We have developed a correction method (CV) to calculate the single- and multiphoton absorption (MPA) spectra of organic pi-conjugated systems within the equation of motion coupled-cluster method with single and double excitations (EOM-CCSD). The effects of donor/acceptor strengths on the multiphoton absorption in a series of symmetrically substituted stilbene derivatives have been reinvestigated at both the ab initio and the semiempirical intermediate neglect of differential overlap (INDO) Hamiltonian levels. Both ab initio and INDO calculations show that the electron-donating or electron-withdrawing substituents lead to enhancements of two- and three-photon absorption cross sections, more pronounced for two-photon absorption than for three-photon absorption. The A initio calculations usually produce larger excitation energies than the semiempirical, which lead to lower MPA cross sections.