Tarlson & Associates

What Tarlson & Associates does

Tarlson & Associates is a privately held public accounting firm founded in 1986 by Nick G. Tarlson in San Francisco's Financial District (220 Sansome Street, Suite 900). The firm delivers a comprehensive suite of professional services spanning tax preparation, tax planning and controversy, business and financial consulting, forensic accounting and litigation support, estate planning, personal financial planning, business valuation, ITIN application assistance, and securities registration filings. Its client base spans high net worth individuals with complex tax circumstances, small to mid-size businesses ranging from startups to established entities, estates and trusts, nonprofit organizations, and foreign businesses requiring U.S. tax and accounting representation.

Name

Tarlson & Associates

Legal name

Tarlson & Associates

Website

https://tarlson.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Tarlson & Associates is a San Francisco-based public accounting firm founded in 1986, providing tax preparation, tax planning, business consulting, forensic accounting and litigation support, and estate planning services to high net worth individuals, small to mid-size businesses, estates, trusts, and nonprofits.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Accounting & Tax Services

NAICS

Offices of Certified Public Accountants (541211), Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services (5412), Other Accounting Services (541219)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Transfer Pricing & International Tax Services (BPAHABAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Trust & Estate Tax Planning & Compliance (FSAEAKAE), Tax-Aware Investment Planning (FSAEAAAE)

Keywords

• Public accounting services
• Tax preparation services
• Forensic accounting litigation
• Estate planning services
• Business valuation services

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Professional Services Fees: Billing for accounting, tax preparation, tax planning, litigation support, estate planning, business consulting, and financial advisory services. Fees likely structured as hourly rates or fixed-fee engagements for specific services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Tarlson & Associates is a public accounting firm in San Francisco providing tax preparation, tax planning, tax controversy defense, forensic accounting and litigation support, business valuation, business and financial consulting, estate planning, and personal financial planning services. The firm serves individuals (including high net worth), small to mid-size businesses, estates, trusts, nonprofits, and foreign businesses requiring U.S. tax support, delivering engagements through professional staff in its Financial District office.

Product overview

Tarlson & Associates is a public accounting firm offering a comprehensive suite of professional services rather than a software product. The firm's core offerings include Tax Preparation Services (covering income, estate, payroll, property, and sales & use tax), Tax Planning and Controversy Services (including audit defense and specialized tax research), and Business and Financial Consulting (encompassing strategic planning, business valuation, personal financial planning, and retirement planning). The firm also provides Forensic Accounting Litigation Support for legal disputes involving economic damages, business valuations, and marital dissolutions. Additional specialized services include Estate Planning, ITIN Application Services (as a Certifying Acceptance Agent), and Securities Registration Assistance. All services are delivered through professional staff interactions, not through a software platform or product.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Tax Preparation Services

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 36 years serving clients since 1986
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Golden Gate UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounder Nick G Tarlson serves as adjunct faculty teaching in the graduate schools of accounting, taxation and finance at Golden Gate University for nearly twenty years, including several years teaching the Business Valuation course in the Graduate Accounting School.
• California Society of Certified Public AccountantscoreOthersNick Tarlson serves on a number of state and local committees of the California Society of Certified Public Accountants in taxation, estate and probate, personal and estate planning, charitable giving and litigation support topic areas.
• American Institute of Certified Public AccountantscoreOthersProfessional membership organization. Nick Tarlson is recognized by AICPA and has published in the Journal of Accountancy, the national magazine of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
• California State Controller (Probate Court)coreOthersNick Tarlson serves as a California Probate Referee, appointed by the California State Controller to assist the Contra Costa County Superior Court in valuing estate assets in connection with probate and distribution.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Anchin, Block & Anchin LLP: Mid-market CPA and advisory firm emphasizing tax planning, business valuation, forensic accounting, and litigation support. Comparable because it competes directly in the specialty tax controversy, valuation, and forensic services that anchor Tarlson's premium offerings.
• Hemming Morse CPAs: San Francisco-based boutique CPA firm focused on tax, audit, and forensic accounting for high-net-worth individuals, closely held businesses, and litigation matters. Highly comparable to Tarlson because both are small SF firms specializing in tax controversy, forensic accounting, and complex individual engagements.
• Marks Paneth LLP: Northeastern accounting and advisory firm with strong tax, trusts & estates, and forensic accounting practices. Comparable due to overlapping emphasis on high-net-worth tax planning, estate administration, and litigation support — Tarlson's core specialties.

Regional players

• Frank, Rimerman + Co. LLP: Large Silicon Valley-based CPA and advisory firm serving individuals, businesses, and nonprofits. Comparable because it shares Tarlson's Bay Area geography, individual-and-business tax focus, and family/founder-led partnership structure, but at materially greater scale.
• Hood & Strong LLP: San Francisco-based CPA and wealth advisory firm. Comparable because it is a similarly positioned downtown SF firm serving high-net-worth individuals with integrated tax, estate, and financial planning services — directly overlapping with Tarlson's primary customer segment.
• Sensiba San Filippo LLP: Bay Area CPA firm providing tax, assurance, and advisory to individuals, businesses, and nonprofits. Comparable because it competes for the same high-net-worth individuals and small-to-mid businesses in the San Francisco market with a similar full-service tax-plus-advisory model.
• BPM LLP: California-headquartered full-service accounting and advisory firm. Comparable as a California-based alternative for the same individual and mid-market tax/audit client base Tarlson serves, but offering far broader service lines and geographic reach.

Broad incumbents

• BDO USA: Top-5 U.S. accounting firm offering tax, audit, advisory, and consulting across all major service lines. Comparable as a broad incumbent competing for the same individual and mid-market clients, though at a dramatically different scale and service breadth.
• RSM US LLP: Large U.S. accounting and advisory firm serving mid-market businesses. Comparable because it competes for the same small-to-mid business tax and advisory engagements that form Tarlson's secondary client segment.
• CliftonLarsonAllen (CLA): Top-10 U.S. accounting firm with strong private-client and tax practice. Comparable as a broad incumbent offering tax preparation, tax planning, and wealth advisory that overlaps with Tarlson's service mix at much larger scale.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ntarlson
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nick-g.-tarlson-cpa

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Tarlson & Associates