Bookkeeping prices are confusing on purpose. Hourly rates hide the total, retainers hide the scope, and almost nobody publishes a number. Here is how the pricing actually works, what drives it up, and how to compare offers apples-to-apples.
The three pricing models you'll run into
Hourly. Freelance bookkeepers commonly charge by the hour, with rates that vary widely by region and experience. The problem isn't the rate — it's that you can't predict the total. A messy month takes more hours, so your worst months produce your biggest bills.
Monthly retainer. A fixed fee per month, usually tiered by transaction volume or account count. Predictable, and it aligns incentives: the bookkeeper profits by being efficient, not slow. This is what most small businesses should want.
Per-project. Common for one-time work like a cleanup or catch-up before tax season. Sensible when it's a flat quote agreed up front; risky when it's hourly-with-an-estimate, because backlogs are exactly where hours balloon.
What actually drives the price
Transaction volume is the biggest driver — a business running 800 transactions a month across five accounts is simply more work than one running 60 across two. Number of bank and credit card accounts, payroll complexity, inventory, sales tax across multiple states, and how far behind the books are all move the quote.
The thing that shouldn't drive price but often does: disorganization tax. If your bookkeeper bills hourly, every unanswered categorization question and every missing statement costs you money. Flat-rate arrangements absorb that noise.
Questions that expose a bad deal
Ask what happens when volume spikes for a month — is that a surprise invoice? Ask whether reconciliation to the bank statement is included every month or an add-on. Ask what 'month-end close' means concretely and what date your reports arrive. Ask what catching up your backlog costs before the ongoing work starts — this is where hourly engagements quietly double.
Where Evolv Bookkeeping lands
We publish our pricing because we think the guessing game is the problem: $199 per month flat for ongoing bookkeeping — reconciled accounts, categorized transactions, and a month-end close with your P&L and Balance Sheet delivered by day 2 of the following month. Catching up a backlog is a flat $500 one-time cleanup, however far back it goes. No contracts, cancel anytime, and your quote comes back instantly from the form on our homepage.