Outsourced Accounting Pricing in the UK: What You'll Actually Pay
From bookkeeping to payroll, see genuine UK pricing for outsourced accounting, what drives your quote up or down, and hidden fees to avoid.
Outsourced accounting in the UK typically costs somewhere between £60 and £1,000 a month for most small and growing businesses, depending on what you're outsourcing and how complex your finances are. A sole trader with straightforward affairs sits at the lower end, while a growing limited company with payroll, VAT and regular management accounts sits higher.
A Key Distinction When Searching Costs:
Before going further, it's worth flagging something that trips up a lot of people searching this exact question. Several guides on this topic actually cover what it costs an accounting firm to send its own work offshore to India or the Philippines, a completely different scenario to what most business owners want to know. This guide is about what it costs you, as a business, to pay an external UK accountant to handle your books.
In This Article
Cost by Service Type
Outsourced accounting isn't priced as one flat fee, different services carry different costs and most providers let you pick and choose rather than forcing a single bundled package.
| Service | Typical UK Cost |
|---|---|
| Basic bookkeeping, small business | £80 to £350 per month |
| VAT returns | Often included in a bookkeeping package, or £50 to £150 extra per quarter if standalone |
| Payroll | £4 to £15 per employee per month |
| Annual accounts and Corporation Tax return | £750 to £2,500 per year for a limited company |
| Self Assessment tax return, sole trader | £150 to £600 per year |
| Management accounts | £200 to £600 per month, depending on reporting complexity |
Hourly billing still exists for one off or ad hoc work. According to Unbiased, general accounting services for a small business typically run between £50 and £150 an hour, with more specialist advisory work sometimes reaching £250 an hour.
Cost by Business Size
How much you pay scales fairly predictably with the size and complexity of your business.
Sole Traders & Freelancers
With simple affairs, or as little as £150 to £600 a year if it's just an annual Self Assessment return.
Small Limited Companies
Under roughly £100,000 turnover, for a bundled package covering bookkeeping, VAT and annual accounts.
Growing SMEs
Between £100,000 and £500,000 turnover, often reflecting added payroll and more regular reporting.
Larger Small Businesses
Above £500,000 turnover or with high transaction volumes, sometimes reaching £2,000 to £6,000 for complex, multi-entity setups.
What Actually Affects Your Price
A handful of specific factors drive most of the variation you'll see between quotes:
Transaction Volume
More invoices, payments and bank transactions mean more bookkeeping work each month.
VAT Registration
VAT registered businesses need quarterly returns filed, which adds ongoing work regardless of size.
Payroll Headcount
Each employee on payroll adds a small per person cost, so a business with ten staff costs noticeably more to run payroll for than a single director company.
Whether You Want Compliance Only or Ongoing Advice
A provider filing your annual return once a year charges less than one offering proactive tax planning and regular check ins throughout the year.
Location
Some UK sources note that London based firms can charge up to 25 percent more than the national average, largely reflecting higher office overheads, though online and remote providers increasingly narrow this gap.
Fixed Fee vs Hourly vs Retainer Pricing, and Why It Matters
Most UK outsourced accounting is priced one of three ways and the model matters almost as much as the headline number:
Means a set monthly amount covering an agreed scope of work. This is generally the easiest to budget around, since you know exactly what's coming out of your account each month and there's no reluctance to pick up the phone and ask a question for fear of being charged for the call.
Suits genuinely one off or unpredictable work, a single piece of advice, a specific project, but it leaves you exposed to costs growing if the work takes longer than expected.
Sit somewhere between the two, a set monthly fee for ongoing access to support, sometimes with certain services capped or billed separately beyond an agreed scope.
For most small businesses and contractors, a genuinely fixed fee removes the guesswork, provided you've confirmed exactly what's included from the outset.
Outsourced Accounting Cost vs Hiring In House
Outsourcing generally works out cheaper than employing an in-house bookkeeper once you account for salary, employer National Insurance, pension contributions and the cost of covering holiday and sick leave.
| Cost Factor | In House Bookkeeper | Outsourced Accounting |
|---|---|---|
| Base cost | £25,000 to £35,000 salary per year | Single monthly fee, scaled to your needs |
| Employer National Insurance | Additional cost on top of salary | Included in the fee |
| Pension contributions | Additional cost on top of salary | Included in the fee |
| Software and licensing | Paid separately by the business | Usually included |
| Holiday and sick cover | Business must arrange and pay for cover | Covered by the provider's team |
| Recruitment cost | Time and fees to hire and replace staff | None |
We've broken this comparison down in more depth, including how it plays out across different business sizes, in our guide to outsourced accounting versus in house accounting.
What This Costs for Contractors Specifically
For a contractor operating through their own limited company, the cost conversation looks a little different to a standard SME. Payroll usually means processing a single director's salary rather than a team, so the main cost driver becomes the depth of tax advice involved, particularly getting your IR35 status and salary and dividend split right, rather than transaction volume.
We work with contractors, sole traders and small limited companies across Bristol on a genuinely fixed fee basis, so there's no risk of a surprise invoice landing after a busy month. If you'd like to know exactly what this looks like for your own situation, our contractor accountant services page covers what's included.
Frequently Asked Questions
Final Words
Outsourced accounting costs vary widely, but for most UK small businesses, the realistic range sits between £60 and £1,000 a month depending on complexity and a genuinely fixed fee arrangement makes that cost far easier to plan around than hourly billing ever can. The key is asking exactly what's included before comparing prices, since the cheapest quote isn't always the best value once hidden extras are factored in.
Looking for Fixed-Fee Outsourced Accounting in Bristol?
Get full bookkeeping, payroll, VAT and annual accounts support with zero hidden charges. Speak with our specialist Bristol accountants today.
Locations We Cover Across the UK
Providing proactive accounting, tax planning, and payroll support to businesses, landlords, and contractors across the UK.