Ask any accounting graduate what they want to do post-uni, and there's a decent chance they’ll say "Big Four.” And why not? Think of the prestige! The clients! The free tote bags! But despite the glitz and glamour, there’s a murky side to the corporate giants.
This week in The Briefcase, we’re looking at what it’s really like to work for the Big Four. We’re scouring Reddit and checking Glassdoor ratings to see what those ambitious little yuppies have to say about their burgeoning careers.
💼 When a Glassdoor shuts…
Let’s start with the stats:
Glassdoor's own benchmarks say:
- 3.4-3.7 – average
- 3.8-4.3 – positive
- 4.4+ – excellent
Damned with faint praise, the Big Four are all pretty average places to work, which makes it seem like the scramble from young professionals is more effort than it’s worth.
For comparison, Grant Thornton is rated 3.4, BDO 3.5, Crowe 3.4, and RMS 3.6, so admittedly, nowhere is actually that good to work. Probably because work is boring – especially compared to other things, like eating crisps.
It’s probably fair to say that if you’re reviewing something on Glassdoor, you’ve either had a fantastic experience or a terrible one – and it’s more than likely the latter. Rarely does someone rouse themselves to leave a three star review, and rarely is anyone interested in reading them. So, please, only give feedback to The Briefcase if you love it or hate it – we won’t read it otherwise.
💬 What Reddit says
Reddit is a great place to search "OLED TV 2026” and see a load of nerds discussing electronics in minute detail. It’s also a good place to read people complaining about their jobs.
We scrolled through the Big Four threads on the subreddits r/accounting and r/big4. We also didn’t get distracted and watch an AI video where a cat goes through a particularly rocky divorce.
Before we get into it, it’s also worth noting that happy people generally don’t go on Reddit to post their positive opinions about their job. Happy people generally don’t go on Reddit, actually. If they do, they quite quickly cease to be happy.
But even in this pit of catharsis, some people genuinely loved it:
"I loved it. I was young, with few commitments. The project-based work, the travel, the work hard, play hard nature. It was right for me at the time. 15 years after I left, the skills I learned, experiences I gained and network I made still stand me in good stead."
"There is some appeal to working with a bunch of smart people and also a bunch of young people your age (not 100% overlap in those groups). Also, if you are really interested in accounting, Big 4 is where you are going to see the weirdest stuff. The problems you encounter are difficult and unusual."
"My first two years were a lot of fun – I travelled 40% of the time and got a ton of hotel points, great food, and generally had a blast with my team."
Others had more juicy stories:
"I worked in audit and hated it. The work was dull and felt pointless… My colleagues were mostly wannabe investment bankers who wouldn’t be out of place as contestants in The Apprentice."
"The Big Four is generally stressful and fast-paced but at the same time it's a really good learning environment. Most people really dislike their first real job - add in busy season and a cut-throat environment, and the Big Four can be rough.”
"I really enjoyed the job… until I didn’t. My third year was a nightmare client merger. Everyone was miserable. Even the camaraderie couldn’t outweigh how awful the job got. I left for normalcy, and I have no regrets."
Some went in optimistic, then hit a wall around year two or three. Like pretty much every job ever, then! But nearly all agreed it sets you up nicely, provided you don’t fizzle out in your shiny skyscraper.
🌍 The US vs UK Experience
The Big Four experience varies person to person, but it also varies by continent.
In the US, the tone on Reddit is practically battle-hardened:
"When they get to a certain size, you're nothing more than a number. Everything is micromanaged to within an inch of its life."
"I can’t complain that Big Four has made it so my salary is $100k before I turn 30. But you pay for it in your personal life."
"The hiring manager wouldn’t even look at resumes without Big Four experience. There’s definitely bias in the market – and it pays off."
"I was on a client for an entire season doing just one account. That was my whole audit. I basically specialised in prepaid expenses. Forever."
Contrast this with UK and European accountants, where things sound positively civilised:
"Am I the only one working at the Big Four in the UK who is horrified reading all the US posts?"
"Working with Big Four now for more than seven years. I do maybe three weekends of overtime a year, tops."
"I don’t think I’ve ever worked more than an eight-hour day."
"The team is great, your ACA is paid for, you get Big Four on your CV, and you learn so much about how companies actually work."
"Juniors come in thinking they need to send emails at 10pm to impress. I’ve had to tell them to stop – it’s not a flex, it just makes you look slow."
So, what’s the difference? Probably better employee protections, as well as a British hesitancy towards rugged individualism. We’re more suited to sloppy indifference.
However, on the same continent, a Redditor responds:
"It seems like a much more forgiving and easy job here in Canada."
While another international Big Four staffer said:
"My Southeast Asia team works like the Americans. My UK clients log off at 6pm. Japan and Korea? 70-hour weeks, easy."
So, probably worth avoiding America – which seems to be a consensus for a lot of things nowadays.
🔥 The good, the bad, and the ugly
Let’s break it down:
😊 The pros:
- Fast learning curve – you will level up quickly.
- Great for CV and long-term opportunities.
- Smart colleagues, structured progression.
- Variety of work and major clients.
- Feels like you’re "in the game”.
😬 The cons:
- You’ll be run ragged.
- Burnout – especially in audit and M&A.
- Toxic middle management can creep in.
- Promotions are often tied to salesmanship, not leadership.
- People might think you’re a starchy old suit.
🧠 Final thoughts
It’s like that old joke about Oxbridge graduates – how can you tell if someone works at the Big Four? They’ll tell you. And they will, and probably a good deal of their conversation will centre around their job. Which is obviously always a joy to hear.
So, if you want to enthrall partygoers and be the life of the evening – cracking up everyone around you with your incredible stories, inspiring them to achieve even a fraction of your success – then get in the Big Four. But, be warned, heavy is the head that wears the crown. As one Redditor said:
"It’s great… until it isn’t. Then it’s time to leave. But you’ll never regret having been there."
And neither will the many people you will talk to about it!
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