How Much Does it Cost to Outsource Bookkeeping?

Owning a business means that you wear many hats, which can be a daunting prospect. In fact, 60% of small business owners aren’t confident in finance and accounting. These functions are essential parts of a business, and it’s vital business owners have this expertise to manage a company properly. Fortunately, there are solutions that companies can turn to, like using in-house bookkeeping or outsourcing their bookkeeping functions. 

Once you start talking about using services, you may start seeing dollar signs and be worried about how much this will cost you. Let’s take a look at how much these solutions really cost and how they could potentially pay off for you and your business. 

How Much do Bookkeepers Charge?

Outsourced bookkeeping rates are typically priced by volume or number of transactions, and therefore, pricing needs to be customized to fit your business’ unique needs. In general, most bookkeepers fall within a range of $50-$100 per hour for their services.

How much does it cost to outsource bookkeeping?

Many small business owners turn to an outsourced accounting firm to manage their bookkeeping. Outsourced bookkeeping rates are similar to those that a contract bookkeeper charges, with an average monthly fee that ranges from $250-$2,000, depending on the complexity and transaction volume.

At Milestone, our bookkeeping services are $60 an hour. Our customizable Foundations Package for accounting starts at $250 per month and offers a range of functions, including bookkeeping services, bank/credit card reconciliations, and payroll. You can also outsource invoice processing services with Milestone so we manage all your accounting transactions.

How Much Should I Pay for Bookkeeping Services?

There is no one answer for this question—it depends on the complexity of your business and the number of transactions you process each month. If you are just starting out, you may need someone to record your transactions and handle your minimal accounts receivable and payable, adding up to only a few hours of bookkeeping each month. 

However, if your business has many transactions, you may need a more full-service outsourced accounting solution that includes things like running payroll, collections, processing payments, etc. Your budget for bookkeeping should fall within the general $250-$2,000 per month, but there are outliers in that range due to the many variables. 

What are the Benefits of Outsourcing Bookkeeping? 

Did you know that 40% of business owners said that bookkeeping and taxes are the worst part of owning a business? With this in mind, it’s no wonder that outsourcing bookkeeping has become a popular solution for many businesses. In addition to the major benefit of not having to deal with these administrative tasks any longer, other benefits of outsourcing bookkeeping include being cost-effective and time-efficient. 

Outsourcing your bookkeeping is cost-effective due to the savings on both the rates and the overhead. Without the need to bring internal employees in to fulfill these functions, your costs go down. In addition, think of how many hours you could free up from your schedule—your time as an executive is worth a lot—and delegating bookkeeping functions gives you the ability to dedicate those hours to executive functions instead. 

Remember that statistic about how business owners aren’t confident with accounting? Here’s another major benefit of outsourcing these accounting functions: access to expertise. Bookkeeping has to be correct in order for your accounting to be correct. It makes sense that it would then be managed by people who are accounting professionals.

How Do I Get Started With Outsourcing My Bookkeeping Functions? 

At Milestone, we can help you with all your bookkeeping and accounting needs and provide a customizable and scalable solution that fits you perfectly. Our approach is true collaboration, working side by side with you to help your business be as successful as possible.

Our Foundations accounting package includes: 

• Bookkeeping services
• Vendor invoices
• Credit card transactions
• Bank / credit card reconciliations
• Payroll
• Customer invoices
• Customer payment processing
• Collections

As with all our accounting and HR solutions, this package is fully-customizable, no hassle, and you won’t find yourself locked into a long-term contract. 

With decades of proven experience in accounting and HR, Milestone is standing by to support you and help your business grow. Contact us today to discuss your bookkeeping needs and get started with Milestone.