Recently, Vault—a barometer for high-paying industries like investment banking, law, consulting, and auditing—released its 2022 Top 50 consulting firm rankings!
Often cited by The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Fortune, and other leading media, the Vault rankings are essentially the QS rankings of the workplace.
We’re bringing you this most influential Top 50 list, with ranking analysis, industry trends, representative firms, target schools, and more—serving as a reference for all aspiring consultants.
Evaluation Metrics
The rankings are based on the following criteria, weighted as follows:
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30% Prestige
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15% Firm culture
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15% Satisfaction
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10% Compensation
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10% Work-life balance
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10% Level of challenge
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5% Overall business outlook
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5% Promotion policies
MBB Dominance, Big Four Wane, New Elites Rise
The Top 10 best consulting firms for 2022 are:
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Bain & Company
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McKinsey & Company
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The Boston Consulting Group
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The Bridgespan Group
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EY - Parthenon
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Booz Allen Hamilton
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Oliver Wyman
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Kearney
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L.E.K. Consulting
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Putnam Associates
Most of the Top 10 consulting firms have offices in China, and many are dream employers for students.
The top three are once again dominated by the traditional consulting giants MBB—Bain, McKinsey, and BCG—whose scores tower over all others, firmly placing them in the first tier.
Bain edged out McKinsey by a razor-thin 0.001 to hold onto first place, while BCG dropped from second last year to third. MBB scores are all above 9.2, with tiny gaps; it’s a battle of titans.
Compared to last year, three new faces broke into the Top 10: The Bridgespan Group, Kearney, and L.E.K. Consulting.
Kearney and L.E.K. are longtime industry players, so their entry isn’t a surprise. But the dark horse Bridgespan charged into the Top 10 at #4, showing remarkable momentum.
As always, some are happy, others worried. Surprisingly, only one Big Four consulting practice made the Top 10 this year.
Looking back at the past three years of Vault's consulting lists, Deloitte Consulting, EY-Parthenon, and PwC Consulting all cracked the Top 10. This year, only EY-Parthenon remains at #5, holding steady.
Deloitte Consulting became embroiled in a lawsuit over data security, shelling out nearly $5 million in damages, and slipped to #11 this year.
KPMG Consulting tumbled from #12 in 2019 to #20 this year. PwC Consulting fell out of the Top 50 altogether.
Overall, this year’s rankings show MBB holding the fort, the Big Four fading, and new elites rising.
In the past, top business students often boasted they wouldn’t join anywhere but MBB. But today, that narrow view is unnecessary. Beyond MBB, there are many under-the-radar boutique consulting firms that may seem like dark horses on the list but are actually more specialized than the giants in certain areas—and they also offer excellent compensation.
For example, the boutique firms that cracked the Top 10 this year—Bridgespan, Booz Allen Hamilton, and Putnam—are definitely worth another look!
Industry Newcomers: Boutique Consulting Firms
First, let’s clarify: what is a boutique consulting firm?
Consulting firms fall into two main categories: generalist consulting firms like McKinsey, Bain, and BCG; and boutique firms that focus on a specific niche, such as Putnam, Bridgespan, and ghSMART.
The three core dimensions of a boutique firm are brand, talent, and knowledge. They typically serve a specific client base with specialized services. The first principle of a true boutique is uniqueness, coupled with a degree of market leadership in its chosen field.
In fact, beyond the MBB and Big Four juggernauts, many boutique consultancies have already surpassed their generalist counterparts in niche professional rankings. A key advantage of boutique firms is that they are not weighed down by heavy fixed investments; a small team of a few people can effectively serve clients.
For those who want to dive deep into a specialized field and get a comprehensive view of the consulting process early on, a boutique firm might be a better choice than the big names.
Moreover, unlike MBB’s brutal sub-1% acceptance rates, boutique firms are relatively easier to get into.
Additionally, if you later aim for a top-tier investment bank or MBB, a boutique firm is an excellent springboard.
Next, we’ll dive deeper into three boutique representatives: Bridgespan, Booz Allen Hamilton, and Putnam.
Bridgespan
The Bridgespan Group ranked #4 overall on Vault’s consulting list and #2 among boutique firms this year. Its practice areas include child welfare, climate change, early childhood education, and education consulting.
Headquartered in Boston, the firm focuses on management consulting for nonprofits and philanthropic organizations, having served the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Ford Foundation, and Bloomberg Philanthropies. Notably, it is itself a nonprofit.
Bridgespan was founded in 1999 by former Bain & Company Managing Director Thomas Tierney, Harvard Business School Professor Jeffrey Bradach, and Bain Vice President Paul Carttar. It has maintained close ties with Bain ever since. Bain provided more than $1 million in support during Bridgespan’s first three years.
