Why Outsource Your Bookkeeping and Tax Services?

The Short Version: 
Outsourcing your bookkeeping usually costs less than hiring for it, because one monthly fee replaces a salary plus payroll taxes, benefits, software, and the cost of covering the job when that person’s out. You also get a team instead of one person, which means the work doesn’t stop when somebody takes vacation or quits. Putting your bookkeeping and your tax work with the same firm adds a second layer, since the people filing your return have been looking at your numbers all year. It’s not the right decision if you want someone in the office handling other duties, if you have heavy job costing or inventory needs, or if you’d rather keep the work in-house.

You already know your business books matter. That’s not the problem.

The problem is that you’re trying to run your business, and the bookkeeping keeps landing on you at the end of a day that was already full. And you find yourself falling behind because there are only so many hours in the day.

At Patrick Accounting, we handle bookkeeping and tax work for small business owners across the country, and most of them come to us at exactly this point: the business is growing, the books can’t keep up, and hiring somebody feels like a big step. So, here’s what outsourcing actually costs compared to hiring, what you get for it, and who it doesn’t work for.

What Outsourcing Bookkeeping Costs Compared to Hiring In-House

Start with the salary, because it anchors everything else. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a median wage of about $50,670 a year for bookkeeping and accounting clerks, with the bottom 10% earning under $36,000 and the top 10% earning over $74,550. Around Memphis, we generally see full-time bookkeepers land in the $45,000 to $70,000 range, which lines up.

Salary is the part people budget for. It’s also the smallest part of the decision. Here’s the full picture:

Our own monthly accounting starts around $750 a month. Use our pricing calculator to see full pricing and run an estimate for your business. Compare that against a loaded salary, and the math usually isn’t close for a small business.

The row people underestimate is coverage. One bookkeeper means one point of failure. When they’re out for two weeks, the work waits for them. Check out our comparison of in-house versus outsourced options for the pros and cons of each.

What You Get Back When You Stop Doing the Books Yourself

Cost is one side of it. Here’s the other.

Your Time Goes Back into the Business

The hours you spend categorizing transactions and chasing receipts are hours you’re not spending on customers, pricing, or your team. Those are the hours only you can work. The bookkeeping isn’t.

You Get People Who Do This Every Day

Small business accounting has rules that shift, and the cost of missing one lands on you. The IRS failure-to-file penalty alone runs 5% of the unpaid tax per month, capped at 25%. When someone handles this daily, they catch what a part-time bookkeeper or a busy owner won’t.

Your Books Don’t Stop When One Person Does

Vacations, illness, resignations. With a team, none of that is your problem to solve. The work continues, and nobody hands you a shoebox and an apology.

You Can Scale Without Rehiring

As you grow, you run into multi-state payroll, higher transaction volume, and possibly a second location. An outsourced team adds capacity without you posting a job, which matters most when you’ve outgrown the setup that used to work.

Why Using One Firm for Bookkeeping and Taxes Saves You More

Plenty of businesses outsource the bookkeeping to one place and the tax return to another. We know this can work, but it also costs you something specific.

A tax preparer who sees your numbers once a year can only report what already happened. Most of the decisions that change your tax bill have a deadline attached, and by the time a return is being prepared, those deadlines have passed.

When both sit with the same firm, a few things change:

• Planning happens during the year. Someone notices a strong quarter in September instead of finding out in April, and there’s still time to adjust and act.

• The records match. One team keeping the books and filing the return means fewer reconciliation gaps and fewer questions at filing time.

• Nothing gets missed in the handoff. Credits and deductions get caught by the people already looking at your balance sheet, instead of by somebody reading it cold in March.

That’s also the difference between a firm that files your return and one that works your numbers monthly.

Is Outsourcing Bookkeeping Right for Your Business?

It tends to work well when you:

• Don’t have the time or the staff to handle the books in-house

• Want financial reports you can actually use to make decisions

• Would rather pay a predictable monthly fee than carry salary and overhead

• Want advice along with the bookkeeping, not just clean records

• Are comfortable working with a team over email, video, and shared software

If you’re currently doing the books yourself, you need to understand the problems that can create for your business, because a few of them show up even when your books are accurate.

When Should a Business Not Outsource Its Bookkeeping?

Outsourcing isn’t right for everyone. It’s probably not a fit if you:

• Prefer to keep your finances managed in-house, where you can walk down the hall and ask someone about them

• Have complex accounts receivable, heavy job costing, or detailed inventory needs

• Don’t see the value in putting bookkeeping and tax work in the same place

• Want your bookkeeper to also answer phones, manage the office, or cover other duties

• Aren’t ready to pay for professional financial help

• Have concerns about your financial information sitting with an outside firm

If any of these reasons fit your situation, a different setup will probably work better. And it’s why we’re specific about who we work best with.

How to Choose an Outsourced Accounting Team

If outsourcing sounds right, here’s what separates firms worth talking to:

• Experience in your industry. A restaurant, a home health or hospice agency, a gym, and a law practice have different problems. A firm that knows yours will catch things a general accountant won’t.

• Familiarity with your state. State and local rules vary, and someone who works in your area already knows them.

• Both bookkeeping and tax under one roof. It gives you year-round planning instead of a once-a-year report, for the reasons listed above.

• A clear answer on what you get. Ask what a month actually looks like. When do you get your financials? Who do you call? What’s included and what costs extra?

• Proof from other clients. Reviews and case studies tell you whether the firm delivers what it describes.

And ask what happens if your books are behind. Most firms have to get you current before they can do anything else, so knowing whether you need a cleanup first changes what you’re actually buying.

Deciding Whether to Outsource Your Bookkeeping

If you’ve read this far, you’re probably past wondering whether the books need help and are now wondering what it takes to fix them.

The comparison worth making isn’t outsourcing against doing nothing. It’s outsourcing against the two alternatives you actually have: keep doing it yourself at the end of long days, or hire somebody and carry the salary, the benefits, and the gap that opens up every time they’re out.

At Patrick Accounting, we do bookkeeping and tax work together for small business owners out of our office in Cordova, Tennessee, and we’re upfront about who that fits and who it doesn’t. Most owners who come to us aren’t just looking for someone to take over the books. They want to stop thinking about them.

If you’re still weighing whether to hand this off at all, we compared doing it yourself against bringing in a professional. And if you already know it’s time, our pricing calculator will get you a number in a couple of minutes.

Frequently Asked Questions About Outsourcing Your Bookkeeping

Is outsourcing bookkeeping cheaper than hiring a bookkeeper?

For most small businesses, yes. A full-time bookkeeper costs roughly $50,000 a year in salary alone before payroll taxes, benefits, software, and training. Outsourced monthly accounting bundles all of that into one fee, and our packages start around $750 a month.

What’s the difference between outsourced bookkeeping and outsourced accounting?

Bookkeeping records what happened: transactions are categorized, and accounts are reconciled. Accounting adds interpretation, tax work, and advice on top of it. Most firms selling monthly accounting include bookkeeping.

Do I have to use the same firm for bookkeeping and taxes?

No, and plenty of businesses split them. The tradeoff is that a tax preparer who sees your numbers once a year can only report what already happened, while a firm that does both can act on opportunities during the year.

Is my financial information safe with an outside firm?

It’s a fair question to ask directly. Ask how they store your data, who has access, and what happens to your records if you leave. A firm that can’t answer those clearly is telling you something.

What if my books are a mess right now?

Messy books are a normal starting point. Most firms will get you current before ongoing work begins, and catch-up work is usually priced separately from the monthly fee.