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Coming home from a conference, the Series A founder was shocked. “$99! That SaaS company said their pricing was only $99 a month for accounting and bookkeeping services. Why have we been paying so much more for our local firm?”
A year later, the startup lost a critical funding round.
Why? The company’s financials were a disaster. Missing reconciliations. Duplicate entries. Revenue recognition errors. The cheap solution became a costly lesson about value versus price in outsourced accounting.
Unfortunately, this is all too common. Every week, small businesses and start-ups make the same accounting decisions based on hourly rates. But here’s what successful companies know: The real cost of outsourcing accounting and bookkeeping services isn’t just about the hourly rate — it’s about the return on that investment.
The good news is there’s a way to get low cost and high returns — outsource your accounting and bookkeeping to a BPO provider. You’ll get the savings of a local provider or a SaaS solution, as well as the peace of mind of knowing your financials are in the hands of experts.
But what can you expect to pay when you’re outsourcing accounting services for your small business in 2025? The answer isn’t simple — it depends on your growth stage, industry, and specific needs. Let’s break down the real numbers behind different service levels and what they mean to your bottom line.
According to recent industry research, most businesses that outsource accounting services are happy with their service. Common sense suggests this isn’t because they found the cheapest option — but because they found the right fit for their needs. What a start-up spends on their accounting partner is irrelevant, because they’re seeing returns that far exceed that investment.
Think about that $99 accounting mistake. The problem wasn’t just the price — it was a fundamental misunderstanding of what accounting outsourcing means in 2024.
Gone are the days when you outsourced bookkeeping by sending your receipts to a part-time bookkeeper so they could reconcile your accounts once a month. Today’s BPO firms offer something far more comprehensive: a blend of technology, expertise, and strategic insight that can transform your financial operations.
At its core, outsourced accounting means partnering with finance professionals who become an extension of your team. This could be from basic transaction processing to full-service financial management.
Modern outsourced accounting teams typically include three tiers of support.
Your day-to-day bookkeeping team handles transactions, reconciliations, and basic reporting. These professionals keep your books up to date and accurate, typically working in your accounting software daily.
Above them, senior accountants review the work, prepare financial statements, and handle more complex tasks like revenue recognition or inventory management. They’re the ones who spot trends and flag potential issues before they become problems.
At the highest level, controller or CFO-level experts provide strategic guidance, helping you translate your financial data into business decisions. They’re the ones who help you understand what the numbers mean for your growth.
The difference between accounting firms and freelancers becomes important here. While a freelance accountant or bookkeeper may be great at certain skills, they rarely have the depth of expertise or support structure to provide higher-level insights. An outsourced accounting firm can use a team approach that covers your entire financial function.
Consider the company growing 30% quarter over quarter. They started with a freelance bookkeeper who handled their basic accounting needs just fine. However, as they scaled, they needed more complex revenue recognition, investor reporting, and cash flow projections. Despite her best efforts, the bookkeeper couldn’t keep up with the complexity.
After switching to a full-service outsourced accounting solution, they got access to a team of expert accountants who not only kept their books pristine but also helped them set up metrics tracking, improve their billing processes, and prepare detailed board reports. Because they offshored, the cost was equivalent to that of a freelancer, but the value — measured in better financial visibility and stronger investor relationships — was transformative.
This layered approach is why outsourced accounting costs what it does. You’re not just paying someone to categorize transactions; you’re investing in a financial infrastructure that can scale with your business.
Let’s get to the question every business owner really wants answered: actual numbers. But first, a reality check.
A typical tech founder using an in-house bookkeeper and an accountant on call will pay around $85,000 per year. That’s not bad until you map out what the founder is getting for that money. No proactive tax planning. Monthly closes take 25+ days. Zero cash flow forecasting. Important financial decisions are delayed because data isn’t ready.
This is why comparing accounting costs solely on salary or hourly rates misses the point.
A basic in-house bookkeeper costs $45,000-65,000 per year in salary alone. Add benefits, software licenses, training, and overhead, and you’re looking at $65,000-90,000 per year. Want a full accounting team with a controller? Plan on $150,000-250,000 per year.
Virtual bookkeeping services range from $500-5,000 per month, depending on transaction volume and complexity. But there’s a catch — most virtual providers only do basic transaction processing and monthly reconciliations. Need help with cash flow projections or tax strategy? That’s usually extra.
US-based accounting firms typically charge $2,000-10,000 per month, with fees that scale based on your needs.
Many small businesses hesitate at these numbers. They go back and forth on the math until they realize what poor financial management actually costs: missed tax deductions, late payment fees, poor cash flow decisions, and lost strategic opportunities. Finally, perhaps reluctantly, they sign up with a firm — and everything is fine.
