hether during uncertain or robust economic times, CPAs remain in high demand. Your business is thriving? You need an accountant. Your business is failing? You need an accountant. According to IBISworld, the accounting services market was a $143.4 billion profession last year. Whether in taxes, auditing or consulting, CPAs play a vital role in helping companies and individuals solve compliance issues and chart their course for better business solutions—from valuation to financial planning, from attestation to IRS representation, from consulting to estate planning.

So where do you find such professionals? For business owners, corporations and individuals looking for a CPA, it’s not enough for them to simply be professionals in good standing. You expect a blend of financial genius, innovation and deskside manner. And most of all, trustworthiness—they are, after all, entrusted with confidential financial records, sensitive information and your Social Security number.

We’re here to help. To assist you in finding the CPAs at the top of their game, Forbes has produced our inaugural America’s Top 200 CPAs list. Created exclusively by Forbes editorial staff, it is a compilation of the finest CPAs active in public practice, culled from a collection of candidates sourced through independent nominations and accolades from every society and association of CPAs. Nominees were rated on a range of weighted criteria, including expertise, innovation, thought leadership, experience, and service to the community and to their profession, as well as responses to selected questions.

Ultimately, Forbes’ list of America’s Top 200 CPAs is a story—a story of the hundreds of thousands of CPAs who serve the wealth creators, entrepreneurs and taxpayers of America. Whether you’re struggling with the demands of your business or find yourself needing to account for your audacious success, these are the ones you need.

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As with all Forbes lists, candidates do not pay any fee to be considered or selected. For questions about this list, please email cpalist [at] forbes.com.