Cost Of Outsourced Bookkeeping
The pricing of outsourced bookkeeping starts from $200-$300 per month for most small-sized businesses. This cost is minimal compared to setting up in-house bookkeeping systems, where salaries, overhead costs, and software costs take up a big chunk of expenses.
Some medium-sized businesses pay $1000-$2500 per month for outsourcing their books because their business model heavily depends on data, and they require detailed services from their bookkeeping partners. Let’s get deeper into this and learn everything about the cost of outsourced bookkeeping.
Hire A Professional Accountant From FINITAC
FINITAC offers highly professional and certified accountants with a modular services model. Let us know your requirements, and you’ll be connected with the right team.
What Drives Your Outsourced Bookkeeping Cost
Two businesses can make the same amount of money in profits every month, but they both could pay different amounts to their bookkeeping partners because bookkeeping costs depend upon the workload and the volume of the transactions.
Transaction Volume
The volume of the total transactions is the primary driver of the cost of the bookkeeping. A business processing 50 transactions a month and one processing 500 are in completely different pricing brackets.
Complexity
This is another major factor. A business that deals with multiple entities, different currencies, inventory, and compliance requirements would pay different money to their outsourced bookkeeping compared to one that just needs recording and reconciliation.
Service Scope
Basic bookkeeping (transaction entry, reconciliation, and monthly P&L) is priced well below packages that include accounts payable, accounts receivable, and payroll processing.
Oversight Level
Services that include review or virtual CFO involvement cost more because they deliver insights alongside data entry. That added layer is also where most of the measurable ROI comes from.
Outsourced Bookkeeping Pricing by Tier
Outsourced bookkeeping costs range from $300/month for basic services to $15,000+/month for a full outsourced finance department. Most businesses fall into one of four tiers:
Tier | Monthly Cost | What’s Included |
|---|---|---|
Starter | $200–$500 | Transaction entry, bank reconciliation, and monthly P&L |
Core | $500–$1,500 | Full bookkeeping + AR/AP tracking, financial statements |
Full-service | $1,500–$2,500 | All above + payroll, sales tax, regular reporting |
Controller-led | $2,500–$6,000+ | All above + controller oversight, cash flow forecasting, multi-entity |
Pricing Models: Flat Fee vs. Hourly vs. Per-Transaction
Flat Monthly Fees
This is the most common method where businesses pay a fixed monthly fee to their bookkeeping partner in exchange for the work. The money doesn’t change whether the monthly transaction volume goes high or stays low.
Hourly Billing
Some businesses prefer hourly billing because they don’t need consistent bookkeeping. Some businesses get one-time projects and old data logs. They partner up with firms based on hourly billing.
Per-Transaction Pricing
In most transactional pricing modules, bookkeeping firms demand a base fee every month plus some amount per transaction recorded. For example, a $200 monthly fee plus $1 per every transaction. So, if a business gets $500 transactions. It becomes a $700 bill by the end of the month.
Value-Based Pricing
This is the least commonly used, but some businesses prefer value-based pricing, where they pay based on outcomes. If a business makes good money because of the bookkeepers, the pricing goes up. Outcomes such as cash flow improvements, tax savings, etc., are the variables that matter.
The Cost of Outsourcing Bookkeeping vs. In-House
In-house bookkeepers cost between $52,000 and $73,000 annually in base salary alone. Add benefits, payroll taxes, software licenses, office overhead, and recruitment, and outsourcing cuts 60–80% of those payroll costs while improving reporting accuracy.
Outsourcing to a freelancer ($200–$500/month) or a firm saves 80–90% compared to hiring in-house for most small businesses.
Business owners handling their own books spend an average of 10–20 hours per month on financial tasks.
Cost of Outsourcing Payroll and Bookkeeping Together
When bundled, bookkeeping + payroll from a single outsourced provider typically costs:
Business Size | Bookkeeping + Payroll Bundle | Estimated Annual Cost |
|---|---|---|
1–5 employees | $400–$900/month | $4,800–$10,800 |
6–15 employees | $800–$1,800/month | $9,600–$21,600 |
16–30 employees | $1,500–$3,000/month | $18,000–$36,000 |
31–50 employees | $2,500–$5,000/month | $30,000–$60,000 |
Bundling payroll with HR, benefits, or time tracking can save an additional 10–20% compared to purchasing services separately.
Hidden Costs to Watch For
The monthly fee is not always the total cost. Ask every provider about these before signing:
Onboarding And Cleanup Fees
Expect an initial one-time fee, as most providers charge it. You must ask the bookkeeping firm or the freelancer if they’d charge anything for the cleanup and the onboarding. You can negotiate this amount, as bookkeepers would want to cash out the maximum here, but you can always negotiate.
Software Subscriptions
Many providers require you to hold your own QuickBooks Online, Xero, or NetSuite subscription. That’s $30–$200/month, and it’s not included in their monthly fee; you’d have to pay it on your own.
Out-Of-Scope Work
Many firms demand extra for tax return prep and audit support work. You should talk about it beforehand to avoid conflicts at the last minute.
Report Customizations
Your business may require some additional numbers/report customizations, which means your bookkeepers might have to spend additional time to fetch the data. They can charge it as an extra.
Per-Employee Payroll Add-Ons
If payroll isn’t bundled, expect add-on pricing of $25–$100 per employee per month for payroll processing on top of your base bookkeeping fee.
People Also Search For
What’s Included in Standard Outsourced Bookkeeping
Standard monthly bookkeeping service includes:
- Transaction categorization: All bank, credit card, and expense transactions imported, sorted, and validated
- Bank and credit card reconciliation: Books matched to statements monthly, discrepancies corrected
- Financial statements: Profit & Loss, Balance Sheet, and Cash Flow Statement delivered on a set schedule
- Accounts payable/receivable tracking (mid-tier and above)
- Payroll processing and tax filing (full-service and above)
- Controller review and strategic reporting (premium tier)
What it does not include by default is tax return preparation, audit support, sales tax filings (unless specified), multi-state compliance, or CFO-level advisory.
Conclusion
For small businesses, outsourcing their books is cheaper, comes with more options, lower risks, and is more For most small businesses, outsourced bookkeeping costs $200–$2,000/month. The total amount annually is a lot less than setting up in-house bookkeeping. There could be some extra costs in outsourced bookkeeping, which don’t appear when doing it in-house, but if you navigate through things smartly, outsourced bookkeeping could save you a good chunk of money annually.
The ROI comes from three directions simultaneously. The first one is direct cost savings, error and penalty prevention, and time. For businesses under $5M in revenue, the math almost always favors outsourcing.
