Methodology
How we match AI tools to accounting firms
CurateSuite compares what each tool does with what your firm actually needs. No vendor pays to rank higher. The methodology reflects how firms actually work.
- 1
We catalogue the tools
We record what each tool does from what vendors publish: product docs, spec sheets, pricing pages. If a vendor hasn't published it, we don't make it up.
- 2
We ask what your firm needs
The matchmaker asks about your firm size, budget, the workflows eating your time, and the software you already run. Takes about 2 minutes.
- 3
We score each tool against your firm
A rule-based scoring model compares your firm's needs with each tool's capabilities. The weights are published, so you can see what we're scoring on.
- 4
We show our reasoning
Every match explains which features lined up with what you asked for. If nothing fits your firm, the matchmaker says so.
How the matchmaker scores a match
Matches are scored out of 100. Firm size carries the most weight at 22, your specialisation and general ledger at 18 each, the biggest time drain at 20, automation fit at 10, and price fit at 12. Geography is a pure filter, not a score: if a tool is not sold in your region, it is removed before scoring starts, so it cannot pad a weaker match. The exact rules, including half-credit for adjacent matches, are published in full below.
| Criterion | Weight | Full credit when | Half credit when |
|---|---|---|---|
| Firm size | 22 | Tool serves your firm size. | Not applicable. |
| Specialisation | 18 | Tool serves your main work area. | Tool is tagged as friendly to your area. |
| General ledger | 18 | Tool works with your GL. | You picked "something else" or "none yet". |
| Time drain | 20 | Tool's category matches your drain. | Tool has a tag from the drain's map. |
| Budget | 12 | Tool price is at or below your cap. | Tool price is one bucket higher, or pricing is custom. |
| Automation fit | 10 | Tool's automation style matches the work you want to speed up. | Tool's style is one step away on the routine-to-judgment range. |
| Geography | filter only | Tool sells in your region or is global. | Not applicable. |
Custom-priced tools get full budget credit when you picked "not sure yet" or "$200 or more". For tighter budgets, custom pricing scores half credit because we cannot know the exact fit.
Tools scoring below 40 are excluded from the results page. If fewer than three tools clear the floor, you see a "no strong matches" state instead of padded weak results.
Where the data comes from
CurateSuite uses what vendors publish. Product documentation, spec sheets, pricing pages, and the lists of what each tool works with on the vendor's own site. We don't infer features from screenshots, and we don't guess at pricing. If something isn't published, it's flagged on the tool page rather than filled with marketing copy. Every tool page also carries the date the data was last verified, so you know how fresh the comparison is.
How often we re-verify
CurateSuite re-checks pricing, what each tool works with, and geographic availability at least every 90 days. Vendor announcements (a pricing change, a new tier, a withdrawn region) trigger an out-of-cycle update on the relevant tool page within the week, and the verified date is refreshed. Tools that change category or get acquired are reviewed in full, not patched.
Methodology review
A qualified specialist for the profession we're matching reviews the matchmaking methodology before each vertical launches, and again at every major version. Methodology only. The specialist doesn't score individual tools, write match recommendations, or hold any commercial relationship with vendors. Their job is to keep the questions, the weights, and the floor rules in line with how firms in that profession actually work.
Ready to see what fits your firm? The matchmaker takes about two minutes.
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