--- title: "How Much Does Bookkeeping Cost in Canada? What Sets the Fee" url: https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/how-much-does-bookkeeping-cost-canada description: "How much bookkeeping costs: the five things that set the fee, what a monthly fee should include, and EverStone’s fees from $325 a month. Compare them." type: guide updated: 2026-11-11 summary: "Bookkeeping is priced on volume and complexity: how many transactions a month, how many bank and card accounts, whether there is payroll, how often GST/HST or PST is filed, and whether the books are current or need catching up." faq_count: 6 publisher: EverStone CPA Inc., a Chartered Professional Accountant firm registered with CPA British Columbia and CPA Alberta service_area: British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario and Manitoba language: en-CA contact: info@everstonecpa.com · https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online --- [Home](https://www.everstonecpa.com/) [Blog](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog) How much does bookkeeping cost in Canada? What sets the fee Bookkeeping # How much does bookkeeping cost in Canada? *What sets the fee* By EverStone CPA · Updated November 2026 · 6 min read **Quick answer:** Bookkeeping is priced on volume and complexity: how many transactions a month, how many bank and card accounts, whether there is payroll, how often GST/HST or PST is filed, and whether the books are current or need catching up. EverStone’s own published fee is from $325 a month for monthly bookkeeping, with sales tax returns and payroll priced in where they apply, and catch-up work from $2,200 for each year of records brought current. Both are fixed in writing before any work starts. **Want a number for your business, not a range?** Send the rough transaction count, the accounts and whether you run payroll. A CPA replies within one business day with a fixed monthly fee in writing. Bookkeeping from $325 a month. [Get My Fixed Quote](https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online?service=monthly#enquiry-form) ## Key takeaways - Five things set the fee: transaction volume, number of accounts, payroll, sales tax filings and the state of the books. - EverStone’s published fee is from $325 a month; catch-up is from $2,200 per year of records. - A fixed monthly fee should include reconciled books, a monthly report and the sales tax returns, not just data entry. - Hourly billing suits a one-off clean-up with an unknown scope; a fixed fee suits ongoing work where the scope is known. - The cheapest bookkeeping is the kind that does not have to be redone at year-end. ## What drives the cost of bookkeeping Every bookkeeping quote, hourly or fixed, is an estimate of the same five things. Knowing them lets you compare quotes on substance rather than on the headline figure. **Transaction volume.** The number of bank, card and cash entries a month is the main driver, because each one has to be categorised, matched to a receipt and reconciled. A consultant with forty entries a month and a retailer with four hundred are different jobs. **Number of accounts.** Each bank account, credit card, loan and payment processor is a separate reconciliation. Two accounts are half the work of four, whatever the transaction count. **Payroll.** Running pay, calculating source deductions, remitting them on the right schedule and filing the T4s at year-end is a distinct recurring task with its own deadlines and penalties. It is priced as its own line. **Sales tax filings.** A GST/HST return monthly, quarterly or annually, and a PST return in BC or Manitoba where registered, each add a filing with a deadline. Frequency sets the work. **The state of the books.** Current books cost a monthly fee. Books that are months or years behind need a catch-up first, which is a separate, larger, one-time job. Our guide for owners who are [behind on the books](https://www.everstonecpa.com/behind-on-bookkeeping) explains how that is sequenced. **Books behind as well as the monthly work?** Catch-up is quoted once, from $2,200 per year of records brought current, and the monthly fee starts when the books are clean. See [catch-up bookkeeping](https://www.everstonecpa.com/catch-up-bookkeeping) or [get a quote](https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online?service=monthly#enquiry-form). [Get My Fixed Quote](https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online?service=monthly#enquiry-form) ## EverStone’s published fees Rather than quote a survey, here is our own ladder, as published on [the pricing page](https://www.everstonecpa.com/pricing). It is the same in BC, Alberta, Ontario and Manitoba. EverStone CPA’s published bookkeeping fees, fixed in writing before work starts. | Service | Fee | What sets the final figure | | Monthly bookkeeping | From $325 a month | Transaction volume, number of bank and card accounts, GST/HST and PST registrations, employees and pay frequency | | GST/HST and PST returns | Priced into the monthly fee where you are registered | Filing frequency | | Payroll and source deductions | Priced into the monthly fee where you have staff | Number of employees and pay frequency | | Year-end statements and T2 | Can be included in the monthly fee | Whether you want one firm for the books and the return | | Catch-up bookkeeping | From $2,200 for each year of records brought current | Years behind, volume, and the condition of the