Consulting is one of the most highly sought-after post-MBA careers. Consistently outpacing finance and other evergreen industries at Columbia, Chicago Booth, and MIT Sloan. Moreover, consulting firms continue to hire over 30% of MBA graduates consistently at several M7 and other top business schools.
The big four consulting firms that account for nearly 40% of the industry are PwC, Deloitte, EY, and KPMG. These are followed by McKinsey & Company and the BCG – US strategy giants.
There are several reasons for an MBA graduate’s fascination with consulting careers. Be it the breakneck pace of learning on the job or being surrounded by extremely intelligent and accomplished peers, or the high salaries and bonuses a management consulting career offers. The allure of consulting still pervades throughout and across the business school and MBA world.
But how do employees of these top consulting firms rank their firms? That’s exactly the question which Vault’s annual ranking of the best consulting firms to work for aims to answer.
In this article, we take a deep dive into the rankings and present the Top consulting firms in 2023. Before that take a look at what Consulting firms look for in a candidate:
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List of top 50 Consulting Firms in 2023
Here are the top 50 consulting firms to work for in 2023:
- Bain & Company
- The Boston Consulting Group, Inc.
- McKinsey & Company
- Booz Allen Hamilton
- The Parthenon Group
- Oliver Wyman
- Clearview Healthcare Partners
- Deloitte Consulting LLP
- “PricewaterhouseCoopers Advisory Services LLC (PwC Advisory Services)”
- Putnam Associates
- Alvarez & Marsal
- The Bridgespan Group
- The Keystone Group
- ghSMART & Co.
- A.T. Kearney
- KPMG LLP (Advisory)
- The Cambridge Group
- Cornerstone Research
- Blue Matter Consulting
- Roland Berger
- Kaiser Associates
- Health Advances, LLC
- The Brattle Group
- GE Healthcare
- ScottMadden, Inc.
- Eagle Hill Consulting LLC
- Insight Sourcing Group
- Simon-Kucher & Partners
- OC&C Strategy Consultants
- DeciBio Consulting
- Clarkston Consulting
- Bates White Economic Consulting
- Mercer LLC
- Keystone Group
- Trinity Partners, LLC
- Pace Harmon
- Artisan Healthcare Consulting
- Charles River Associates
- Kenway Consulting
- The Chartis Group
- NERA Economic Consulting
- LeapPoint
- Triangle Insights Group, LLC
- Ignyte Group
- Applied Value
- The Poirier Group
- Jabian Consulting
- DayBlink Consulting
- Insigniam
- Syneos Health
| Rank 2021 | Top 50 Consulting firms | Change in Rank (2021 vs. 2020) | Change in Rank (2020 vs. 2019) |
| 1 | Bain & Company | 2 | -1 |
| 2 | The Boston Consulting Group, Inc. | 0 | 1 |
| 3 | McKinsey & Company | -2 | 0 |
| 4 | Booz Allen Hamilton | 2 | 15 |
| 5 | The Parthenon Group | 2 | 0 |
| 6 | Oliver Wyman | -1 | 0 |
| 7 | Clearview Healthcare Partners | 6 | 11 |
| 8 | Deloitte Consulting LLP | -4 | 0 |
| 9 | PricewaterhouseCoopers Advisory Services LLC (PwC Advisory Services) | -1 | 0 |
| 10 | Putnam Associates | 2 | -6 |
| 11 | Alvarez & Marsal | 11 | -2 |
| 12 | The Bridgespan Group | 3 | -6 |
| 13 | The Keystone Group | 6 | 3 |
| 14 | ghSMART & Co. | 6 | 3 |
| 15 | A.T. Kearney | -6 | 2 |
| 16 | KPMG LLP (Advisory) | -2 | -2 |
| 17 | The Cambridge Group | Not ranked | |
| 18 | Cornerstone Research | -7 | NA |
| 19 | Blue Matter Consulting | -11 | NA |
| 20 | Roland Berger | 4 | -7 |
| 21 | Kaiser Associates | 25 | NA |
| 22 | Health Advances, LLC | 4 | 0 |
| 23 | The Brattle Group | 5 | -12 |
| 24 | GE Healthcare | -14 | 5 |
| 25 | ScottMadden, Inc. | 6 | NA |
