What Does a Bookkeeper Cost per Hour in the US?

What bookkeepers earn

The BLS tracks bookkeeping, accounting and auditing clerks as one occupation. In May 2025 the median pay was $50,670 a year, or $24.36 an hour. The lowest 10% earned less than $36,000 and the highest 10% more than $74,550.

Pay varies by industry. The BLS lists median wages of $54,890 in construction, $51,880 in professional, scientific and technical services, $50,660 in wholesale trade, $49,860 in health care and social assistance, and $45,830 in retail trade.

Wage versus what you actually pay

An employee costs more than the wage. Add payroll taxes, benefits, paid time off, software and the time you spend managing them. One outsourcing provider's 2026 guide puts a US staff bookkeeper at $24 to $32 an hour in salary and $33 to $44 an hour once those costs are loaded in.

A firm's hourly rate already includes its overhead, training and backup, which is why it sits above the wage.

Hourly rates by option

As of September 2026:

• Employed bookkeeper: median $24.36 an hour in wages, more once fully loaded.
• US bookkeeping firm: Bench bills $55 an hour for a QuickBooks-certified bookkeeper, with a $1,200 onboarding fee.
• Offshore provider: about $10 to $25 an hour, against $40 to $75 for US-based bookkeepers, according to one provider's published 2026 guide.
• SF Business Solutions: $12–$15 an hour for CPA firms and other B2B partnerships. Small businesses pay a monthly fee instead, from $250 a month.

When hourly pricing makes sense

Hourly pricing suits work with an unknown size: a one-off cleanup, a QuickBooks fix, or extra hands for an accounting firm in tax season. For routine monthly bookkeeping, a fixed monthly fee is easier to budget and rewards the bookkeeper for working efficiently.

To compare the two, ask an hourly provider how many hours your month usually takes, multiply by the rate, and set it against a monthly quote.

What drives the hours, and how to cut them

Hours follow the work, not the size of your revenue. A business with a few large invoices can need less time than a small shop with hundreds of card sales. The things that add hours are the same everywhere: more bank and card accounts to reconcile, more transactions to categorize, payroll and loan entries, receipts that arrive late, and months that were never closed.

You can lower the bill on any hourly arrangement without lowering quality.

• Connect every bank and card account to your accounting software through feeds, so nothing is typed in by hand.
• Use one business card and one business bank account for business spending only.
• Answer your bookkeeper's questions about unknown transactions within a few days, while you still remember them.
• Send loan statements, payroll reports and receipts on a fixed day each month.
• Keep the books current. Catching up six months at once always takes longer than six single months.