Hourly Bookkeeping Rates How Much Do Bookkeepers Charge?

You can hire someone to come in on a per-project basis and only pay for the time they spend on the project or for an agreed-upon time. Although bookkeeping may not be the most exciting part of running a business, it’s arguably one of the most important. Accurate and timely bookkeeping allows you to make sound financial decisions. To illustrate the cost efficiency of a part-time bookkeeper, consider the following example. Just about every small business requires a basic form of bookkeeping in the beginning.

Block Advisors does your bookkeeping for you, freeing up your time to focus on what you love. With us, you get a dedicated Account Manager who knows you and your business. Schedule your free 30-minute consultation, and we’ll pair you with one of our account managers, who will recommend the best package for you.

Charge your worth when it comes to bookkeeping services

Now that you have a better idea of what you’re looking for, here are five questions to ask to make sure you hire the right bookkeeper for your business. Let’s compare the cost of an in-house bookkeeper vs. an outsourced bookkeeper. But keep in mind that these numbers are industry averages, and are subject to variables, like your location.

• New business owners are often reluctant to outsource their bookkeeping because of the added cost.
• The average cost of a bookkeeper ranges anywhere from $500 to $2,500 a month.
• You won’t have to pay additional benefits or overhead costs when you hire a bookkeeper from one of these services.
• In some cases, your cleanup may take longer depending on timeliness of documentation and the complexity of your books.
• Bookkeepers are financial professionals who specialize in recording, organizing, and preserving a company’s financial records.

If you use hourly pricing, request a retainer that can be applied to the final bill. If you are working on a project basis, you will need to invoice your clients for the work you have completed. You should include all the relevant details on the invoice, such as the hours worked, the tasks completed, and the total cost.

What Do Bookkeepers Do?

Kruze offers fixed, monthly bookkeeping price packages that range from ~$600 per month to several thousand dollars per month, depending on the complexity of your books and the number of transactions. We believe that startups deserve to know what their monthly bookkeeping costs will be, which is why we offer set, recurring packages. The highest end of these packages are suitable for divisions of public companies, startups with multiple locations with complex compliance needs and more. If you’re having trouble determining how much to charge a client, it’s perfectly fine to start out working with them at an hourly rate and moving to a fixed rate later on. At the beginning of your working relationship, there could be quite a bit of cleanup you have to do for the client’s books, and that can be time consuming. You’re also learning their business and don’t know exactly what tasks you will be doing.

The good news is that using the right fintech and accounting systems can save a startup money on bookkeeping by automating the flow of data and automatically categorizing transactions according to GAAP. As a business owner, you’re acutely aware of how precious a commodity time is. But what you might not realize is that putting bookkeeping off can cost exponentially more time. Even at the top of the range – $2,500 per month – it would cost your business $30,000 a year. Outsourced bookkeeping comes with none of the a la carte overhead expenses. With the idea of hiring a full-time accountant on your roster now put to bed, let’s consider what kind of bookkeeping you may need.

Factors Influencing Bookkeeper Rates

You know what they say—“You get what you pay for.” And, that saying holds true for bookkeeping services. You should be charging your clients accordingly for your services. Otherwise, you could wind up losing clients to other firms (and no bookkeeper wants that). GrowthForce can serve as your outsourced advanced bookkeeping and accounting department. If your business is moving into a growth stage, you need to consider graduating to full accrual based accounting, with financial and management reports that help you scale. Typically you will need this level of financial management not only for yourself but for your key stake holders including banks, investors and advisors.

• Jetpack Workflow was designed from the ground up with bookkeepers and accountants in mind.
• While this flexibility can be helpful, the variability can make it harder for small businesses to keep their books in order.
• According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual wage for hiring an internal bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerk is $42,410 annually in the United States.
• A small business client may see the value in bookkeeping services that help them save time and money.
• Every type of business and nonprofit deserves and benefits from professional accounting support.

The right type of billing will depend on whether you want to closely track your own time and your clients’ expectations. One common mistake firms make as they’re thinking about pricing is failing to bookkeeping for startups account for all of their costs. When calculating your prices, be sure to factor in the cost of software subscriptions for your clients and things like overhead, marketing, and employee salaries.

Basic Bookkeeping Costs Per Month and Year

Let AccountingDepartment do a full takeover of your company accounting department today. We handle bookkeeping and accounting, as well as serving as your controller and advisory service provider. Contact us today to access our technologically savvy accounting services. Additionally, it’s crucial to monitor your financial statements on a monthly basis, giving you a clear picture of where your business stands financially. Spending even 10 hours per month on these items would cost you $500 monthly using the same model above.

Another extra task that I do for this client is to write checks for this preschool, so I am a signer on the bank account. It’s unusual for the bookkeeper to be able to write and sign checks, but because it is such a small business, we have our duties divided a little bit differently than it may normally look. To illustrate what a small client looks like, I’ll be using a preschool I do bookkeeping for that generates about $150k in revenue a year. Get up and running with free payroll setup, and enjoy free expert support. Whatever structure and pricing you go with, make sure to lay it all out on the table for current and prospective clients. That way, there are no surprise fees, and clients know what to expect from you.

When considering the question of how much a bookkeeper costs, think about what matters most to you. The average cost of a bookkeeper ranges anywhere from $500 to $2,500 a month. As your business grows, you will need to focus more on detailed financial reporting and following state & federal regulations.

This is especially important if you choose fixed monthly fee pricing, as the setup can be time-consuming and outside the scope of monthly bookkeeping. Regarding bookkeeping services, you will need to decide on a payment schedule. When deciding on a payment schedule, you should consider the scope of work and your client’s needs. You can use a combination of different pricing structures to come up with a rate that works for you and your client. For example, you could charge an hourly rate for some services and a flat rate for others. Just be sure to be transparent in your engagement letter so both you and your client are clear on the pricing structure and terms.