records | | Controller support | From $1,650 a month | Monthly close, reporting and cash management on top of the books | The “from” is the floor for a business with one or two accounts, a modest transaction count and no payroll. The quote moves up with the five drivers above and is fixed once agreed, so a busy month does not change the invoice. ## Hourly or fixed: which to ask for Hourly billing charges for time spent; fixed billing charges for a defined scope. Each is the right model for a different job. When hourly billing and a fixed monthly fee each make sense. | Situation | Better model | Why | | Ongoing monthly books, stable volume | Fixed | The scope is known; a fixed fee removes the meter and makes questions free | | A one-off clean-up of unknown depth | Hourly, or fixed after a review | Nobody can price what they have not seen; a short paid review first lets the rest be fixed | | Seasonal business with a quiet half | Fixed, set on the annual average | A level fee across the year beats a bill that doubles in the busy months | | A single question or a short project | Hourly or a flat project fee | Too small to fit a monthly plan | | Growing fast, volume changing quarterly | Fixed, reviewed every six months | A fixed fee that is never revisited will be wrong in one direction or the other | EverStone quotes fixed fees for ongoing work and for catch-up after seeing the records. What we do not do is hourly bookkeeping on an open meter, because it rewards slow work and discourages the client from asking questions. ## What a monthly fee should include Compare quotes on what is inside the fee, not on the number alone. A fee for monthly bookkeeping should cover: - **Reconciled accounts**: every bank, card and loan account agreed to its statement each month, with the differences found. A bank reconciliation is the test of whether the books are right; [this guide explains why](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/bank-reconciliation-why-it-matters). - **Categorised transactions** coded to the right expense line, with the 50% meals limit, the business-use splits and the capital items handled as they arrive rather than at year-end. - **Receipts matched** to transactions, stored where a CRA review can be answered from. - **Sales tax returns** prepared and filed on the registered frequency, with the input tax credits claimed. - **A short monthly report**: profit and loss, balance sheet, who owes you and what you owe, in a form you will read. - **Questions answered** without a separate invoice. What a monthly fee usually does not include, and is quoted separately: payroll where you have staff, the year-end financial statements and T2 unless bundled, prior-year catch-up, and CRA review support. A quote that is silent on these is a quote that will grow. ## In-house, software alone, or outsourced The alternatives to an outsourced bookkeeper are doing it yourself in accounting software or hiring someone. Software is inexpensive and handles the mechanics, but it does not know that a meal is limited to 50% or that a truck belongs in a CCA class; the judgement is still yours, and the year-end accountant corrects what the software recorded. An in-house bookkeeper carries a salary, the employer payroll costs on it, and cover when they are away, which only makes sense above a volume most owner-managed businesses do not reach. Our comparison of [in-house and outsourced bookkeeping](https://www.everstonecpa.com/in-house-vs-outsourced-bookkeeping) sets out the crossover, and [bookkeeper, accountant or CPA](https://www.everstonecpa.com/bookkeeper-vs-accountant-vs-cpa) explains which one does what. ## Monthly or once a year Some owners hand a year of statements to an accountant each spring and have the books built then. It costs less per month and more per year, because a year of entries is reconstructed without the memory of what each one was, and the GST/HST returns were filed through the year on figures nobody checked. It also means no numbers to run the business on until the year is over. The trade-off is set out in [monthly versus annual bookkeeping](https://www.everstonecpa.com/monthly-vs-annual-bookkeeping). ## A decision table Which arrangement fits which business. | Your situation | Usually the right fit | Where EverStone fits | | Sole proprietor, a few dozen transactions a month, no payroll, no sales tax registration | Software, with an accountant at year-end | Self-employed T1 with the schedules, quoted up front | | Incorporated, one or two accounts, GST/HST registered, no staff | Outsourced monthly bookkeeping | From $325 a month, sales tax returns priced in | | Incorporated with staff and quarterly or monthly filings | Outsourced bookkeeping with payroll | Monthly fee with payroll and filings priced in; year-end can be bundled | | Books one or more years behind | Catch-up first, then monthly | From $2,200 per year of records, then the monthly fee | | Several entities, a monthly close the bank or a board reads | Controller-level support | From $1,650 a month | ## The bottom line Bookkeeping cost is a function of volume, accounts, payroll, filings and the state of the records. Ask for a fixed fee on a defined scope, check what is inside it, and treat the year-end as part of the same system rather than a separate purchase. EverStone’s published floor is $325 a month, and the fee for your business is set in writing after one email. The fee for your business depends on the five