How Much Does a Bookkeeper Cost?
Short answer
According to Pau Bookkeeping's published pricing page (October 2026), monthly bookkeeping starts at $300 a month for Essentials, $500 for Advanced and $800 for Premium, for a Hialeah practice serving Miami-Dade in English or Spanish. The final price depends on transaction volume, the number of accounts and any add-ons; catch-up work on books that are behind is quoted as a separate project. For context, Clutch's 2026 pricing guide puts US bookkeeping firms at $100 - $149 per hour.
The honest answer to "how much does a bookkeeper cost" is a monthly plan, not an hourly rate. Most small service businesses pay a fixed monthly fee that depends on how many transactions and accounts the bookkeeper handles, and whether the books are current or months behind. This guide gives you the published prices at Pau Bookkeeping in Hialeah, the national hourly range for context, and the four things that move the number up or down.
What a bookkeeper costs per month at Pau Bookkeeping#
Pau Bookkeeping publishes its monthly bookkeeping prices, which is still unusual in this industry. The practice is based in Hialeah, serves Miami, Doral, Medley and the rest of Miami-Dade, and works in English or Spanish. Monthly bookkeeping comes in three levels, each with a published starting price (paubookkeeping.com):
| Level | Starting price | What it includes |
|---|---|---|
| Essentials | $300 a month | Transaction categorization, bank and credit-card reconciliations, monthly financial statements and QuickBooks Online management |
| Advanced | $500 a month | Everything in Essentials, plus monthly financial insights on revenue, expenses and profit trends, and a quarterly financial review |
| Premium | $800 a month | Everything in Advanced, plus cash-flow forecasting and a monthly financial review with an action plan |
The starting price is for a business with a manageable volume of transactions and one or two accounts. The final price is confirmed on a free 30-minute call, after a look at the actual bank and credit-card activity. Pau Bookkeeping is not a CPA firm and does not prepare or file tax returns; the monthly work is what keeps the books ready for whoever does.
What changes the monthly bookkeeping cost#
The monthly bookkeeping cost moves with four things: transaction volume, the number of accounts, add-ons, and whether the books are current. Two businesses on the same plan can pay different amounts for that reason, and a business can outgrow a level without changing anything except its volume. Here is how each one works:
- Transaction volume. A consultant with 60 transactions a month and a contractor with 600 are different jobs, even on the same plan.
- Number of accounts. Each bank account, credit card, loan and payment processor (Stripe, Square, PayPal) is another set of statements to reconcile every month.
- Add-ons. Accounts receivable follow-up, accounts payable, project tracking and class tracking are priced on top of the plan when a business needs them.
- How current the books are. A plan assumes the books are up to date. Books that are months behind are handled first as a separate catch-up project (see below), then move to a monthly plan.
| Situation | What usually happens to the price |
|---|---|
| Under 100 transactions, 1 to 2 accounts | Essentials starting price |
| Several hundred transactions, 3 or more accounts | Higher within the level, or the next level |
| Receivables or payables management needed | Add-on on top of the plan |
| Books behind by several months | Catch-up project first, quoted separately |
Hourly bookkeeper cost: the US average per hour#
Some bookkeepers still bill by the hour. Clutch's bookkeeping pricing guide puts bookkeeping firms in the United States at an average of $100 - $149 per hour (clutch.co). At that rate, ten hours of work a month costs more than the Premium monthly plan above, and the owner does not know the bill until the hours are counted.
That is why most small businesses end up on a fixed monthly fee. A monthly plan gives a predictable cost, and the bookkeeper carries the risk of a busy month. Hourly billing can make sense for a one-off job, such as a cleanup with a clear scope, but as an ongoing arrangement it usually costs the owner more and tells them less.
In-house bookkeeper vs outsourced bookkeeping: the cost comparison#
Hiring an employee is the other way to get the books done, and it is usually the most expensive. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics puts the 2025 median pay for bookkeeping, accounting and auditing clerks at $50,670 a year, or $24.36 an hour (bls.gov). That is salary alone, before payroll taxes, benefits, software and the time it takes to manage the role, and a small service business rarely has a full week of bookkeeping to fill.
An outsourced monthly plan buys a slice of a bookkeeper's time at a fixed price. At Pau Bookkeeping that slice starts at $300 a month, roughly what a median-wage in-house clerk earns in a week and a half. The trade-off is availability: an employee is in the office every day, while an outsourced bookkeeper works on a monthly cycle with a review call. For most businesses under a few hundred transactions a month, the monthly plan is the cheaper and more predictable option.
