Account opened · entries posted

Software on one side, an accountant on the other

A small business keeping its own books with software, and a small business paying someone to keep them, are two different arrangements - not a good option and a bad one. This site posts them side by side and leaves the balance to you.

Where to begin What this covers

Dr - Software, kept in-house

You run the books, a subscription runs the ledger.

Cr - An accountant, engaged

Someone else runs the books, you carry the fee.

Dr 01

A monthly subscription, payable whether or not the month gets reconciled.

Cr 01

A monthly retainer or a fee per engagement, quoted against the scope of work.

Dr 02

The chart of accounts is yours to set up and yours to keep consistent.

Cr 02

The chart of accounts is set up by someone who has built one before.

Dr 03

Bank feeds, categorising and chasing unpaid invoices land on your desk.

Cr 03

The close lands on theirs - and so does the wait when they are busy.

Dr 04

You see the numbers the day they happen, and you own every mistake.

Cr 04

You see the numbers when the pack arrives, and you get advice attached.

Dr 05

Year-end still needs someone qualified to look at it before it is filed.

Cr 05

Year-end is inside the engagement, or it is a separate line on the quote.

Ruled off · both sides costed in What Each Option Costs

Where to begin

The core of the site

Guide

What Each Option Costs, and What Each One Is Responsible For (2026)

How much does a bookkeeping service cost for a small business?

Read the guide Explainer

Bookkeeping vs Accounting: What Is the Actual Difference?

What's the difference between bookkeeping and accounting for a small business?

Read the explainer Shortlist

Bookkeeper or Accountant: Which Does a Small Business Need? (2026)

What's the difference between bookkeeping and accounting for a small business?

Read it How-to

How to Decide When to Bring in Professional Help (2026)

My business is growing past what I can track myself. What bookkeeping help should I get first?

Follow the steps Shortlist

Do You Need a Bookkeeper If You Already Have an Accountant? (2026)

Do I need a bookkeeper if I already have an accountant at tax time?

Read it Head to head

A Bookkeeping Service vs a Local CPA (2026)

Do I need a bookkeeper if I already have an accountant at tax time?

Read it

The register

Six folios, alternating sides. If you only read one, make it Bookkeeper or Accountant: Which Does a Small Business Need?

Folio 101

Doing it yourself against paying a bookkeeper

Software and your own hours on one side, a bookkeeper's fee on the other.

Head to head

Folio 102

Bookkeeping against accounting

Where recording the month ends and the judgement on top of it begins.

Explainer

Folio 103

What each arrangement costs, and answers for

Software, a bookkeeper and an accountant, each with its price and its share of the work.

Guide

Folio 104

The year-end close, either way

Who should own the close when the year rules off: you, a bookkeeper or an accountant.

Shortlist

Folio 105

When a growing business outgrows doing its own books

How to tell the books have outgrown you, and which help to bring in first.

How-to

Folio 106

Who actually files the return

Software, a bookkeeping service and an accountant part ways at tax time.

Shortlist

Terms on both sides of the ledger: Bookkeeping and Accounting Terms, Explained

Standing rules of this ledger

What every entry on the ledger is held to, the QuickBooks Experts review included.

Rule 01

Both sides get the same column

Neither arrangement is set up as the default here. The page is symmetrical on purpose, because the right answer depends on the business and not on the layout.

Rule 02

No scores and no ratings

Nothing is graded out of ten or sorted into tiers. Where one option is preferred for a given situation, it is argued in words with the reasoning on the page.

Rule 03

Only claims that were earned

No described test bench, no invented tallies of tools compared or readers served. Prices come from the providers' own published pages, with the date they were read.

Rule 04

Affiliate links are disclosed

Some links may earn a commission. That does not decide which side of the ledger an entry is posted to, and the disclosure page sets out how it works.

Working the decision through the ledger

A method you can run on the back of an envelope. How to Decide When to Bring in Professional Help works through the same decision.

Post 01

Write down the month you actually have

Transactions, invoices raised, payroll runs, and who currently touches each of them.

Post 02

Enter the money on both sides

Subscription plus your own hours on one side; fees plus handover time on the other.

Post 03

Enter what you would be giving up

Immediacy and control against expertise and the evenings you get back.

Post 04

Rule off and read the balance

The answer is whichever side is cheaper in the thing your business is shortest of.