July 2, 2026
SOC 1 vs SOC 2: Which Report Does Your Company Need?SOC 1 covers financial reporting controls; SOC 2 covers security and trust. A Colorado CPA firm explains which report your clients are…
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The Examination, Explained
SOC 2 Compliance Audit
What the auditor examines, who is allowed to perform one, and how the engagement runs from kickoff to signed opinion.
Connect with an ExpertA SOC 2 compliance audit is an independent examination of the controls you use to protect customer data, measured against the AICPA Trust Services Criteria and performed by a licensed CPA firm. It ends in an attestation report carrying a signed opinion.
Not sure the audit belongs on your roadmap yet? Our free two-minute questionnaire gives you a straight answer, and the interactive SOC 2 checklist shows you the evidence an auditor would ask for before anyone is on a call.
Scope
What a SOC 2 Compliance Audit Covers
5 Trust Services Categories
Every SOC 2 examination tests controls against the Trust Services Criteria. The four categories beyond Security join only when your customer commitments make them relevant, which is a scoping decision we make with you, not a default.
Security Always in Scope
Access control, change management, risk assessment, monitoring, and incident response. The common criteria every report covers.
Availability
Uptime commitments, capacity planning, backup, and recovery. Relevant when customers depend on your service being reachable.
Processing Integrity
Whether your system processes data completely, accurately, and on time. Common for billing, payments, and data pipelines.
Confidentiality
How information designated confidential is protected and disposed of. The most common addition beyond Security.
Privacy
Collection, use, retention, and disposal of personal information against your privacy notice. Think you need it? Read privacy versus confidentiality first.
The Route
How Long a SOC 2 Compliance Audit Takes
Readiness Assessment 4 to 8 weeks, optional
A pre-audit gap review; most first-time engagements start here.
SOC 2 Type I 1 to 2 months, optional
An opinion on whether your controls are suitably designed as of a single date.
SOC 2 Type II Window typically 6 to 12 months
Your controls operate across an observation window; we test evidence from the full period.
Report Draft in 2 weeks, final within 5 to 7 weeks of period end
You review the draft, the signed opinion follows; the full methodology has each phase.
Budget
What a SOC 2 Compliance Audit Costs
Every engagement is one fixed fee, quoted before any work begins, and the fee moves on four things:
Systems in scope. How many systems sit inside the audit boundary, and how complex the infrastructure and processes behind them are.
Controls in scope. More controls means more testing, and more evidence to sample.
Trust Services Categories. Security is the common criteria on every report; Availability, Processing Integrity, Confidentiality, and Privacy add scope when your customers need them.
Report type and package. A Type 1 alone, a Type 2 alone, or readiness, Type 1, and Type 2 packaged together, which is how most first-time teams engage.
Want a number for your environment? Run the pricing calculator or book a scoping call.
The License Behind the Opinion
Who Can Perform One
Only a licensed CPA firm operating under AICPA attestation standards can perform a SOC 2 examination and issue the report. A compliance platform can organize your evidence and monitor your controls, and we work with whichever one you already run, but the opinion itself has to come from a CPA firm willing to sign it.
Every Sage Audits engagement is quoted as a fixed fee before work begins; our pricing page explains how we scope one.
Licensed CPA FirmColorado License FRM.5000785, authorized to issue SOC examination reports under AICPA standards.
Partner-Led TestingA partner runs your engagement from scoping through report delivery, and the person signing the opinion is the person you talk to. No junior-team relay.
Platform-AgnosticVanta, Drata, Secureframe, spreadsheets, or none of the above. We test controls, not tooling.
Compliance Audit Questions, Answered
The four questions we hear most from teams scoping their first SOC 2 examination.
Talk to a PartnerA SOC 2 compliance audit is an independent examination of the controls you use to protect customer data, measured against the AICPA Trust Services Criteria and performed by a licensed CPA firm.
It ends in an attestation report carrying a signed opinion on whether your controls are suitably designed, and for a Type II, whether they operated effectively across an observation period. SOC 2 started with compliance requests from your partners and business prospects, and it's used to help others know how you protect their data.
An audit, formally an attestation examination. There is no SOC 2 certificate and no pass-fail badge. A licensed CPA firm examines your controls and issues an opinion in a report your customers read under NDA.
Vendors that advertise SOC 2 certification are describing an attestation report in looser language.
SOC examinations are attestation engagements performed by a licensed CPA firm. Only a licensed CPA firm operating under AICPA attestation standards can perform the examination and issue the report.
Compliance platforms can organize your evidence and monitor your controls, and we work with whichever one you already run, but the opinion itself has to come from a CPA firm. The work can be done in person or remotely. When you select your auditor, make sure to ask how the engagement runs and what the process is like.
A Type I runs 1 to 2 months from kickoff to issued report. A Type II covers an observation window of typically 6 to 12 months, with a draft report within 2 weeks of fieldwork completion and the final report issued within 5 to 7 weeks of period end.
First-time engagements often add a readiness assessment of 4 to 8 weeks before the window opens.
Why Sage Audits
Big Four Training, Boutique Attention
20+Years of combined IT audit experience
0Junior staff on your engagement
Sage Audits is a licensed Colorado CPA firm and AICPA member serving SaaS and B2B technology companies nationwide.
Get a Fixed-Fee QuotePeople
Work With the Partner Who Signs
A partner runs your engagement from scoping through report delivery, and the person signing the opinion is the person you talk to.
Pricing
Know Your Fee Before Work Begins
One fixed fee, quoted before work begins, with no hourly meters.
Platform
Keep the Stack You Already Run
Vanta, Drata, Secureframe, or spreadsheets: we start from the evidence you already have and build from there.
Timeline
Get the Draft in Two Weeks
Draft report within 2 weeks of fieldwork completion and the final report within 5 to 7 weeks of period end.
Get Your
Custom Quote
Our pricing is structured and fixed-fee. What drives it is the complexity of your environment, the key vendors that support your system, and the commitments you have made to customers, along with how you want those aligned to the Trust Services Categories you put in scope. Share a few details about your situation and we will follow up personally, usually with a quick call, to walk through scope and get you a clear fixed quote you can plan around.
Reply within 1 business day
Real numbers, a real conversation with a qualified CPA. No obligation.
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