How much does a bookkeeper cost for a small business?
If you’re asking this question, chances are doing your own books has quietly stopped working. Let’s answer the cost honestly, and look at what the right bookkeeper is actually worth to you.
First, why you’re really asking
Most owners don’t go looking for a bookkeeper because they’re curious about pricing. They go looking because something has started to hurt:
The evenings and weekends lost to QuickBooks. The nagging worry that the numbers might be wrong. The tax-season scramble to pull it all together. The decisions made on a gut feeling because the books aren’t current enough to trust.
If any of that sounds familiar, the real question isn’t just “what does this cost.” It’s “what is it costing me to keep doing this myself?”
The cost you’re already paying
DIY bookkeeping feels free, but it rarely is. The price shows up in places that don’t appear on an invoice: hours you could have spent growing the business, deductions missed because an expense never got tracked, and the expensive cleanup that happens when a year of “I’ll get to it later” finally catches up at tax time.
There’s a quieter cost too. When your books aren’t current or accurate, every decision built on them, whether you can afford to hire, what to charge, how you’re really doing, is a guess. That uncertainty has a price, even if you never see the bill.
So, what does a bookkeeper actually cost?
Here’s the honest answer. Across the market, professional bookkeeping for a small business typically runs somewhere between $300 and $1,500 a month, with most established service businesses landing in the middle of that range. The spread is wide because “bookkeeping” covers everything from bare-bones cash-basis data entry to full accrual books reviewed by a real professional.
At AdminBooks, monthly bookkeeping starts at $650.
Your exact rate depends on your books. We quote a fair, fixed monthly price after a free consultation, so there are no surprises. See our full bookkeeping pricing →
What actually drives the price
Two businesses can get very different quotes, and it’s not arbitrary. These are the factors that move the number, for us and for any honest provider:
- Transaction volume. More bank and card activity means more to categorize and reconcile.
- Number of accounts. Multiple bank or credit card accounts add reconciliation work.
- Complexity. Multiple entities, sales tax, and many 1099 contractors all add time.
- Condition of your books. If you’re behind or need a cleanup first, that’s a separate one-time step.
What you get with AdminBooks
We’re not the cheapest, and we’re upfront about that. What you get for a fair, firm-quality price is the thing the bargain services can’t offer: clean books done right, by a real team that knows your business.
A real person who knows you
A named Account Manager with a 2-business-day response, not a rotating chat queue.
Books you own
Everything lives in your own QuickBooks Online file. If you ever leave, your records come with you.
Bookkeeping and tax together
Our bookkeeping and tax teams work under one roof, so you’re tax-ready all year, not scrambling in April.
Established and certified
QuickBooks Certified Level 2 ProAdvisors, doing this for small businesses since 2001.
Curious whether we’d be a good match? We’re honest about who we’re a strong fit for, and who we’re not.
Get a fair, honest quote for your books
Tell us about your business in a free consultation. We’ll answer your questions and give you a clear, fixed monthly price. No pressure, no upsells.