For some business owners, even after long days, bookkeeping is still manageable. For others, it starts as something they plan to do this weekend and turns into three months of receipts, bank statements, and transactions that nobody wants to look at.
Eventually, most people reach the same question: Should I hire outsourced bookkeeping services, and if so, how much will they cost me?
The short answer is that bookkeeping can cost a few hundred dollars a month or a bit more. It depends on the business. A freelancer with one bank account is not going to pay the same as a busy online store processing hundreds of orders every week.
So instead of looking for one specific number, it helps to understand what actually drives the cost.
How Much Does Bookkeeping Cost?
For a lot of small businesses, monthly bookkeeping services cost falls somewhere between $250 and $1,000. Some pay less. Some pay much more. It all depends on the workload and what you expect them to do.
Take a self-employed consultant. Maybe they send a few invoices each month, pay for a handful of subscriptions, and have one business checking account. Their books might be fairly simple.
Now think about a small restaurant, e-commerce store, or construction company. There could be payroll, supplier payments, inventory, customer deposits, refunds, multiple accounts, and dozens of transactions every day.
Both businesses may have a similar number of employees. Their bookkeeping needs, however, are completely different.
That's why the best way to estimate your small business bookkeeping cost is to look at the actual workload rather than just the size of the company.
Outsourcing is a popular option because most small businesses don’t need a full-time bookkeeper.
Hiring someone internally can be expensive. There is the salary, but there are also payroll taxes, benefits, time off, training, and the cost of hiring in the first place.
With outsourced bookkeeping services, you pay a person or company to handle the work without bringing on a full-time employee.
For a small business, there is a trade-off between DIY bookkeeping and outsourcing.
What Are You Actually Paying a Bookkeeper to Do?
This is worth asking before comparing prices. Outsourced bookkeeping services are not always offering the same thing as the next one.
At the basic level, a bookkeeper may organize your transactions, reconcile your accounts, and prepare monthly financial reports. That might be all you need.
A more involved service could also help with unpaid invoices, bills, payroll records, sales tax information, or regular reporting.
Typical bookkeeping work can include:
- Categorizing income and expenses
- Reconciling bank accounts
- Reconciling credit cards
- Keeping your accounting records current
- Preparing a profit and loss statement
- Preparing a balance sheet
- Tracking money coming in and going out
- Helping organize information for your accountant
Some services include most of this in one monthly package. Others charge extra for certain tasks.
So if the outsourced bookkeeping cost from one company is $300 a month and another quotes $700, don't assume the first one is automatically the better deal. You need to know what each person or company is actually doing for that money.
Why Do Some Businesses Pay More for Bookkeeping?
Usually, it comes down to time and complexity.
More transactions generally mean more work. More accounts mean more reconciliations. Add payroll or inventory, and things can get more complicated pretty quickly.
Here are a few things that can increase your bookkeeping services cost.
You Have a Lot of Transactions
A business with 40 or 50 transactions a month is a very different job from one with 2,000.
Every transaction needs to be recorded correctly. Mistakes have to be caught. Accounts need to balance.
The more activity your business has, the more time someone needs to spend on the books.
You Use Multiple Bank Accounts and Payment Platforms
Maybe you have a business checking account, several credit cards, PayPal, Stripe, a business loan, and another account for savings.
That's fairly common. But every account adds work.
Your bookkeeper needs to make sure the information in your accounting software matches what actually happened.
You Have Employees
Payroll brings another layer of responsibility. Even if you outsource payroll processing to another company, payroll expenses still need to be correctly recorded and reflected in financial reports.
You Sell Physical Products
Service businesses often have simpler books than businesses dealing with inventory.
If you sell products, you may need to track purchases, inventory, shipping, returns, and the cost of the products you sell.
That can take more time and usually requires more attention than basic income-and-expense tracking.
Your Books Are Behind
This is a common situation, so don't feel bad if it sounds familiar.
Maybe you haven't updated your books for six months. Maybe transactions were imported but never categorized. Maybe your accounts haven't been reconciled since last year.
Before a bookkeeper can take over the monthly work, they may have to clean up your messy books.
That is usually treated as a separate project, so catch-up bookkeeping can add to your initial cost.
Hourly Rates vs. Monthly Bookkeeping Services
Bookkeeping pricing can vary. Some charge by the hour. Others offer a fixed monthly price.
Hourly pricing can work well when you only need help occasionally. The main problem of this is that you can not predict your bookkeeping services cost for every month.
A monthly package works better for businesses that need regular support. You agree on a price and a list of services, and the bookkeeper handles the work regularly.
For many business owners, predictable pricing is one of the main benefits.
Ask whether there is a transaction limit. Find out what happens if you add payroll or open another account. Ask whether cleanup work is included or billed separately.
A cheap monthly price can become less attractive if almost everything outside the most basic work costs extra.
What Should Be Included in the Monthly Bookkeeping Services Cost?
This is probably the most important question to ask before signing up.
Ask, “What do I get for that price?”
A basic monthly bookkeeping service might include bank reconciliations and monthly financial statements. A more comprehensive package could include invoicing, bill tracking, accounts receivable, or other support.
You should also find out:
- How often are the books updated?
- Will I get a profit and loss statement each month?
- Are credit card accounts included?
- Is there a limit on transactions?
- Is accounting software included?
- Do you charge extra for additional accounts?
- What happens if I need to catch up on old bookkeeping?
- Are payroll-related tasks included?
You don't need the biggest package a company offers. In fact, paying for features you never use is just as wasteful as hiring someone who can't keep up with your business.
The goal is to find a service that fits.
Is Outsourced Bookkeeping Worth the Money?
If bookkeeping is taking up hours every week and you hate doing it, that alone might be enough reason to outsource.
But there's another side to it.
When your books are constantly behind, you don't really know what's going on in the business. You may know how much money is sitting in your bank account, but that's not the same thing as knowing whether you're profitable. This is because cash and profit are different.
You might be making plenty of sales while spending too much on advertising, payroll, inventory, or other expenses.
Accurate books make those problems easier to spot. They also make tax time a lot less stressful.
Instead of scrambling to find receipts and figure out what happened ten months ago, you already have organized financial records ready to go.
That doesn't mean every business owner needs to outsource immediately. If your business is simple and you are comfortable handling the books yourself, hiring bookkeeping services for small business may not be useful.
A Few Ways to Keep Small Business Bookkeeping Costs Down
You can make your bookkeeper's job easier, and that can help keep your costs from getting out of control.
- Keep personal and business spending separate. A separate business account makes life easier for everyone.
- Try to stay reasonably organized with receipts and invoices too. You don't have to become an accounting expert. Just avoid letting everything pile up until the end of the year.
- Using cloud accounting software can also help. Integrating your bank accounts with payment platforms can automate recording of transactions. This eases work for outsourced bookkeeping services.
Outsourced Bookkeeping Services With AccountiPro
There isn't one standard answer to how much bookkeeping costs because every business is a little different. The important part is understanding what you are paying for.
Before choosing a bookkeeping service, look at the actual work involved, what is included in the monthly fee, and whether the service can handle your business as it grows.
When the numbers are current, you have a better idea of where the business stands. You can see what you're earning, what you're spending, and whether something needs attention. At AccountiPro, we make sure our bookkeeping pricing is transparent and clients receive value for their money. Book an appointment today to receive our pricing options and how we may be able to assist your bookkeeping needs.
