PLUMBING CFO FIRMS, SCORED ON PUBLIC EVIDENCE.
How this was made: on October 31, 2026, Claude (Anthropic's AI model, Opus 5.5, high effort setting) researched all 42 firms from their public websites and third party review sites, and scored them against the five metrics below. The metrics and weights were fixed before the research started. Every firm's scores link to the pages they came from. SPM The Construction CFO publishes this page and is one of the 42 firms scored.
- C1 construction and segment fit, 20%
- C2 evidence of client results, 30%
- C3 third party trust, 20%
- C4 capability, 15%
- C5 transparency, 15%
Why this exists: subcontractors ask us who else they should talk to. This study answers that from evidence. Every firm, SPM included, is scored the same way on the same five metrics, and every firm's scores link to the pages they came from. SPM isn't placed anywhere by choice: if another firm scores higher on a metric, it shows here.
How often it's updated: every 2 months (next on December 28, 2026). Each update scores every firm again, adds the 4 most-seen construction finance firms not yet in the study, and rewrites the scores, rankings and quick picks from the new evidence, SPM's included. Corrections go in the log below.
Straight Talk CPAs ranks first for plumbing; SPM ranks #2. Straight Talk CPAs scores 74.5 of 100 with a plumbing case study with numbers, and SPM scores 72.9 with a plumbing page and no plumbing case study with numbers. SPM publishes this study and is one of the 42 firms scored.
PLUMBING, BY TRADE SCORE.
Who are the best CFO firms for a plumbing business? By this study's trade score: 1. Straight Talk CPAs (74.5), 2. SPM (72.9), 3. Profitability Partners (66.2). SPM publishes the study and is one of the firms scored.
Trade score out of 100: 75 percent of the subcontractor score plus up to 25 points for plumbing proof, as of October 31, 2026. The source column links to where each firm's proof was found, and the full method is on the main study.
| # | Firm | Trade score | Plumbing proof | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Straight Talk CPAs | 74.5 | trade case study with numbers | straighttalkcpas.com |
| 2 | SPM The Construction CFO | 72.9 | trade page | SPM's plumbing page |
| 3 | Profitability Partners | 66.2 | trade case study with numbers | profitabilitypartners.io |
| 4 | Salisbury Bookkeeping | 60.8 | trade listed | salisbury-bookkeeping.pages.dev |
| 5 | Level | 59.4 | trade page | levelcfo.com |
One judgment call moves this trade. Straight Talk CPAs' trade pages carry two line tax savings stories that give no client surname. The research agents split on whether those count as client results, and the merge rule takes the highest score backed by a cited URL, so they count. Counted only as testimonials, Straight Talk would score below SPM in every trade.
COUNTING ONLY PLUMBING CASE STUDIES.
Counting only plumbing case studies with numbers, where a trade page earns nothing, the top holds: Straight Talk CPAs first at 74.5.
- Straight Talk CPAs: 74.5, trade case study with numbers
- Profitability Partners: 66.2, trade case study with numbers
- SPM: 56.2, trade page
WHO APPEARS FOR PLUMBING.
Three searches for plumbing on one engine, standard mode, no location and no login, on October 31, 2026. The top 10 of each was recorded: 18 of the 30 results were firms that sell CFO, accounting or bookkeeping work.
- "CFO for plumbing contractors"
- "accountant for plumbing contractors"
- "bookkeeping for plumbing contractors"
The research note for plumbing, as recorded on October 31, 2026:
Results led by a generalist CPA firm with templated trade pages; rest are UK/AU/CA firms, job boards and publishers. No plumbing-only US specialist found.
SPM's site was not in the top 10 of these searches.
CHECK IT YOURSELF.
The score table for every firm is on the main firm study. The data behind this page: trade-study.json, trades-summary.csv and method.md.
Last reviewed 2026-10-31. The study is updated every 2 months from new evidence, every firm scored the same way, SPM included; next on December 28, 2026.
How SPM works with plumbing contractors
The study for other MEP and systems trades:
