Accenture vs IBM: Revenue, Profit and Business Model
Accenture reported $69.7B of revenue in FY2025 and $7.7B of net income. IBM reported $67.5B of revenue in FY2025 and $10.6B of net income.
Latest financial snapshot
Financial summary
Accenture
Accenture's fiscal year ends August 31. Revenue rose from $34.80B in FY2016 to $69.67B in FY2025, and net income attributable to Accenture plc rose from $4.11B to $7.68B over the same period. FY2025 brought $80.62B in new bookings, $10.87B of free cash flow, GAAP diluted EPS of $12.15 and $8.3B returned to shareholders through dividends and buybacks. Spending on acquisitions was $6.58B in FY2024 and $1.47B in FY2025. In Q3 FY2026 (to May 31, 2026) revenue was $18.72B, up 6% in U.S. dollars and 3% in local currency, and full-year FY2026 results are due on October 1, 2026.
IBM
IBM's reported revenue fell from about $80 billion in 2016-2018 to $57.4 billion in 2021, mostly because the Kyndryl spin-off and earlier divestitures removed low-margin services. Since then the slimmer company has grown each year: $60.5 billion in 2022, $61.9 billion in 2023, $62.8 billion in 2024, and $67.5 billion in 2025 (up 7.6%). FY2025 net income from continuing operations was $10.6 billion and free cash flow was $14.7 billion. In Q2 2026, revenue rose 1% to $17.16 billion: software grew 5% to $7.76 billion, consulting was flat at $5.33 billion, and infrastructure fell 7% to $3.84 billion as IBM Z sales lapped the z17 launch. Some large software deals slipped out of the quarter, so IBM cut its 2026 constant-currency revenue growth forecast to 4-5% while keeping its target of about $1 billion more free cash flow than in 2025.
Revenue and profit by year
Accenture
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $69.7B | $7.7B | 11.0% | +7.4% | Source |
| FY2024 | $64.9B | $7.3B | 11.2% | +1.2% | Source |
| FY2023 | $64.1B | $6.9B | 10.7% | +4.1% | Source |
| FY2022 | $61.6B | $6.9B | 11.2% | +21.9% | Source |
| FY2021 | $50.5B | $5.9B | 11.7% | +14.0% | Source |
| FY2020 | $44.3B | $5.1B | 11.5% | +2.6% | Source |
| FY2019 | $43.2B | $4.8B | 11.1% | +5.4% | Source |
| FY2018 | $41B | $4.1B | 9.9% | +13.3% | Source |
| FY2017 | $36.2B | $3.4B | 9.5% | +4.0% | Source |
| FY2016 | $34.8B | $4.1B | 11.8% | — | Source |
IBM
| Year | Revenue | Net income | Margin | Growth | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $67.5B | $10.6B | 15.7% | +7.6% | Source |
| FY2024 | $62.8B | $6B | 9.6% | +1.4% | Source |
| FY2023 | $61.9B | $7.5B | 12.1% | +2.2% | Source |
| FY2022 | $60.5B | $1.6B | 2.7% | +5.5% | Source |
| FY2021 | $57.4B | $5.7B | 10.0% | +3.9% | Source |
| FY2020 | $55.2B | $5.6B | 10.1% | -4.4% | Source |
| FY2019 | $57.7B | $9.4B | 16.3% | -27.5% | Source |
| FY2018 | $79.6B | $8.7B | 11.0% | +0.6% | Source |
| FY2017 | $79.1B | $5.8B | 7.3% | -1.0% | Source |
| FY2016 | $79.9B | $11.9B | 14.9% | — | Source |
Where the revenue comes from
Accenture
- Consulting
$35.11B in FY2025 revenue
Consulting includes strategy, technology consulting, systems integration, cloud migration, data and AI programs, and large transformation projects.
- Managed Services
$34.57B in FY2025 revenue
Managed Services includes application management, infrastructure operations, business process services, finance operations, customer operations, and other long-term outsourced work.
- AI, Data, and Digital Core
Reported across consulting and managed services
Accenture embeds AI, data, cybersecurity, cloud, enterprise platforms, and digital core modernization into client transformation programs.
