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Bookkeeping is the daily record of money moving: invoices raised, bills paid, cards swiped, payroll run, deposits cleared. No state licenses bookkeepers and no federal body registers them, which makes the service easy to buy badly and expensive to repair. The quality test is not a certificate on a wall; it is whether every account on the balance sheet was tied back to a statement at the end of the month.

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The federal obligation sits on the business owner, not the bookkeeper. The IRS says you may choose any recordkeeping system suited to your business that clearly shows your income and expenses, and that you must be able to prove certain elements of an expense in order to deduct it. A bookkeeper is how most businesses meet that standard without doing it themselves at midnight.

Almost all of this work now happens in cloud accounting software fed by read-only bank connections. That raises questions worth settling on day one: who owns the subscription, who holds the administrator login, and what happens to the file if the relationship ends. Those answers matter as much as the bookkeeping.

Bookkeeping arrangements US businesses actually use

  • An employee doing the books alongside other duties, common once a business has staff and daily transactions.
  • A contract bookkeeper working a fixed number of hours a month, usually remotely, often across several clients in one industry.
  • The bookkeeping arm of the CPA firm that also prepares your return, which shortens the handover but concentrates the relationship.
  • An outsourced bureau that assigns a team rather than a person, which survives holidays better and personalises less.
  • Software plus a quarterly review, where the owner codes transactions and a professional checks and closes each quarter.

What a proper monthly close involves

Every transaction gets coded to an account, then each bank, credit card and merchant processor balance is reconciled to the statement it came from. Reconciliation is the whole point: an uncategorised pile of feed data is not bookkeeping, it is a download.

Next come the items the feed cannot see. Payroll is journalled in from the payroll report, loans are split between interest and principal, fixed assets are added, prepayments and accruals are recorded if you are on accrual basis, and inventory is adjusted. The SBA describes both methods plainly: the cash method shows cash flow clearly and is easier to understand, while the accrual method creates an immediate snapshot but is more complex to manage.

The month ends with a profit and loss statement, a balance sheet, an accounts receivable and payable aging, and a short list of open questions for the owner. Then the period is locked so the figures you looked at do not quietly change next week.

Records federal agencies expect a US employer to produce

  • Records supporting income, deductions and credits, kept as long as needed to prove what is on a filed return, per the IRS.
  • Employment tax records, which the IRS says to keep for at least four years.
  • Payroll records, collective bargaining agreements and sales and purchase records, which the Department of Labor requires employers to retain for at least three years under the Fair Labor Standards Act.
  • The documents behind wage computations — time cards, piece work tickets, wage rate tables, work schedules and records of additions to or deductions from wages — which the Department of Labor requires to be kept for two years.
  • The source documents themselves: receipts, invoices, deposit slips, canceled checks and statements, which the IRS describes as containing the information you need to record in your books.

Work a bookkeeper is not permitted to do for you

They cannot prepare your federal return for compensation without a Preparer Tax Identification Number from the IRS. Many bookkeepers hold one; many do not, and it takes one question to find out.

Unless they are separately a CPA, an attorney or an enrolled agent, they have no authority to represent you before the IRS. A bookkeeper can assemble every document an examiner asks for, but cannot stand in your place while the examiner asks.

They cannot give any form of assurance on financial statements. If a lender or investor wants a review or an audit, that work goes to a licensed CPA firm, and the bookkeeper's records are the input to it.

As a matter of control rather than law, the person who records the transactions should not also be the only person able to move money. Separating those two jobs is the single cheapest fraud control a small business has.

Bookkeeper, accountant or both: dividing the work sensibly

  • The bookkeeper owns the month: coding, reconciling, chasing receipts, running payroll entries and closing the period.
  • The accountant owns the year: adjusting entries, depreciation decisions, the tax return and whatever planning follows from it.
  • The SBA's own framing is that a CPA normally costs more but offers more tailored service, while a bookkeeper provides basic day-to-day functions at lower cost.
  • Paying a CPA hourly rate to categorise receipts is the most common way small businesses overspend on accounting.
  • Having a bookkeeper with nobody reviewing their work annually is the most common way they underspend.

