Our study identifies at least 20x its fee in first-year deductions on commercial property, or at least 30x on a short-term rental, or it is free.
Best Cost Segregation Companies for 2026: 48 Providers Compared
By Steven Ellis, Founder, Basis Property Group · Cost Segregation Guides · Comparisons · Updated October 12, 2026
Quick answer
Cost segregation providers differ on five published details: whether a study is engineered or software and remote, whether the price is public, how long delivery takes, whether a sample report can be read, and whether a guarantee is written down. Across 48 providers checked on their own websites on 2026-09-30, 17 publish a starting price (from $481 to $3,000), 4 are confirmed to publish a sample report without a form (3 could not be checked), and 13 mention a guarantee, 4 with a stated refund or no-fee remedy. No provider is ranked or named best here: each is listed on the same criteria, alphabetically within its group.
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48 providers compared on the same published criteria, read from their own websites on 2026-09-30: 7 software and remote, 16 engineered specialty, 12 CPA-firm practices and 13 hybrid
17 publish a starting price, from $481 to $3,000, and 9 more cite a general range; the other 22 give no dollar price per study
Only 4 are confirmed to publish a sample report without a form (3 could not be checked), and 13 mention a guarantee, 4 of them with a stated refund or no-fee remedy
Stated turnaround runs from minutes for self-guided software to one to three months at one engineered firm, and the clock starts at different points
No provider is ranked or named best; Basis, which publishes this page, appears only in its own section
Steven's Take
I did not build Basis to be the biggest name in cost segregation. I built it STR-forward, with a free number before you commit to anything, because that is the gap I saw: owners with a single building or a vacation rental getting service models built for institutional portfolios. If a large national firm is genuinely the better fit for your property, I would rather tell you that than pretend otherwise.
Steven Ellis, Founder
How this list was built
Every fact in the tables below comes from the provider's own website, read on 2026-09-30. For each provider we recorded the type of study it describes, the starting price it publishes, the turnaround it states, the property types it serves, whether a sample report can be read, and any guarantee it writes down. A field the provider's pages do not state is shown as "Not published." We did not submit forms, create accounts, download files or contact any provider. A guarantee is counted when a provider's own pages name one or say a specific commitment is guaranteed, such as a price match, a turnaround, a minimum return or audit defense; the cell says whether a remedy is published.
Ranking pages are not used as sources. In the research behind this page, several ranking pages were published by a provider that is listed on the page, and their fee figures often disagree with the providers' own sites: several ranking pages gave different fee figures for one engineered firm that publishes no fee schedule of its own. Prices, turnaround and guarantees here come only from each provider's pages. A general range that a provider's FAQ gives for the industry is shown as a range cited, not as that provider's price.
The 48 providers fall into four groups that follow how each one describes itself. Software and remote providers sell a self-guided or fully remote study. Engineered specialty firms describe an engineering-based study, or do not state a study type. CPA-firm practices are accounting firms that offer cost segregation as one service. Hybrid providers sell more than one tier, or sell a remote study that an engineer reviews. Virtual Cost Segregation sells one fully remote study that its engineers prepare, so it is grouped with the software and remote providers. Within each table, providers are in alphabetical order, and the order means nothing. A few listings share an operator or a platform: Cost Seg EZ and MVO Cost Segregation are run by the same company, CostSegregation.com is KBKG's self-serve software, ELB Consulting says it built the platform behind DIY Cost Seg, and Overline's studies are fulfilled by Modern CFO. Each is listed because each publishes its own terms. This is not every provider in the market.
Basis Property Group publishes this page and sells cost segregation studies itself. It appears only in its own section near the end.
Benchmark run: a $1,911,675 building basis (Office / Warehouse, less land). Straight-line 39-year depreciation without a study runs about $49,017 in year one. The benchmark run identified $330,674 in first-year increased deductions on the same building (the section 481(a) catch-up plus year-one depreciation), at a $9,900 fee.
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See where your property fits with the free 60-second qualifier at /qualify before comparing firms further.
Five published details do most of the separating, and each column in the tables below shows one of them. The tables scroll sideways on a phone.
