Good questions, honest answers.
The things people ask before they hire a bookkeeper — including the big one: how I’m different from a CPA.
Scope
A bookkeeper (me) keeps your day-to-day books clean, current, reconciled, and tax-ready — categorizing transactions, reconciling accounts, and producing monthly financial statements. A CPA files your tax returns and advises on tax strategy. You typically want both: when I hand your CPA clean books, their job is faster and their bill is smaller. I do not prepare or file taxes, and nothing here is tax advice.
Software
I’m a QuickBooks Online Advanced ProAdvisor and a Xero Certified Advisor, so I work in either — and can migrate you between them. I also connect the tools around them: Gusto for payroll, Bill.com for AP/AR, Stripe and Shopify for revenue, and Hubdoc/Dext for receipts.
Pricing
Monthly bookkeeping starts at $450/mo and scales with your transaction volume and number of accounts. Cleanup is project-based (from $90 per month of books), and software setup is a one-time fee from $600. You always get a clear, written quote after a quick review of your books — no surprise hourly invoices. Prices shown are illustrative for this template.
Security
I use bank-level encryption, multi-factor authentication, and read-only or limited access to your accounting software and bank feeds. Documents move through a secure portal — never email attachments. I keep a written data-handling policy and limit access to only what I need to do the work.
Working together
It’s easier than it sounds. I review your current books, identify any gaps, set up clean access, and reconcile a transition month so nothing falls through the cracks. Most clients are fully onboarded within two weeks, and you keep ownership of your own QuickBooks or Xero file the whole time.
No — Tidy Stack is fully remote and I work with small businesses across the US. Onboarding is a video call, documents go through the secure portal, and I reply to email within one business day. You never have to drive anywhere or print anything.
By the 10th of each month you get a closed, reconciled set of books plus a Profit & Loss, Balance Sheet, and a short plain-English recap of what the numbers say. On the Growth and Full-Service plans you also get a cash-flow summary and a review call. Everything is exportable for your CPA at year end.
Cleanup
Yes — this is one of my favorite things to do, and it’s always fixable. I start with a free diagnostic, scope the cleanup by how many months are behind, reconcile every account, fix categorizations, and set clean opening balances. Most cleanups land you fully current within two to four weeks, then roll into a smooth monthly rhythm.
Still have a question?
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