Bookkeeper vs accountant vs CPA
Three different jobs that get used as if they were one. Here is what each actually does, which one your business needs, and why most incorporated owners end up using two of the three.
Quick answer: A bookkeeper records transactions and keeps your monthly books accurate. An accountant prepares and interprets financial statements. A CPA is a regulated professional who can also handle corporate tax, compilation engagements and planning. Most incorporated small businesses need bookkeeping monthly and a CPA annually — often from the same firm.
The three roles side by side
| Bookkeeper | Accountant | CPA | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Typical work | Daily/monthly entries, bank reconciliation, invoicing, GST filing, payroll runs | Financial statements, adjusting entries, interpreting results | Year-end statements, T2, tax planning, compilation engagements, CRA representation |
| Credential | No protected designation; certificates exist but are optional | “Accountant” is not a protected title in Canada | Regulated designation — exams, experience, ongoing CPD, governed by CPABC in BC |
| When you need one | As soon as you have regular transactions | When you need the numbers explained | Once you incorporate, and at every year-end after |
| How it is billed | Monthly fee scaled to transaction volume | Hourly or per engagement | Annual fixed fee for the year-end package; monthly if bookkeeping is bundled |
| Can sign a compilation report? | No | No, unless they are a CPA | Yes — CSRS 4200 |
Fee structures shown are how each role is typically billed, not quoted prices. See our published ranges.
The part that trips people up: “accountant” is not a protected title
In Canada, anyone may call themselves an accountant. CPA — Chartered Professional Accountant — is the regulated designation, requiring a degree, the CPA professional education program, examinations, verified practical experience and continuing professional development, all overseen by a provincial body (CPABC in British Columbia) with the power to investigate and discipline. That difference matters most when something goes wrong: there is a regulator to complain to, mandatory professional standards, and required professional liability insurance.
It also matters for specific deliverables. A compilation engagement report (CSRS 4200) — the standard financial statement package most lenders and the CRA expect from a small corporation — can only be issued by a licensed public accounting firm.
What most small corporations actually need
Here is the honest answer, and yes, it also describes how we work: bookkeeping on a monthly cadence, plus a CPA at year-end. The monthly work keeps the ledger reconciled, GST filed and payroll remitted on time. The annual work turns that into financial statements and a T2 corporate return, and — more valuable — catches the decisions that must be made before the fiscal year closes: salary versus dividends, equipment timing, shareholder loan balances.
What you do not need is two disconnected providers. The common failure mode is a bookkeeper who codes transactions one way and a tax preparer who re-does half of it in March, with each assuming the other caught the unusual items. When one firm does both — the books and the year-end — year-end becomes review rather than reconstruction, which is also why a fixed fee is possible.
Where a fractional CFO fits
All three roles above look backwards: they record, report and file what already happened. A fractional CFO looks forwards — forecasting, cash-flow planning, pricing, financing and the decisions that shape next year’s numbers. It is a different job, priced as a monthly retainer, and most businesses genuinely do not need it until they are past the owner-plus-a-few-staff stage or facing a decision (a large hire, an acquisition, a financing round) they cannot see clearly. More on what a fractional CFO does
Choosing, in one paragraph
If you are a sole proprietor with modest volume, a good bookkeeper plus a personal tax preparer may be all you need. The moment you incorporate, you need a CPA in the picture — the T2, the compilation report and the planning decisions all sit on that side of the line. And whichever you hire, the questions worth asking are the same: who actually does the work, is the fee fixed, and are they available in June as well as April. We wrote a 10-question buyer’s guide for exactly that conversation.
Who keeps your books is one decision among several that compound; the decision guide lays out the others.
Prepared and reviewed by a Chartered Professional Accountant at EverStone CPA, an Abbotsford CPA firm working with small businesses and incorporated contractors across the Fraser Valley and Canada. About the firm · Book a free consult
Bookkeeper, accountant or CPA — FAQ
Do I need a bookkeeper or an accountant?+
What is the difference between an accountant and a CPA?+
Can a bookkeeper file my corporate tax return?+
What does a fractional CFO do that an accountant does not?+
How much does each one cost?+
Can I do my own bookkeeping and still use a CPA for the year-end?+
Who is allowed to represent me if CRA reviews my return?+
We work with owner-managed businesses across Canada online — accountant in Vancouver · Toronto small business accountant · virtual accountant in Ottawa · online accountant in Calgary and beyond. The narrower question — CPA versus tax preparer — gets its own comparison.
Not sure which one you need?
Tell us how your business runs and we will tell you honestly, including if you only need bookkeeping right now.
We act as the CPA in this picture for owners across Canada, including in CPA for Edmonton owners and Winnipeg.
Deciding who does what often comes down to timing. See when the corporate return is due and what has to be ready before it.
Talk to a CPA about this
One Chartered Professional Accountant, start to finish. Fixed fees, quoted in writing before any work begins, and no obligation from a first conversation.
“Sunny and his team have been completing my bookkeeping, taxes and financials for the last 2 years and they have been amazing. Thank you!”