Study type. Software and remote providers sell a self-guided or fully remote study, engineered firms describe an engineering-based study, and hybrids sell more than one tier or a remote study that an engineer reviews. Remote does not settle whether an engineer was involved: Abode states its studies use no engineers, while Virtual Cost Segregation states that its US-based engineers complete each study from photos and records.
Published price. 17 of 48 publish a starting price, from $481 to $3,000. 9 more cite a general range, and the other 22 give no dollar price for a study. Of the 12 CPA-firm practices, 2 publish a price or range.
Turnaround. Stated times run from minutes for self-guided software to one to three months at one engineered firm. Read what starts the clock: SMF Cost Segregation Advisors counts 1 to 3 business days from the virtual visit and documents, Capstan Tax Strategies and Maven count 30 days from the site visit, and Baker Tilly counts four to eight weeks from when all information is collected.
Sample report. 4 of 48 publish one without a form, and one more sends it after an email address is entered. Three could not be checked: Capstan Tax Strategies, Haynie & Company and SegWize.
Guarantee. 13 mention a guarantee and 4 of them state a refund or no-fee remedy. The scope differs: Abode's covers the fee only, and CSA Partners' pays only if a significant depreciation it identified is disallowed on audit.
Software and remote providers (7)
Seven providers sell a self-guided or fully remote study. Six publish a flat or starting price, from $481 to $2,200, and stated delivery runs from minutes to 5 business days where a time is given. Remote Cost Seg publishes neither a price nor a turnaround; it is classed here as remote because its study is fully virtual, although its site describes human-led work rather than automated software.
Software and remote providers. Alphabetical, not ranked. Source: each provider's own website, checked 2026-09-30. Not published means the pages we read do not state it.
Residential rentals, STRs, multifamily; properties valued under $5 million
After email signup
Not published
Engineered specialty firms and consultancies (16)
Fifteen of these firms describe an engineering-based study, and ICS Tax does not state a study type. Most do not publish a price list: 2 publish a starting price (CostSegRx from $895 for residential, CSA Partners from $3,000), 6 cite a general range, and the other 8 publish no dollar figure. Stated turnaround runs from 3 to 7 business days at Cost Segregation Guys to one to three months at Cost Segregation Consultants. Thirteen of the sixteen describe a site visit or inspection, required or optional, and the best-fit section below lists them.
Engineered specialty firms and consultancies. Alphabetical, not ranked. Source: each provider's own website, checked 2026-09-30. Not published means the pages we read do not state it.
Twelve accounting firms offer cost segregation as one service. Only Fabbi Cost Seg publishes a starting price ($2,500 residential, $5,000 commercial), and Dimov Tax & CPA cites a range. Four state a turnaround: Baker Tilly, Fabbi Cost Seg, Haynie and Omega. Most send readers to a contact form, and three offer a free feasibility analysis or proposal: Baker Tilly, Cherry Bekaert and EisnerAmper. None is shown publishing a sample report (Haynie's could not be checked) or a guarantee.
CPA-firm practices. Alphabetical, not ranked. Source: each provider's own website, checked 2026-09-30. Not published means the pages we read do not state it.
Thirteen providers sell more than one tier, such as a self-directed or software tier, an engineer-reviewed tier and a fully engineered tier, or sell a remote study that an engineer reviews. 8 of the 13 publish a starting price, from $500 to $1,750, and the price in the table is each provider's lowest published tier. Fully engineered tiers start higher: $2,320 for residential at R.E. Cost Seg, $2,495 at WeCostSeg, and $2,500 at Cost Seg EZ and MVO Cost Segregation. Three of the four providers with a public sample report are in this group. Check which tier a published price belongs to before comparing it with another provider.
Hybrid providers. Alphabetical, not ranked. Source: each provider's own website, checked 2026-09-30. Not published means the pages we read do not state it.
Rapid Report from $795; fully engineered from $2,495 residential, $2,995 commercial
Rapid Report 5 to 10 business days; fully engineered 2 to 4 weeks on the pricing page, up to 6 weeks for commercial on the how-it-works page
Residential through commercial
Not published
States no dollar guarantee; commits to defend its study in audit
Best fit by situation
Each line below is a filter on published facts, with every provider that passes the filter named in alphabetical order. None of the lines picks a winner, and a provider appearing in a line says nothing about its other terms.