On the compensation front, according to Glassdoor, an associate consultant at Bridgespan earns about $70,000 per year, a senior associate consultant nearly $90,000, and a manager $179,000.
While it falls short of MBB pay, for a nonprofit, this compensation is extremely generous, and salaries rise fast.
Additionally, in Vault’s sub-rankings, Bridgespan ranks #1 for diversity, and third in both employee satisfaction and overall business outlook, making it a crown jewel of boutique consulting.
What schools does Bridgespan favor? LinkedIn data shows its employees are predominantly Ivy League graduates, especially from Harvard and Yale. Notably, 22 professionals hail from Harvard Business School, underscoring the elite atmosphere.
Booz Allen Hamilton
Booz Allen Hamilton ranked #6 on Vault’s consulting list this year. Its specialties are government consulting and information security.
Founded in Chicago in 1914 and now headquartered in Virginia, the firm entered the Greater China market in the 1990s with offices in Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong, and Taipei.
Booz Allen Hamilton has more than 80 offices worldwide and nearly 30,000 employees. Its core business spans cybersecurity, data analytics, digital solutions, engineering sciences, and advisory services, with fiscal year 2021 revenue reaching $7.9 billion.
Booz Allen is not only the go-to consultant for many leading corporations, but also the sole contractor for U.S. Department of Defense projects and the first consulting firm selected by NASA at its inception; it is a trusted advisor to the U.S. federal government. Booz Allen is also the top-choice consultant for veterans seeking employment.
In terms of pay, Booz Allen Hamilton is highly competitive: the average total compensation package for an associate consultant reaches $113,000 per year, rivaling MBB.
In Vault’s sub-rankings, Booz Allen ranks #2 in public sector consulting, #6 in defense consulting, #10 in data analytics consulting, and #11 in IT strategy consulting.
According to LinkedIn employee data, Booz Allen favors science- and technology-focused universities as well as military academies, often recruiting from nearby schools. For example, the University of Maryland, a target school, is just a four-minute drive away.
Other major feeder schools include George Mason University, Virginia Tech, George Washington University, the University of Virginia, and the Community College of the Air Force.
Putnam
Putnam Associates ranked #10 on the Vault consulting list and #5 among boutique firms. It focuses on biopharmaceutical and life sciences consulting, serving both global pharma giants and biotech startups.
Founded in 1988, with offices in Boston, New York, San Francisco, and London, Putnam operates projects worldwide. It provides top-tier strategy consulting grounded in robust analytics for biopharmaceutical, diagnostics, and medical device clients, as well as private equity and venture capital firms.
On compensation, the annual salary for an associate consultant position at Putnam, as reflected in H-1B filings, is $75,000. While not at the top of the consulting scale, the fact that it sponsors H-1B visas makes it an attractive option for international students.
Employees also report relatively little travel—a breath of fresh air in an industry where being on the road is the norm.
In Vault’s sub-rankings, Putnam stands at #13 in healthcare consulting and #5 in employee benefits.
Because its headquarters are in Boston, many employees graduated from local universities—Harvard, MIT, Tufts, Boston University, Boston College. Additionally, many hail from Ivy League schools, with the largest numbers coming from UPenn, Cornell, and Dartmouth.
Why Is Consulting So Hot?
When it comes to a career in consulting, the image is inevitably high-paying and high-end.
Without exaggeration, compared to investment banking with its relentless overtime and all-nighters, consulting is a beacon of work-life balance. Management consultants can spend up to 200 days a year traveling—accumulating enough frequent-flyer miles to circle the globe for free while staying in five-star luxury hotels.
The allure becomes crystal clear when we look at the pay.
Top-tier MBB firms offer recent graduates a base salary of $90,000. With bonuses, that can reach a pretax annual income of $110,000–$120,000.
MBA graduates earn even more. Despite widespread salary freezes during the pandemic, MBB still raised MBA starting pay by 4%–9%, with total pretax compensation reaching $250,000.
Such salaries, rivaling investment banking, have made MBB a fiercely sought-after prize among MBA graduates in recent years.
Beyond MBB, boutique consulting firms also attract top graduates with competitive pay and deep industry expertise.
For international students, joining a consulting firm after graduation means rapid growth through mature training systems and dense project exposure. By immersing themselves in industries and interacting with diverse professionals, they can become experts in a chosen field.
Furthermore, the career path in consulting is crystal clear: whether advancing to senior leadership within the firm or making a jump into investment banking or a corporate role, the avenues are well-defined.
That said, whether in North America or China, top consulting firms are extremely selective when hiring. Outstanding GPA, networking, internship experience, and leadership are all essential. Non-target-school students must work even harder in every area to stand out.
In short, diligent effort and a positive mindset are both indispensable. We wish all students the best in securing their ideal offers and achieving both academic and career success!