| 26 | Eagle Hill Consulting LLC | 9 | -6 |
| 27 | Insight Sourcing Group | -6 | -3 |
| 28 | Simon-Kucher & Partners | 4 | -2 |
| 29 | OC&C Strategy Consultants | 20 | -21 |
| 30 | DeciBio Consulting | Not ranked | |
| 31 | Clarkston Consulting | -2 | 5 |
| 32 | Bates White Economic Consulting | Not ranked | |
| 33 | Mercer LLC | Not ranked | |
| 34 | Keystone Group | 6 | 3 |
| 35 | Trinity Partners, LLC | 6 | -8 |
| 36 | Pace Harmon | 14 | -2 |
| 37 | Artisan Healthcare Consulting | Not ranked | |
| 38 | Charles River Associates | Not ranked | |
| 39 | Kenway Consulting | 6 | 2 |
| 40 | The Chartis Group | -7 | 6 |
| 41 | NERA Economic Consulting | -3 | -1 |
| 42 | LeapPoint | 2 | -17 |
| 43 | Triangle Insights Group, LLC | Not ranked | |
| 44 | Ignyte Group | -17 | 8 |
| 45 | Applied Value | -8 | NA |
| 46 | The Poirier Group | Not ranked | |
| 47 | Jabian Consulting | Not ranked | |
| 48 | DayBlink Consulting | -6 | 7 |
| 49 | Insigniam | -13 | NA |
| 50 | Syneos Health | Not ranked |
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McKinsey, Bain, and BCG the holy trinity of management consulting firms retained the top 3 spots in the 2021 ranking of Best consulting firms to work for in 2021. Bain and McKinsey traded places coming in at 1st and 3rd in this year’s ranking as compared to 2020.
Top Consulting Firms Rank #1- Bain & Company
Bain & Company jumps from #3 to #1 ranking in 202. For Bain & Company, last year’s rankings data includes many promising steps forward. It ranked first among the MBB in 6 categories and displaced McKinsey in 3 of those categories, i.e., Firm Leadership, Formal Training, and Travel Requirements. The result?
Bain & Company ranks at #1 for the 2021 ranking. Out of 21 categories, Bain has gained ranking in 10 categories:
| Quality of Work / Life | Bain & Company (Ranking 2020) | Bain & Company (Ranking 2021) |
| Level of Challenge | 4 | 3 |
| Compensation | 4 | 3 |
| Exit Opportunities | 4 | 2 |
| Innovation | 11 | 9 |
| Interaction with Clients | 6 | 3 |
| Promotion Policy | 4 | 2 |
| Relationships with Supervisors | 3 | 1 |
| Satisfaction | 5 | 2 |
| Selectivity | 4 | 1 |
| Traveling requirement | 20 | 15 |
Top Consulting Firms Rank #2 – BCG
BCG maintains its rank as compared to 2020. Out of the 21 categories, four categories it ranks above McKinsey and Bain:
- Benefits
- Compensation
- Innovation
- Overall Business outlook
Top Consulting Firms Rank #3 – McKinsey
After holding 1st place for three consecutive years, McKinsey is now ranked at #3 position. We can also see a dip in ranking for the various categories under the quality of work/life. Out of 21 categories, McKinsey has lost ranking from 13 categories, which are presented below:
| Quality of Work / Life | McKinsey & Company (Ranking 2020) | McKinsey & Company (Ranking 2021) |
| Level of Challenge | 2 | 4 |
| Compensation | 3 | 8 |
| Diversity | 1 | 2 |
| Firm Culture | 5 | 12 |
| Firm Leadership | 3 | 6 |
| Hours in office | 14 | 23 |
| Interaction with Clients | 3 | 5 |
| Internal Mobility | 2 | 3 |
| Overall Business Outlook | 3 | 5 |
| Promotion Policy | 3 | 4 |
| Relationships with Supervisors | 1 | 5 |
| Satisfaction | 2 | 7 |
| Work-Life Balance | 12 | 21 |
Watch this video to know the hiring plans of the Big three Consulting firms:
Comparison between McKinsey, Bain, and BCG
The following table contains detailed quality of work/life rankings on 21 different parameters for the MBB firms i.e. McKinsey, Bain, and BCG:
| Quality of Work / Life | Bain & Company (Vault score) | 2021 Ranking | The Boston Consulting Group, Inc. (Vault score) | 2021 Ranking | McKinsey & Company (Vault score) | 2021 Ranking |
| Level of Challenge | 9.4 | 3 | 9.3 | 5 | 9.4 | 4 |
| Benefits | 9.6 | 3 | 9.8 | 1 | 9.7 | 2 |
| Compensation | 9.4 | 3 | 9.4 | 1 | 8.9 | 8 |
| Diversity | 9 | 7 | 9.2 | 5 | 9.4 | 2 |
| Exit Opportunities | 9.8 | 2 | 9.8 | 3 | 9.8 | 1 |
| Firm Culture | 9.8 | 2 | 9.5 | 3 | 9.3 | 12 |
| Firm Leadership | 9.7 | 2 | 9.7 | 3 | 9.5 | 6 |
| Formal Training | 9.7 | 3 | 9.5 | 5 | 9.5 | 4 |
| Hours in office | 8.1 | 18 | 7.9 | NR | 8 | 23 |
| Informal Training | 9.8 | 1 | 9.5 | 5 | 9.6 | 3 |
| Innovation | 9.15 | 9 | 9.5 | 3 | 9.5 | 2 |
| Interaction with Clients | 9.7 | 3 | 9.6 | 6 | 9.6 | 5 |
| Internal Mobility | 8.8 | 4 | 8.7 | 6 | 8.9 | 3 |
| International Opportunities | 9.1 | 6 | 9.3 | 3 | 9.5 | 1 |
| Overall Business Outlook | 9.6 | 4 | 9.8 | 2 | 9.6 | 5 |
| Promotion Policy | 9.6 | 2 | 9.5 | 3 | 9.3 | 4 |
| Relationships with Supervisors | 9.7 | 1 | 9.6 | 3 | 9.5 | 5 |
| Satisfaction | 9.4 | 2 | 9.1 | 5 | 9.1 | 7 |
| Selectivity | 9.9 | 1 | 9.8 | 2 | 9.8 | 4 |
| Travel Requirements | 9.3 | 15 | 9.2 | 19 | NR | NR |
| Work-Life Balance | 8.9 | 14 | 8.7 | 16 | 8.5 | 21 |
Consulting Firms – Ranking based on Services 2023
Now that you are aware of the top 50 Consulting firms let’s look into the various services offered by Consulting firms and their ranking. In this article, we rank consulting firms based on the following services:
- Best Boutique Consulting Firms
- Top Management and Strategy Consulting Firms
- Best Healthcare Consulting Firms
- Most Prestigious Consulting Firms
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Best Boutique Consulting Firms
Boutique consulting firms are those that offer a limited number of services to a relatively local client base. These firms are very focused on their consulting services and often serve a limited set of industries. However, there are a few advantages boutique consulting firms offer over larger global firms:
- Less travel
- More unique learning opportunities
- Exposure to high-level consultants
Following are the 2021 rankings of the Top 10 Boutique Consulting Firms:
| Companies Name | 2021 Rank (2020 Rank) | 2021 Score (2020 Score) |
| ghSMART & Co. | 1 (2) | 9.522 (9.328) |
| ClearView Healthcare Partners | 2 (1) | 9.439 (9.336) |
| Putnam Associates | 3 (4) | 9.293 (9.305) |
| The Keystone Group | 4 (5) | 9.185 (9.136) |
| Blue Matter Consulting | 5 (7) | 9.155 (9.007) |
| Kx Advisor | 6 (NR) | 9.077 (NR) |
| Potomac Point Group | 7 (NR) | 9.049 (NR) |
| Eagle Hill Consulting | 8 (12) | 8.974 (NA) |
| The Bridgespan Group | 9 (13) | 8.960 (NA) |
| Health Advances, LLC | 10 (9) | 8.945 (8.927) |
Top Management and Strategy Consulting Firms
The top 10 Management consulting firms remain intact, with few changes in the ranking. Only three firms saw a shift in Rank:
- Accenture
- EY LLP (Ernst & Young)
- PwC Advisory/Strategy&
Here are the top 10 management consulting firms to work for in 2022:
| 2021 Rank (2020 rank) | Firm Name | % of Votes |
| 1 (1) | McKinsey & Company | 68.05% |
| 2 (2) | The Boston Consulting Group, Inc. | 60.67% |
| 3 (3) | Bain & Company | 55.40% |
| 4 (4) | Deloitte Consulting LLP | 29.22% |
| 5 (6) | Accenture | 16.37% |
| 6 (7) | EY LLP (Ernst & Young) | 12.11% |
| 7 (5) | PwC Advisory/Strategy& | 10.33% |
| 8 (8) | Booz Allen Hamilton | 6.03% |
| 9 (9) | KPMG | 4.86% |
| 10 (10) | Oliver Wyman | 4.55% |
KPMG was removed from the top 10 strategy consulting firm list in 2021. Instead of that, LEK Consulting has made it to the list.