Small residential rental, lowest published starting price (under $1,000).Abode Cost Segregation ($481); Cost Seg EZ ($595, DIY tier); CostSegregation.com ($495, software); CostSegRx ($895, residential); DIY Cost Seg ($495, software); MVO Cost Segregation ($595, DIY tier); O'Connor Cost Segregation ($500 without a site visit); R.E. Cost Seg ($950, Rapid Report); RentalWriteOff ($899); SegWize ($550); WeCostSeg ($795, Rapid Report). These starting prices are not like for like: several are software or DIY tiers, and what each includes, such as audit protection, differs. Cost Seg EZ and MVO Cost Segregation list audit protection as a $195 add-on on their DIY and engineer-reviewed tiers.
Stated turnaround of 2 business days or less.Abode Cost Segregation (minutes); Cost Seg EZ (DIY tier, instant); CostSegregation.com (under 15 minutes); DIY Cost Seg (under 5 minutes); KBKG (software tier, about 15 minutes); MVO Cost Segregation (DIY tier, instant); RentalWriteOff (2 business days after intake and payment); SegWize (1 business day). Several others state up to 10 business days, including Cost Segregation Guys (3 to 7), R.E. Cost Seg's Rapid Report (about 5), Virtual Cost Segregation (3 to 5), WeCostSeg's Rapid Report (5 to 10) and SMF Cost Segregation Advisors (1 to 3 after the virtual visit and documents).
A sample report you can read without a form.Abode Cost Segregation (on-page preview); Cost Seg EZ (sample PDF linked from its FAQ); Modern CFO (FreeCostSeg.com) (page-by-page excerpts); Overline (section-by-section walkthrough). Virtual Cost Segregation sends its sample after an email address is entered.
A written guarantee with a stated remedy.Abode Cost Segregation (90-day money-back on the fee); CSA Partners (fee refund if a significant depreciation it identified is disallowed on audit); O'Connor Cost Segregation (if not satisfied, no fee); Seneca Cost Segregation (full fee refund if Seneca caused an audit adjustment over 5% of depreciation). Nine more state a guarantee without publishing a refund or other remedy on the pages we read: Cost Segregation Guys (price-match, conditions not shown); ELB Consulting (badge only, terms not published); Modern CFO (FreeCostSeg.com) (home page says guaranteed results and no upfront costs, terms not published); Overline (named guarantee covering audit support); Remote Cost Seg (5x minimum ROI); Segregation Holding (500% minimum ROI on projects over $500,000); SegWize (turnaround only); We Do Cost Segregation (guaranteed to beat any competitor offer); WeCostSeg (guarantees its methodology and audit defense, no dollar guarantee).
Larger or unusual commercial property. 21 of the 24 providers whose Property types column names hospitality, healthcare or industrial property publish no starting price. Many offer a free feasibility analysis or proposal, which is the way to see price and timing for a specific building.
The 60-Second Qualifier
Four questions. Our engineering team's model shows the estimated first-year acceleration a study of your property would target, free, before you commit to anything.
Accounting firms treat cost segregation as one service inside a wider tax practice. The 12 CPA-firm practices in the table above show what that looks like on their own sites: 2 publish a price or range, 4 state a turnaround, none is shown publishing a sample report (Haynie's could not be checked) or a guarantee, and most send readers to a contact form.
Deloitte and KPMG, two of the Big Four, also run tax practices that include cost segregation and fixed-asset depreciation work. They are covered on their own pages rather than in the tables: see the Deloitte comparison and the KPMG comparison. An existing audit or advisory relationship with one of these firms can be a reason to start there. Because the published terms are thin, ask any accounting firm for price, turnaround, deliverable and audit support in writing before comparing it with a provider that publishes them.