- Song, Supply Chain, Engineering, and Talent
Reported across service lines
These capabilities cover customer experience, commerce, design, marketing technology, product engineering, supply chain, workforce transformation, and change management.
IBM
- Software~44%
Red Hat, automation, data and AI, transaction processing, security, and related software services.
- Consulting~31%
Technology consulting, business transformation, hybrid cloud implementation, and AI-enabled workflows.
- Infrastructure~23%
IBM Z, distributed infrastructure, storage, infrastructure software, maintenance, and related services.
- Financing~1%
Client financing and used equipment sales supporting enterprise technology deployments.
Business model and strategy
Accenture
How it makes money
Accenture sells professional services to large companies and governments. Consulting revenue ($35.11B in FY2025) comes from strategy, technology implementation, cloud migration and data and AI projects. Managed services revenue ($34.57B) comes from multi-year contracts to run applications, infrastructure and business processes such as finance or customer operations.
Growth strategy
Accenture grows through a mix of organic services and frequent acquisitions. It spent $6.58B on businesses and investments in FY2024 and $1.47B in FY2025, and in 2026 announced its largest recent deals: Faculty in the UK and the $1.2B Ookla agreement.
Competitive advantage
Accenture can take a client from strategy work through systems implementation and then run the resulting systems or processes under multi-year managed services contracts; in FY2025 managed services was $34.57B of its $69.67B revenue.
IBM
How it makes money
IBM makes money from four segments. Software ($29.96 billion in FY2025, about 44% of revenue) includes Red Hat Enterprise Linux and OpenShift, HashiCorp Terraform and Vault, Confluent data streaming (from March 2026), watsonx AI, automation, security, and mainframe transaction-processing software, sold mostly as subscriptions and recurring licenses.
Growth strategy
IBM does not try to beat AWS, Microsoft Azure, or Google Cloud at selling public cloud capacity. It sells the software layer that runs across all of them and across on-premises data centers.
Competitive advantage
IBM's main advantage is how deeply it is built into the core systems of large regulated organizations. Banks, card networks, insurers, and governments run high-volume transaction processing on IBM Z, and moving those workloads is slow, risky, and expensive.
Questions about Accenture vs IBM
Which company has higher revenue — Accenture PLC or International Business Machines Corporation?
Accenture PLC reported $69.7B (FY2025), while International Business Machines Corporation reported $67.5B (FY2025). By last reported revenue, Accenture PLC is the larger business, with International Business Machines Corporation reporting a smaller revenue base.
What is the market cap of Accenture PLC vs International Business Machines Corporation?
Accenture PLC's market capitalisation stands at $110.7B, while International Business Machines Corporation's is $216.3B. International Business Machines Corporation carries the higher market valuation, reflecting investors' expectations of its future earnings power relative to Accenture PLC.
Which is more financially efficient — Accenture PLC or International Business Machines Corporation?
Accenture PLC generates $87k / employee in revenue per employee, while International Business Machines Corporation generates $256k / employee. International Business Machines Corporation shows higher revenue efficiency per headcount, though this reflects business model differences — capital-light software companies routinely outperform labour-intensive manufacturers on this metric.
How do Accenture PLC and International Business Machines Corporation make money?
Accenture PLC and International Business Machines Corporation generate revenue in fundamentally different ways. Accenture PLC: Accenture sells professional services to large companies and governments. International Business Machines Corporation: IBM makes money from four segments.
Which company is valued higher relative to revenue — Accenture PLC or International Business Machines Corporation?
On a price-to-sales (P/S) basis, Accenture PLC trades at 1.6x P/S and International Business Machines Corporation at 3.2x P/S. International Business Machines Corporation commands a higher revenue multiple, typically indicating that investors expect faster growth or higher future margins compared to Accenture PLC. A higher multiple is not inherently better — it may also signal that the stock is priced for perfection.
Is Accenture PLC bigger than International Business Machines Corporation?
By last reported revenue, Accenture PLC ($69.7B (FY2025)) is the larger company compared to International Business Machines Corporation ($67.5B (FY2025)). Revenue scale is one dimension of size — market capitalisation, employee count, and geographic reach are also relevant depending on the context.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Accenture vs IBM overview