Bookkeeper vs accountant, and where bookkeeping prep fits

The difference in one table

Roles vary by firm and state, and a CPA is a licensed professional. Ask what a specific provider covers.

What each costs, from published guides

Guides from bookkeeping firms put small-business bookkeeping at roughly $300 to $1,500 a month, with freelancers at about $30 to $60 an hour and cleanup of backlog at $150 to $500 per month of backlog. Accountant fees vary widely by scope and are usually quoted for tax and advisory work, which we do not state numbers for. MyClawn Books is $49 or $149 a month. These guides are from firms that sell the service, so use them as ranges.

When bookkeeping prep is enough

• Your business has a handful of accounts and straightforward transactions.
• You want to know your monthly profit and keep books ready for tax time.
• You have a CPA or plan to hire one for tax, and want to hand them tidy records.
• You are catching up on months that were never closed.

When you need a person

• You have employees and payroll.
• You collect sales tax in several states.
• You have inventory, loans or investors that need accrual accounting.
• You want live conversations about your numbers and decisions.

For those, hire a bookkeeper or an accountant. A prep file does not replace them: it makes their work cheaper by arriving tidy.

How a CPA can use our output

Give your CPA the workbook: the Ledger sheet has every transaction with its category and reason, the P&L sheet sums the ledger with visible formulas, the Questions sheet lists what needs a decision, and the Notes sheet states how the totals reconciled. They can accept, change or reject any category. We do not say what is deductible; that is their call. Bookkeeping prep, not tax advice.

Common mixups

An accountant is not automatically a bookkeeper. Many CPAs do not want to categorize 2,000 transactions, and they charge accordingly. Tidy books can reduce their time.

Software is not bookkeeping. Accounting software stores the records. Someone, or something, still has to decide what each transaction is.

A P&L is not a tax return. Tax rules decide what counts, and they differ from what you see in your monthly numbers.

Prep is not a promise of compliance. We flag and suggest, you or your accountant decide.

A simple setup for a small business

1. Business bank account and card, nothing personal on them.
2. Each month, upload the statements to MyClawn Books and review the Questions tab.
3. Import the CSV into QuickBooks or Xero if you use one.
4. At year end, give your CPA the twelve workbooks and your questions.

That is a plausible setup, not a recommendation for your tax situation. Ask your accountant what they prefer to receive.

Questions to ask before hiring either

1. What exactly is included each month, and what costs extra?
2. Do you work in software I own?
3. Who answers my questions, and how fast?
4. What happens if I want to leave?
5. Do you file taxes, or only prepare records?

The same questions apply to us. Answers: monthly categorizing, P&L, import file and a Questions list; you own your software and import the CSV; support is by email, and we do not promise phone calls; you can cancel any time; no tax filing.

How to start

Upload this month, read the Questions tab, answer what you can, and forward the rest to your accountant. See how it works and pricing.

Upload this month's statements. Bookkeeping prep only, not tax advice. 14-day refund if it misses, two rounds of changes, cancel any time.

More about Books

Sources (checked 2026-11-09): beancount.io/blog/2026/10/05/how-much-does-a-bookkeeper-cost-2026-pric · tgg-accounting.com/how-much-does-bookkeeper-cost/ · www.globalfpo.com/blog/how-much-does-a-bookkeeper-cost-for-a-small-bus