Or does it? By outsourcing to a BPO provider like Enshored, they could have all the full-service options that drove them to seek something different in the first place… And a cost much more comparable to — or even less than — an entry-level bookkeeper puts outsourcing accounting services within reach for many small businesses.
Let’s get to the point and look at what different accounting solutions cost. More importantly, let’s look at what drives those costs.
US-Based Premium Services
A senior accountant at a top US firm charges $150-400 per hour. Crazy? Maybe. They’re not just number crunchers — they’re financial strategists who understand your industry’s specific challenges — but those rates are cost-prohibitive for a growing business.
Global BPO Providers
Working with global teams, particularly in tech-savvy markets like the Philippines, can reduce costs significantly while maintaining quality. Companies that outsource accounting services to partners like Enshored can save at least 40-60% compared to US rates.
Most small businesses and start-ups don’t overpay for accounting—they underpay and then incur hidden costs through tax overpayments, missed opportunities, and poor financial decisions. Business process outsourcing offers the best of both worlds: affordable rates and expert knowledge.
Size doesn’t matter in accounting, but complexity does. A $1 million e-commerce business with thousands of transactions per month might need more accounting support than a $5 million consulting firm with a handful of big clients.
Let’s break it down by business type to help you find your match.
Small Businesses and Startups
The early-stage trap is thinking you only need basic bookkeeping. One software startup learned this the hard way after raising $2 million in seed funding. Their $400 monthly bookkeeping service seemed fine until their first board meeting, when investors asked about their burn rate, runway, and CAC payback period. Their books were clean but provided zero strategic insight.
Small businesses and startups with simple finances usually start with clean books, basic reporting, and tax prep. Here’s the catch, however — if you go with this level of service, you’ll need to understand your numbers yourself (or hire additional help for strategic planning).
Funded startups or businesses with complex revenue models usually need to go beyond basic accounting to get the metrics and forecasting they need for growth. Consider the DTC brand that scaled from $500K to $5M in 18 months; their outsourced accounting team helped them optimize inventory levels and identify their most profitable products so they could scale smoothly.
Compliance-Heavy Operations
Things get a little more complicated for businesses in regulated industries or with special reporting requirements—think cannabis companies, government contractors, or businesses with intricate equity structures. You’ll pay more for the services you need, but you’ll get the peace of mind that comes with knowing your finances are industry-compliant.
Growing Businesses
As you grow your business, your accounting needs will evolve. You’ll likely need multi-entity accounting, consolidated reporting, and deeper strategic insights, and your outsourced needs will be similar to what a full in-house finance team could provide.
Numbers tell the accounting story, but results tell your business story. Let’s talk real impact — where outsourcing your accounting becomes a growth engine. Here’s what outsourcing accounting services for your small business can do.
Financial Clarity That Fuels Growth
Imagine a property management company that goes from “sort of knowing” its margins to tracking profitability by property type, tenant category, and service line. Result? They dropped their lowest-performing segment and doubled their profits while reducing revenue by 15%.
Better numbers mean better decisions. Here are some hypotheticals:
What could this kind of clarity do for your own startup?
Tax Savings That Cover Everything Else
Smart tax planning can pay for the entire cost of outsourced accounting. It’s not uncommon for an e-commerce business to save thousands in taxes—every month—when proper inventory accounting and cost segregation are in place.
Risk Reduction You Can’t Price
Imagine the healthcare startup facing an audit. With structured financial records and a clear audit trail on their side, a potentially months-long ordeal was over in two weeks—saving thousands in audit support costs and countless hours of stress.
The value of outsourcing accounting often shows up in what doesn’t happen:
Businesses usually outsource accounting later than they should. The best time to upgrade your accounting services was probably last year. The second-best time is now. Your future self—and your future company—will thank you for investing in proper financial infrastructure today.
Here’s how you’ll know it’s time.
First, run these numbers for your business:
Then look for signs your business has outgrown your current accounting solution:
When you’re ready to make the switch, execute your plan:
But whatever you do, remember that switching usually makes sense. Remember that startup founder from the opening story? She eventually found the right accounting partner. The cost was more than her original budget, but the return was clear financials that fixed the ship and helped her raise the funding she needed.
In the hustle to build the next big thing, founders often focus on product-market fit, user growth, or cost-cutting.
But here’s a truth that successful scale-ups know: Financial infrastructure isn’t just about keeping score – it’s about writing a bigger story. The startups and small businesses that grow into category leaders aren’t necessarily the ones with the most innovative products or the biggest marketing budgets. They’re the ones who turned their numbers into narratives, their data into decisions, and their accounting partners into growth architects.
So, while everyone else is chasing the next shiny tool or trend, consider this: Maybe your biggest competitive advantage is hiding in your books, waiting for the right team to find it.
Suddenly, the cost of outsourcing accounting and bookkeeping services doesn’t look like a cost at all.
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