drivers above; [the fee estimate tool](https://www.everstonecpa.com/fee-estimate) gives a first figure, and [an enquiry](https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online?service=monthly#enquiry-form) gets a fixed quote in writing within one business day. Sources - [Canada Revenue Agency — Business expenses (legal, accounting and other professional fees are deductible)](https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/services/tax/businesses/topics/sole-proprietorships-partnerships/business-expenses.html) General information for Canadian business owners, current as of November 2026; not tax, legal or accounting advice, and no client relationship. Rules change, so [speak with a CPA](https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online?service=monthly#enquiry-form) before acting. About this article **EverStone CPA** Prepared and reviewed by a CPA at EverStone CPA, serving businesses in BC, Alberta, Ontario and Manitoba. [About the firm →](https://www.everstonecpa.com/about) · [Send an enquiry →](https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online?service=monthly#enquiry-form) The scope described on this page is what [monthly bookkeeping](https://www.everstonecpa.com/monthly-bookkeeping-services) at EverStone includes, from $325 a month. ### Keep reading [What an accountant costs in BC →](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/how-much-does-an-accountant-cost-bc) [In-house vs outsourced bookkeeping →](https://www.everstonecpa.com/in-house-vs-outsourced-bookkeeping) [Monthly vs annual bookkeeping →](https://www.everstonecpa.com/monthly-vs-annual-bookkeeping) [Catch-up bookkeeping →](https://www.everstonecpa.com/catch-up-bookkeeping) FAQ ## Frequently asked questions **How much does bookkeeping cost per month for a small business?** It depends on transaction volume, the number of accounts, payroll and sales tax filings. EverStone’s published fee is from $325 a month, with GST/HST and PST returns and payroll priced in where they apply, and the figure is fixed in writing before work starts. **Is bookkeeping charged hourly or as a flat fee?** Both models exist. A flat monthly fee suits ongoing work with a known scope; hourly suits a one-off job whose depth is unknown. EverStone quotes fixed fees for ongoing bookkeeping and for catch-up after reviewing the records. **What does catch-up bookkeeping cost?** EverStone’s published fee is from $2,200 for each year of records brought current, quoted once after seeing the records and fixed in writing. The monthly fee begins once the books are clean. **Does the monthly fee include GST/HST returns and payroll?** At EverStone, sales tax returns are priced into the monthly fee where you are registered, and payroll where you have staff. Year-end statements and the T2 can be included as well. Ask any provider to list what is inside and outside the fee. **Is it cheaper to do my own bookkeeping?** In cash, usually; in total cost, often not. Software records what you tell it, and the judgement on limits, splits and capital items is still needed at year-end, where correcting a year of entries costs more than keeping them right monthly. **Do bookkeeping fees differ by province?** EverStone’s fees are the same in BC, Alberta, Ontario and Manitoba. The work differs slightly by province because of PST in BC and Manitoba and HST in Ontario, which affects the filing count rather than the rate. ## Want a fixed monthly fee for your books? Tell us the rough transaction count, the number of accounts and whether you run payroll. A CPA replies by email within one business day with a fixed fee in writing, from $325 a month. [Get My Fixed Quote](https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online?service=monthly#enquiry-form)[Book a Paid Advice Call](https://www.everstonecpa.com/advice-call) ## Have a question about this? Ask free through [the quick-question form](https://www.everstonecpa.com/quick-question); a CPA replies by email within one business day. For a proper look, a 45-minute **Advice Call** with a CPA is $225 plus applicable tax, booked by email, credited against your first invoice if you become a client within 60 days. Want an accountant to take it on? [Send an enquiry](https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online?service=monthly#enquiry-form). [Ask a Free Question](https://www.everstonecpa.com/quick-question) [Book a Paid Advice Call](https://www.everstonecpa.com/advice-call) Email info@everstonecpa.com ★★★★★ “…have been completing my bookkeeping, taxes and financials for the last 2 years and they have been amazing. Thank you!” R. H. · Google review **Run your own numbers with the free calculators:** [Incorporation savings calculator](https://www.everstonecpa.com/incorporation-calculator) · [check a paycheque’s deductions](https://www.everstonecpa.com/payroll-deduction-calculator) · [check your GST/HST math](https://www.everstonecpa.com/gst-hst-calculator) [← Accountant cost in BC: the fee guide](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/how-much-does-an-accountant-cost-bc) [Bank reconciliation: why it matters →](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/bank-reconciliation-why-it-matters) --- Source: https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/how-much-does-bookkeeping-cost-canada Prices: https://www.everstonecpa.com/pricing · Contact: info@everstonecpa.com · https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online