Signs your books are not being kept properly

  • Bank feeds unreconciled for months, or a reconciliation that only balances because of a plug entry.
  • A suspense or "ask my accountant" account that grows every month and never gets cleared.
  • Owner draws, personal spending and business expenses mixed through the same accounts.
  • Payroll figures in the books that do not tie to the quarterly Form 941 that was actually filed.
  • Receivables listing invoices customers paid months ago, which means cash was never matched to the invoice.
  • Prior periods left open, so last quarter's profit figure is different every time you look at it.

How bookkeeping is priced in the United States

  • Most contract bookkeepers quote a monthly fee scaled to transaction volume and the number of accounts to reconcile.
  • Hourly rates are usual for cleanup work, because nobody can scope a neglected year until they are inside it.
  • Payroll processing, sales tax filings and 1099 preparation are commonly priced as add-ons rather than bundled.
  • Accrual basis books, inventory and multiple entities each raise the monthly fee, independently of revenue.
  • Catching up an abandoned year is its own engagement with its own quote, and it should be quoted that way rather than absorbed.

Bookkeepers: frequently asked questions

Do bookkeepers need a license in the US?

No state licenses bookkeeping as an occupation. Voluntary certifications exist through professional associations, but none of them is a government licence. Judge the work by references, by a test month, and by whether the accounts reconcile.

Can my bookkeeper file my tax return?

Only if they hold a valid Preparer Tax Identification Number, which the IRS requires of anyone who prepares or assists in preparing federal returns for compensation. Plenty of bookkeepers hold one. Ask, and expect them to sign the return.

Should my books be on a cash or accrual basis?

It depends on the business and on the tax rules that apply to it, so it is a question for your accountant rather than a preference. The SBA notes the cash method shows cash flow clearly and is easier to understand, while accrual gives an immediate snapshot but is more complex to manage.

How often should the books be closed?

Monthly, within a couple of weeks of month end, with the period locked afterwards. Quarterly is workable for a very small business. Annually is not bookkeeping; it is reconstruction, and it costs more.

Who should own the accounting software subscription?

You should, with the bookkeeper added as a user. If the file lives on their subscription, leaving means negotiating for your own records. Settle this before work starts rather than during a disagreement.

How long do I have to keep payroll records?

The Department of Labor requires payroll records to be kept for at least three years under the Fair Labor Standards Act, and the documents behind wage computations for two years. The IRS separately says to keep employment tax records for at least four years.

Sources

  1. IRS — Recordkeeping for businesses
  2. US Department of Labor — Fact Sheet #21: Recordkeeping requirements under the FLSA
  3. SBA — Manage your finances
  4. IRS — PTIN requirements for tax return preparers
  5. IRS — Understanding tax return preparer credentials and qualifications

Written by the LokalMatch editorial team. Last reviewed September 22, 2026. How we write and check our guides

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What affects the fees bookkeepers charge

Fees depend on the work involved and how the professional bills. We only publish fee ranges when they’re backed by real LokalMatch data or reliable sources. Until then, here’s what usually changes the fee:

  • Scope and complexity of the work
  • How the professional bills: hourly, flat fee or retainer
  • Experience and seniority of the person doing the work
  • Deadlines and how urgent the work is
  • Third-party costs such as filing, registration or government fees

How to compare bookkeepers before you hire

  • Check that they are licensed or registered for this work where you live, on the regulator’s public register.
  • Look for experience with matters like yours, and ask who will actually handle your file.
  • Ask how they charge before any work starts, and get the terms in writing.
  • Compare two or three professionals before you decide.
  • Be wary of anyone who guarantees a particular outcome.

Questions to ask bookkeepers before you hire

  • Are you licensed or registered for this work, and with which body?
  • Have you handled matters like mine before?
  • Who will do the work, and who will I deal with day to day?
  • How do you charge: hourly, a flat fee or a retainer?
  • What is included in your fee, and what costs extra?
  • Will you confirm the scope and fees in a written engagement letter?
  • Do you carry professional liability insurance?

Licences and registration

This kind of work is often limited to licensed or registered professionals, and the rules depend on where you are. Ask which body they’re registered with, and check their status on that body’s public register before you hire.

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