Is there any kind of ranking or rating system to tell if a return was Easy, or Hard? based on the number of forms or the complexity of situation?

[BobKamman]

It's all easy if you know what you're doing.  Some returns have more easy steps to them, than others. 

[George4Tacks]

Lacerte does offer a fee schedule input where you price each form. You can bill with that or use Time and Materials.

[PhoebeRoberts]

Man, I wish I knew what I was doing more often. 😉

It's true, though, even my most-complicated return just has an extremely long list of relatively straightforward steps, with that only difficult pieces being learning how to do some new thing, breaking it down into straightforward steps, and documenting those steps.

[BobKamman]

And if you follow Tax Court cases and other examples of taxpayer or IRS error, recurring themes are issues involving filing status, dependents and EIC.  You could find all of those on a short form, back when we had those.  My most difficult case recently involved a W-2 taxpayer with ACA coverage that involved a nondependent child under age 26.  Or something like that.