Instead of charging by the hour, you establish a flat monthly fee that reflects the value the client receives. The best bookkeeping services take care of basic bookkeeping tasks, like reconciling bank statements, inputting transactions and generating financial reports. You should be able to directly call or message your bookkeeper with questions whenever necessary, and some services offer add-ons for tax planning and payroll. You can maintain the competitiveness and profitability of your bookkeeping firm by being explicit about your value and by periodically evaluating your pricing plan. Regardless of the price model you choose — hourly rates, flat fees, retainers, or value-based pricing — it is crucial to match your charges to your customers’ value. Outsourcing also offers many benefits that you can’t get with an in-house bookkeeper.
HOW TO START A BOOKKEEPING BUSINESS
I don’t think this is as viable for someone doing a regular set of recurring services each month. However, if you provide less recurring services such as consulting, analysis, and accounting software support, this could be an option for you. To add insult to injury, I got paid $5.00/hour to clean the office over the weekend. As a virtual bookkeeper, it’s crucial to be flexible and adapt to their specific requirements.
- If you post them on your site, a potential client can choose your services like they’d choose a combo at a drive-thru.
- Let’s look into three different options your company could consider to fill this need…
- The actual inputting of transactions isn’t what is taking the most time.
- 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.
Part Time Bookkeeping Cost
If you’re unsure how long a project will take, it’s better to err on the side of caution and quote a higher price than you initially think is necessary. In many cases, customers are willing adjusted gross income to pay more for items they believe are valuable. Additionally, by focusing on value rather than cost, businesses can avoid making decisions that would result in losing money.
Do you need add-on services outside of basic bookkeeping tasks?
The important part is to figure out what services you provide and how much you want to charge for them. All bookkeepers provide a certain set of tasks, so it’s hard to charge a premium for something other bookkeepers are also offering. Instead, let’s talk about the different ways to charge for bookkeeping services. The dangers of not defining your work scope upfront can result in you giving your client additional work you do not get paid for. Clear communication avoids issues when you’re dealing with a fixed-fee client. It must be clear that extra work will be invoiced separately and isn’t included in the base contract.
How To Price Your Services Effectively
Wondering how much to charge for monthly bookkeeping is the million-dollar question. Time how long it typically takes you to do your bookkeeping and calculate how much you would normally earn during that time. If you would make more in that time than you would spend on a bookkeeper, it may be worth hiring one. It is a model businesses use to promote and sell a product or service.
The Pricing Playbook: Double Your Firm’s Prices in 4 Easy Steps
As a contractor, the main thing that you are saving an employer–or your client in this case–is TAXES! They have to pay so much more in social security, Medicare, worker’s compensation, and unemployment taxes for an employee. When you work for a company, and they give you a W-2, they https://www.kelleysbookkeeping.com/financial-statement-analysis-valuation-6e/ are paying a bunch of money to have you working for them. After you sign up to Bench, a dedicated member of our team will assist you in connecting all your financial accounts securely to our platform. This enables you and your bookkeeper to work together seamlessly from the start.
I work a maximum of 20 hours per month on this particular client’s books and charge $1,000 a month. To illustrate what a large client looks like, I’ll be using a physical therapist office I do bookkeeping for that generates about $1.2 million in revenue a year. This office employs 10 speech pathologists and general staff and circulates child clients who come in for their services.
A few months down the road, once you’ve immersed yourself into their business, have their books organized, and have a steady flow, you can switch your client to a fixed monthly rate. By then you will have figured out just how long it will take on a monthly basis to https://www.personal-accounting.org/ keep their books current. Sign up today and we’ll do one prior month of your bookkeeping and prepare a set of financial statements for free, valued at $299. Unlike other bookkeeping solutions, we don’t remove your login access after your subscription has ended.
Consider your background, knowledge, and local market prices. While seasoned bookkeepers may charge $75–100 or more per hour, beginners may only charge $25–35. You can charge more if you provide specialized services (like financial advice or forensic accounting). Emphasize your distinct abilities and credentials to support the higher price. The accounting software used can impact the price of the service. Maybe the freelancer is experienced in a single software and charges a lower rate for it.
That means you’ll never lose access to your data within our platform. All reports can be easily exported to an Excel file to share with your accountant or future bookkeeping provider. No tax prep or accrual basis accounting, even as an add-on service. Bookkeepers are in charge of maintaining your books closely day in and day out. They generally do all data entry into accounting ledgers or software. As well as offering peace of mind from knowing that their books are in order, you can save them significant time.
Then, as you gain experience and niche down, you can charge up to $80 or sometimes more per hour. However, there is quite a bit that goes into the pricing beast, and it’s not always as cut and dry as this. You can also book a call with your bookkeeper (or send them a message) whenever you’d like. There’s no extra fee or hourly charges for support—we’re always happy to nerd out about bookkeeping and your financial statements. Online services may offer one-on-one meetings, but you might have to pay more. If you want a higher level of support in the future, such as chief financial officer or CFO-style services, consider choosing a bookkeeping service that will allow you to upgrade later.