Co. followed at 15.4%, while Schellman ranked third at 15.1% and made the list for a third straight year.
Making the list more than once suggests the growth is not a one-year spike. These firms have continued to win work, build capacity and strengthen their market position.
M&A Changes the Scale of Growth
The numbers get much larger once M&A enters the picture.
Richey May Advisory led the all-growth list at 244.6% after a major combination reshaped its revenue base and moved the firm from No. 102 to No. 47. Springline Advisory followed at 75.6%, entering the IPA 100 after not appearing on the list last year. Archer Lewis ranked third at 72%.
Nine of the 10 firms on the all-growth list have private equity backing. That concentration shows how strongly outside capital and acquisition activity are influencing the firms making the largest moves across the rankings.
The contrast goes beyond the size of the percentages. Organic growth leaders are building through pricing, service delivery and client relationships. The firms leading all growth are using mergers, combinations and repositioning to assemble scale much faster.
The Two Paths Can Work Together
The episode’s larger takeaway is that firms don’t have to choose one growth path permanently.
Smith + Howard, for example, appeared on both lists. Other firms that return to the rankings year after year are pairing a deliberate organic foundation with strategic deals when the fit is right.
“Both are legitimate growth stories, but they just look very different when you’re looking at them up close,” Summers said.
For firm leaders, the useful question is not simply how fast a peer grew. It is what produced that growth, whether the firm can sustain it and which approach fits its strategy. A firm may emphasize one path today and add the other as its needs and opportunities change.
Listen to the full episode of The INSIDE Public Accounting Podcast for Summers and Brown’s discussion of the firms leading both lists and the strategies behind their growth.