National specialty tax firms: KBKG, CSSI, Engineered Tax Services, Madison SPECS and CSA Partners
Each of these five describes its own history and volume, and those figures are self-reported, not verified. KBKG says it was established in 1999 and also works on R&D credits, 179D, 45L, transfer pricing and IC-DISC; its engineered study is quote-based, and its FAQ says fees typically run $5,000 to $15,000. CSSI lists cost segregation as one of three service lines beside 179D and R&D credits and claims 23+ years and 65,000+ studies. Engineered Tax Services says it performs engineering-based studies exclusively, alongside R&D, 179D, 45L, 1031 exchange services and a CPA partnership program, and claims 75,000+ studies. Madison SPECS is based in Lakewood, New Jersey, says it has 20 in-house engineers and 41,861 studies, and states a typical range of $4,000 to $11,000 with fixed fees per property. CSA Partners says it has completed 30,000+ studies, does cost segregation and energy incentives only, and runs a CPA partner program.
All five lead with commercial property. Four also publish residential or short-term rental content: CSSI has a dedicated short-term rental page, Engineered Tax Services has a vacation rental section, CSA Partners has an STR page, and KBKG runs the self-serve CostSegregation.com for properties up to $1.5 million in building basis. Madison SPECS mentions no STR work on the pages we read. Working through a CPA who already uses one of these firms can simplify the decision, since Engineered Tax Services and CSA Partners both run CPA partner programs. See the KBKG comparison, CSSI, Engineered Tax Services, Madison SPECS and CSA Partners for the fit contrasts.
Self-serve and STR-focused tools
A newer tier sells to short-term rental and small residential owners through software or remote processes, and terms differ widely inside it. Abode states its AI-powered study uses no engineers or site visits, costs $481, arrives in minutes and comes with no audit defense. RentalWriteOff builds its $899 study from appraisal or listing photos, public records and satellite imagery and delivers in 2 business days after intake and payment. SegWize states a flat $550 fee and delivery within 1 business day. KBKG's CostSegregation.com sells a self-guided report from $495 for properties up to $1.5 million in building basis.
Some providers in this tier put a person in the loop. R.E. Cost Seg sells a self-directed Rapid Report from $950 with no inspection, and a Fully Engineered Study from $2,320 for residential property that includes a 30 to 60 minute virtual inspection. Remote Cost Seg describes a fully virtual study that takes under an hour of the owner's time (another page on its site says under three hours), publishes no price, and states a 5x minimum ROI guarantee without publishing the remedy. Virtual Cost Segregation says US-based engineers complete its study from photos, purchase documents and building records.
The tradeoff in this tier is what the price buys. Ask each provider which tier a published price belongs to, who prepares and signs the report, and what happens if the IRS asks questions. The specific questions worth asking are in one checklist, and R.E. Cost Seg, Remote Cost Seg and DIY software each have a comparison page.
The court decision and IRS guide behind cost segregation
Cost segregation classifies building components into 5-, 7- and 15-year property instead of the 27.5-year (residential rental) or 39-year (nonresidential) schedule. A 1997 Tax Court decision, Hospital Corporation of America v. Commissioner (109 T.C. 21), addressed whether certain components of hospital buildings were tangible personal property or part of the building for depreciation purposes. The IRS publishes a Cost Segregation Audit Techniques Guide (Pub 5653) that describes how its examiners review a study. Providers work from the same classification rules, so the tables above compare process, price, turnaround and terms.
Where Basis fits
Basis publishes this page and sells cost segregation studies itself, so it is not listed in the tables above. Our engineering team builds the studies, and the owner-facing process is built around short-term rental and individual commercial owners rather than institutional portfolios. That shows up in four specific ways. First, STR studies run photos-only, classifying components from the same listing photos already on Airbnb or VRBO, no site visit. Second, a free Preliminary Benefit Estimate models the likely first-year number before any commitment, through the 60-second qualifier at /qualify. Third, every study carries a guarantee, at least 20 times the fee in first-year deductions on commercial property or 30 times on a short-term rental, or the study is free. Fourth, both a budget engineered tier and a full engineered tier are available, and both deliver the same 70-page IRS Audit Techniques Guide aligned report.
Basis does not publish prices either: each study is quoted to the property after the free estimate.
Basis exists because an individual STR owner and a REIT do not need the same process, even when the underlying tax mechanics are identical.