Here are the top 10 Strategy consulting firms to work for in 2021:
| 2021 Rank (2020 Rank) | Firm Name | % of Votes |
| 1 (1) | McKinsey & Company | 77.34% |
| 2 (2) | The Boston Consulting Group, Inc. | 71.39% |
| 3 (3) | Bain & Company | 64.44% |
| 4 (4) | Deloitte Consulting LLP | 17.13% |
| 5 (5) | Accenture | 10.43% |
| 6 (6) | PwC Advisory/Strategy& | 8.04% |
| 7 (8) | EY LLP (Ernst & Young) | 6.18% |
| 8 (7) | Oliver Wyman | 5.16% |
| 9 (NR) | L.E.K Consulting | 3.04% |
| 10 (10) | IBM Global Services | 2.97% |
The MBB (i.e., McKinsey, Bain, and BCG) continue to dominate both strategy and management consulting rankings in 2021. They are separated by almost a 50-60 point margin from the rest of the field in strategy consulting.
Best Healthcare Consulting Firms
Two new firms are added to the top 10 healthcare consulting firm list in 2021 – Accenture and IQVIA. PwC (Rank #12) and Huron Consulting Group (Rank #11) are removed from the top 10. Moreover, while McKinsey and BCG retained its top spot, Bain lost its Rank by 1 point (from 4th to 5th Rank).
Here are the top 10 healthcare consulting firms in 2021:
| 2021 Rank (2020 Rank) | Firm Name | % of Votes |
| 1 (1) | McKinsey & Company | 33.49% |
| 2 (2) | The Boston Consulting Group, Inc. | 27.43% |
| 3 (3) | Deloitte Consulting LLP | 19.33% |
| 4 (5) | GE Healthcare | 19.10% |
| 5 (4) | Bain & Company | 16.30% |
| 6 (11) | Accenture | 12.95% |
| 7 (6) | ZS | 12.34% |
| 8 (8) | Clearview Healthcare Partners | 12.20% |
| 9 (10) | L.E.K. Consulting | 10.81% |
| 10 (12) | IQVIA (IMS Consulting group) | 10.62% |
Most Prestigious Consulting Firms Rankings
Here are a few more articles you may like:
- Top 10 Business Schools where Grads earn the most in Consulting – Part 1
- Top 10 Business Schools where Grads earn the most in Consulting – Part 2
- Post-MBA Careers and Salaries (Industry-Wise)
- Average MBA Salary by Industry in 2023
- Is ISB the best business school for Consulting careers in India?
Want to pursue your career in Consulting? MBA graduates from top business schools get hired by some of these top 50 consulting firms and to get admissions into B-schools like Harvard, Stanford, and Kellogg, you require a good GMAT score. Start your GMAT Preparation by Signing up for our Free Trial and getting access to FREE online GMAT preparation resources. We are the most reviewed GMAT preparation company on GMATClub with more than 2500 reviews.
FAQs – Consulting Firms
The four largest management consulting firms in the world are PwC, KPMG, Deloitte, and EY.
The big three of MBB refer to the largest strategy consulting firms by revenue – McKinsey, The Boston Consulting Group, and Bain & Company.
In terms of work/life balance, Bain and BCG are better than McKinsey. Besides, according to the Vault Annual Ranking McKinsey has dropped from #1 position to #3 in the 2021 Ranking.
Yes. Consulting firms continue to hire over 30% of MBA graduates consistently at several M7 and other top business schools.
Learn more about M7 business schools.
