Bookkeeping Pricing Packages & Plans Bench Accounting

The pre-launch transactions are reported as a separate tax year, even if they occur in just a few months, or even one month. So the last month of the pre-launch period is also the last month of the how much does bookkeeping cost fiscal year. You can also create a supplier database and generate purchase orders to help manage your accounts payable. You will likely want to establish a business banking account and credit card.

Bookkeeper Certifications

• Virtual bookkeepers are real humans that will do your books for you — just online.
• That’s nice in concept and would be great for peace of mind, but it’s rarely practical.
• Choosing a bookkeeping service like LessAccounting means you’ll be connected to bookkeepers who understand the nature of freelancing and owning a small business.
• The average hourly rate for a bookkeeper is approximately $21 based on Salary.com data as of February 2024.
• Compared to standard bookkeeping, project pricing gives more focused, day-to-day financial insights.

Even if you’re “not a numbers person,” or even running a not for profit operation, there’s no denying that it’s cash flow that keeps your business afloat. Making sure your books are in order can help you save on taxes, stress, and give you the insight to improve efficiency and increase your revenue. Whether you outsource your bookkeeping or decide to hire someone in-house, it’s no question that this is an important position to consider when managing your business.

Education Level

• Ask if tasks such as financial analysis or tax preparation incur additional charges.
• The QuickBooks Simple Start plan costs $30 per month and supports one user.
• Posting debits and credits to the correct accounts makes reporting more accurate.
• If you’re considering hiring an online bookkeeping service, one of the first things you’ll want to know is how much does a bookkeeper cost?

This encompasses a wide variety of critical tasks and responsibilities, such as recording financial transactions, updating ledgers, reconciling accounts, and producing reports and statements. All of this provides the business owner with up-to-date visibility into the company’s fiscal health. You can calculate the time spent on bookkeeping tasks and translate that into dollars. If you spend too much time on bookkeeping, it’s easier to hire an accountant for a small business to keep track of your financial records, financial statements, and other elements. Outsourcing bookkeeping is a good option when you could use a hand hiring a bookkeeper for keeping track of a part of your financial management.

How Much It Costs to Hire a Bookkeeper for Your Small Business

However, most businesses that make the leap see the value and experience an ROI rapidly. We examined monthly package pricing from the top online bookkeeping services featured in a recent Forbes Advisor article and found the costs can vary greatly. Ongoing monthly services have minimum hourly commitments that increase overall costs versus quarterly or annual services. Monthly needs also vary by business, based on sales cycles and operations. Evaluation of workload fluctuations helps match the right frequency and hours to your budget. At its core, a bookkeeper’s purpose is to maintain the financial records of a business.

Additional services

On the other hand, if you’d like to use the time you spend bookkeeping focusing on other aspects of your business, then the cost of a bookkeeper may be worth it. Depending on how much work you have and how long you need services, a contracted worker might be a better option. There are two main types of bookkeeping to be aware of when deciding what type of bookkeeper to hire.

Signs you’re ready to hire a bookkeeper

Because of the extra training, what accountants charge differs from bookkeepers. Try us for free—we’ll do one prior month of your bookkeeping and prepare a set of financial statements for you to keep. Join over 25,000 US-based business owners who have streamlined their finances and have grown their businesses with Bench. In addition, you’ll need to add around 20% on top of salary for benefits and overhead including office space.

QuickBooks Payroll

Hybrid models are also common, combining a monthly base fee with per-transaction or hourly overage charges. The best way to do bookkeeping for small businesses is to come up with a framework, choose the method that works best for your business type, and keep track of all the details. Small businesses are most often prone to outsourcing their bookkeeping to third parties. Some of the best investments you can make as a business owner are those which allow you to focus on the core of your business while outsourcing tasks that aren’t your specialty. The QuickBooks ProAdvisor certification program is ideal for freelance bookkeepers because it allows them to get certified for free with no strings attached. The bottom line is that your cost will ultimately depend on your business volume.

National Association of Certified Public Bookkeepers (NACPB)

These prices rose slightly back in early 2023, when this plan cost just $55 per month. QuickBooks Online comes with more features than FreshBooks, making it the best pick for large or growing businesses. As another alternative, we’d recommend looking into Zoho Books, which offers a 14-day free trial on its paid plans, as well as a totally free plan for small businesses. As your business grows and you hire employees, you can consider whether to rent office space or keep working remotely.