Project cleanup vs. monthly bookkeeping vs. hourly
Three different models, three different fits. Here’s the honest breakdown. No model is “best” for everyone. Below is a fair, side-by-side look so you can match the right one to where your business actually is right now.
Cleanup, monthly, or hourly bookkeeping: which one do you need?
If your books are behind, messy, or co-mingled, you need a one-time project cleanup first: a written scope, billed hourly against an estimate agreed up front, that fixes everything inside your own QuickBooks or Xero file and leaves you owning clean data with no recurring bill.
Monthly bookkeeping is a subscription for steady-state businesses that want someone handling the books every month. Hourly bookkeeping suits very small operations with light, predictable activity. Most owners combine them: a cleanup to reset the baseline, then a monthly bookkeeper, their own routine, or coaching to keep it current.
The honest breakdown.
Each model earns its keep in the right situation. We’ve tried to be fair to all three, because credibility matters more to us than winning every row.
Project cleanup
Our laneOne-time project, hourly
- Best for
- You’re behind, messy, or co-mingled and want it fixed once, correctly.
- What you get
- Reconciled, tax-ready books delivered as a finished project, plus a walkthrough.
- Who owns the file & data
- You do. It’s your QuickBooks or Xero file the entire time, and you keep it.
- Pricing model
- Billed hourly against a written estimate, agreed up front after the free consultation.
- Typical 12-month cost
- $2,500–$15,000+ once (most $3,500–$7,000), then $0 until you need it again.
- What happens when you stop paying
- Nothing changes. The work is done and the clean file is already yours.
- Ramp-up time
- 2–6 weeks to a finished, reconciled result.
- Ongoing commitment
- None. One engagement, then you decide what’s next.
- Risk of surprise bills
- Low. Hours are estimated and the rate agreed in writing before work begins.
Monthly bookkeeping
Subscription
- Best for
- Steady-state businesses that want someone handling the books every month.
- What you get
- Ongoing categorization, monthly reconciliation, and recurring reports.
- Who owns the file & data
- Sometimes a proprietary platform; you may not control or export the ledger.
- Pricing model
- Recurring monthly fee, often tiered by transaction volume.
- Typical 12-month cost
- Roughly $3,600–$7,200+/yr at common $300–$600/mo plans.
- What happens when you stop paying
- Service stops; on proprietary platforms, getting your data out can be hard.
- Ramp-up time
- Onboarding plus a lag before the books are fully caught up.
- Ongoing commitment
- Continuous. Value comes from staying subscribed.
- Risk of surprise bills
- Low month-to-month, but tier jumps and add-ons add up.
Hourly bookkeeper
Pay as you go
- Best for
- Very small or simple operations with light, predictable activity.
- What you get
- Whatever you ask for, in the hours you pay for. Scope varies by person.
- Who owns the file & data
- You do. They work inside your own QuickBooks or Xero file.
- Pricing model
- Billed by the hour against an estimate.
- Typical 12-month cost
- $1,200–$6,000+/yr depending on hours and rate.
- What happens when you stop paying
- Work simply pauses; your file stays with you.
- Ramp-up time
- Fast to start, but pace depends on availability.
- Ongoing commitment
- Flexible, but no guaranteed continuity or coverage.
- Risk of surprise bills
- Highest. Hours can run over the estimate.
Cost ranges are illustrative and vary by provider, transaction volume, and scope. Use them to compare models, not as quotes. For an estimate of your own cleanup, try the cleanup cost calculator.
Which is right for you?
Find the scenario that sounds most like you. The honest recommendation might not be us, and that’s fine.
Project cleanup
“You’re two years behind, your bank balance doesn’t match QuickBooks, and your CPA is waiting.”
You need the mess fixed once, with the scope agreed up front and a finished file you keep, not a subscription that starts from a broken baseline.
See the cleanup serviceMonthly bookkeeping
“Your books are already clean and current, and you just want them maintained every month without thinking about it.”
When the baseline is solid and activity is steady, ongoing monthly service is the right fit. A common path is a cleanup first, then a handoff to a monthly bookkeeper.
Start with a clean baselineHourly bookkeeper, or coaching
“You’re a one-person operation with a handful of transactions a month and you mostly just need a second set of eyes.”
If your activity is light and simple, paying hourly (or learning to maintain it yourself) often beats any recurring plan. Coaching can make you self-sufficient.
Explore coaching
Clean it up once. Then choose what’s next.
These models aren’t mutually exclusive. The most common journey we see is a one-time project cleanup to fix and reconcile everything, followed by a handoff to a monthly bookkeeper, or to your own maintenance routine. A subscription service that inherits broken books just keeps paying to manage the mess. Starting from a clean, verified baseline is what makes ongoing bookkeeping actually work.
Because the cleanup happens inside your own QuickBooks or Xero file, you’re never locked in. We deliver clean books and set you up so whatever you pick next, monthly service or DIY, starts on solid ground.
You keep the file
Your QuickBooks or Xero, start to finish, with no proprietary platform.
No lock-in
One scoped engagement, billed hourly against a written estimate. Nothing to cancel, nothing to escape.
Know the number first
A clear price and basis in the written estimate, agreed before work starts.
Frequently asked questions.
Still weighing it up? Read what a cleanup actually costs or how to choose a bookkeeper. If your books are simply behind rather than wrong, see how catch-up bookkeeping differs from cleanup, and what falling behind costs.
Tell us where your books are today and we will say which model fits.
We will give you a straight answer, even if the honest recommendation isn’t a cleanup.
No obligation and no credit card.