What is the difference between an engineered study and a software or remote study?
Providers define the terms themselves. Engineered firms describe an engineering-based study, often with an engineer site visit or engineering review; CSSI and Madison SPECS both describe an engineer visiting the property. Software and remote providers sell a self-guided or fully remote study with no site visit. Remote does not settle whether an engineer was involved: Abode says its studies use no engineers and that it is not an engineering firm, Virtual Cost Segregation says its US-based engineers complete each study from photos and records, and Modern CFO says every study is prepared and signed by a cost segregation engineer. Check who prepares and signs the report, and see <a href="/engineered-vs-software-cost-segregation/">how the two approaches compare</a>.
What does a cost segregation study cost?
It depends on the provider type and on what the price includes. Among providers that publish a starting price, software and remote studies run from $481 to $2,200, hybrid providers start between $500 and $1,750 with fully engineered tiers starting at $2,320 to $2,500, and the engineered specialty and CPA firms that publish a start list $895 to $3,000. Engineered firms that cite a general range instead cite figures from $2,000 to $20,000 or more, and 10 of the 12 CPA-firm practices publish no price. These are published figures as of 2026-09-30, not quotes for any property, and providers that quote by property say the final fee depends on size and complexity.
What does a sample cost segregation report show?
Four providers publish one without a form, and what each shows differs. Abode shows an on-page preview of a sample study for an $875,000 short-term rental in La Quinta, CA. Modern CFO shows page-by-page excerpts of a report for a $727,500 single-family rental with a $1,600 study fee, with owner details removed. Overline walks through a sample $1,000,000 single-family report section by section, including line items, CSI codes and the asset register. Cost Seg EZ's FAQ links a sample report PDF. Virtual Cost Segregation sends its sample after an email address is entered, and Titan Echo says it does not offer one because properties are too unique. Whether Capstan Tax Strategies, Haynie & Company and SegWize publish one could not be checked. Several other providers publish case studies with summary figures only. <a href="/cost-segregation-study-sample-report/">What a full report contains</a> is covered in its own guide.
Is audit support the same as audit representation?
No, and providers draw the line in different places. R.E. Cost Seg says audit support means written answers about its methodology and excludes IRS representation. Abode states it offers no audit defense. O'Connor says it will interface with the IRS and defend its study, and SegWize says it will engage with the IRS to answer questions about its process. Duration differs too: WeCostSeg states five years, RentalWriteOff five years with two hours included, Virtual Cost Segregation the life of the return, and CSA Partners says 36 months on one page and lifetime on another. Ask for scope and duration in writing, and see <a href="/cost-segregation-audit-defense/">what audit defense covers</a>.
How do I verify a cost segregation provider?
Start with the provider's own site, not a ranking page: several ranking pages reviewed for this page were published by a provider that is listed on the page. Then check five things in the provider's own words: the price and which tier it belongs to, what starts the turnaround clock, whether a sample report can be read, what a guarantee pays and what it excludes, and what audit support covers and for how long. Read the terms page as well as the home page. As of 2026-09-30, Abode's pricing page promises a full refund within 90 days while its terms tier refunds by stage, a gap only the terms page shows. The <a href="/questions-to-ask-a-cost-segregation-company/">questions worth asking</a> are worth putting to every provider in writing.
How current is the provider information on this page?
Every provider fact was read from that provider's own website on 2026-09-30. Prices, tiers, turnaround and guarantees change, so confirm current terms before relying on any figure here. If something on this page is out of date, tell us and we will update it.
Educational information, not tax advice. This page describes how federal
depreciation rules and tests work in general. Whether any rule fits your facts is a determination for
you and your CPA. Our study gives your CPA the engineering and the numbers to make that call.
IRS ATG Aligned · Methodology per IRS Pub 946 & Treas. Reg. §1.168 · Engineering-based component studies · Form 3115 / 481(a) look-back · Works directly with your CPA
Basis works with commercial and short-term rental owners in all 50 states, with guides covering 44 vacation rental markets. Estimates run off the county's own assessment records, including a proprietary data engine covering more than 14,000 Pennsylvania commercial and industrial parcels.