Starting salaries stagnate across consulting industry

Salaries for new appointments at both top firms and boutique consultancies largely remained flat over the last year, according to a new report. While industry reports continue to suggest revenues are growing – albeit slower than in the immediate post-lockdown period – firms may be seeking to appease shareholder pressure through suppressing starter salaries.

Major consulting firms have struggled to adjust to adapt to fluctuations in demand since the Covid-19 pandemic. It is commonly stated across the world’s largest professional services firms that while they enjoyed a surge in growth amid the crisis period, the years since have seen consulting growth return to normal levels – leaving the firms left with inflated headcounts which leaders claim has left them with little choice but to impose hiring freezes, and to weigh up lay-offs and pay cuts.

Now, a new global study from Management Consulted has shown the impact that is having on new talent entering the consulting sector. Analysing the sector across leading economies including the UK, US, Canada, Germany and India, the researchers found that starting pay has remained stagnant since 2023.

Previously, the same research found that annual increases of 5 to 10% were standard for the industry, but despite some recent signs of improvement, that has ceased to be the case. In fact, aside from two notable surges in 2022 and 2023, those rates have plateaued since 2019 – the last pre-pandemic increase.

The tried-and-tested excuse for this stagnation, the great consulting slowdown, may not be the only reason driving the change, though. Ironically for a sector which has played a leading role in helping other industries to undercut workers salaries with automation, the Management Consulted researchers suggested that productivity advancements sparked by generative AI and remote work might also be suppressing wage growth in advisory firms. Coupled with lower rates of attrition – with fewer consultants leaving the industry amid a reduction in opportunities elsewhere, amid a so-called ‘white-collar recession’, the study suggests this may have led firms to deprioritise new hires – and the pay rates needed to attract them.

Speaking to Business Insider, Namaan Mian, chief operating officer of Management Consulted, explained, "AI enablement is enabling consulting firms to accomplish more with fewer hires. Productivity gains, combined with slower attrition, reduce the need for new hires and stall salary growth.”

Management Consulted’s 2025 Consulting Salaries Report included over 100 firms and was based on submissions and offer letters shared by its readers and clients who work in consulting. The report found that starting total compensation at the Big Four – Deloitte, PwC, KPMG, and EY– was in keeping with the wider trend of having not increased since 2023. This was true for new hires coming out of undergraduate programmes as well as the higher paid ones coming out of MBAs or PhDs, as was also largely the case at the strategy consulting segment’s top players – McKinsey & Company, Bain & Company, and Boston Consulting Group – which are usually known for their competitive pay packages.

While this might have traditionally opened an opportunity for boutique players to snap up top talent, the study also suggests things may not be so black-and-white this time. The researchers found that while some smaller firms were now moving to match big consulting compensation, as well as offering earlier opportunities for advancement, others are also pacing themselves – as they weigh up perceived dangers around the corner.

The proliferation of in-house strategy groups – again supplemented by AI assistants that consultants have been championing for several years – at large corporate clients could limit the growth of the market of boutique players. Linking to this, Management Consulted concluded that while it does expect an increase in hiring as demand for consulting services and attrition in the coming years, salaries for new hires at all sizes of company could well remain stagnant.