How bookkeeper credentials affect what you pay#
Credentials move the price because they move the quality of the work. A bookkeeper who is a QuickBooks Online Certified ProAdvisor, or who holds a bookkeeping certificate, generally charges more than an uncertified one, and a CPA firm charges more again because it is pricing tax and advisory work into the relationship. Pau Bookkeeping is a QuickBooks Online Certified ProAdvisor practice and is not a CPA firm, which is why its monthly plans sit between the two.
Bookkeeping software subscriptions and other pass-through costs#
Ask whether the accounting software subscription is included or billed separately. Many bookkeepers invoice the QuickBooks Online subscription at cost on top of their fee, and some include it in the plan. At Pau Bookkeeping the plan price covers the bookkeeping work; the business keeps its own QuickBooks Online subscription in its own name, so the books and the data always belong to the owner. Other pass-through costs to ask about are receipt-capture apps, payment processors and payroll software, none of which are bookkeeping fees.
Catch-up bookkeeping cost when the books are behind#
Catch-up (or cleanup) bookkeeping is priced as a project, not a monthly fee. The quote depends on how many months are behind, how many accounts are involved, and whether past entries have to be corrected or built from scratch. A business a few months behind on a couple of accounts is a small project; a business that has not reconciled for years, across several accounts, is a large one.
At Pau Bookkeeping the catch-up project is scoped on the same free 30-minute call as the monthly plan. The sequence is always the same: bring the books current first, then keep them current on a monthly plan, so the catch-up never has to happen twice.
How to compare bookkeeper quotes#
A bookkeeper quote is only comparable when you know what it assumes. Two quotes that look far apart can describe the same work once volume, accounts and catch-up are spelled out, so ask every bookkeeper the same five questions before you compare the numbers:
- Is the price monthly and fixed, or hourly?
- What transaction volume and how many accounts does the price assume?
- What happens to the price if volume goes up?
- Are catch-up months quoted separately, and how?
- What do I get each month: reconciled accounts, financial statements, a review call?
A quote that answers all five is comparable. A quote that gives only an hourly rate is not, because you do not yet know the hours.
Bottom line on what a bookkeeper costs#
For an established service business in Miami-Dade, expect a fixed monthly fee that starts at $300 for essentials and rises with transaction volume, the number of accounts and add-ons, with any backlog cleaned up first as a separate project. Hourly bookkeeping in the US averages $100 - $149 per hour nationally, which is why most owners choose a monthly plan instead. The fastest way to get a real number for your business is a 30-minute call with your last two bank statements in hand.
| Level | Starting price | What it includes |
|---|---|---|
| Essentials | $300 a month | Transaction categorization, bank and credit-card reconciliations, monthly financial statements and QuickBooks Online management |
| Advanced | $500 a month | Everything in Essentials, plus monthly financial insights on revenue, expenses and profit trends, and a quarterly financial review |
| Premium | $800 a month | Everything in Advanced, plus cash-flow forecasting and a monthly financial review with an action plan |
| Situation | What usually happens to the price |
|---|---|
| Under 100 transactions, 1 to 2 accounts | Essentials starting price |
| Several hundred transactions, 3 or more accounts | Higher within the level, or the next level |
| Receivables or payables management needed | Add-on on top of the plan |
| Books behind by several months | Catch-up project first, quoted separately |
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Frequently Asked Questions
How much does a bookkeeper cost per month?
At Pau Bookkeeping a monthly plan starts at $300 (Essentials), $500 (Advanced) or $800 (Premium). The starting price assumes a manageable transaction volume and one or two accounts; more transactions, more accounts or add-ons move the price up within the level or to the next one.
Is a bookkeeper cheaper by the hour or by the month?
Usually by the month. Clutch reports US bookkeeping firms average $100 - $149 per hour, so ten hours a month already costs more than an $800 monthly plan, and the owner does not know the bill until the hours are counted. A fixed monthly fee is predictable.
How much does catch-up bookkeeping cost?
Catch-up bookkeeping is quoted as a project, not a monthly fee. The price depends on how many months are behind, how many accounts are involved, and whether past entries have to be corrected. At Pau Bookkeeping it is scoped on the same free 30-minute call as the monthly plan.
Does the bookkeeping price include taxes?
No. Pau Bookkeeping is not a CPA firm and does not prepare or file tax returns. The monthly plan keeps the books reconciled and the financial statements current so the tax preparer's work is faster and cheaper.
Disclaimer
Pau Bookkeeping provides bookkeeping, not tax or legal advice. Heidi is not a CPA and does not prepare or file tax returns; talk to a licensed tax professional about your specific situation.
Sources
- Monthly bookkeeping plans and prices - paubookkeeping.com (2026-10-23)
- Bookkeeping pricing guide - clutch.co (2026-10-08)
- Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks: Occupational Outlook Handbook - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2026-08-27)