How much should you spend on your small business accounting needs?

As a small business owner trying to set a budget for your accounting needs, you might feel confused about how much you should spend.

How much do accountants cost? How much do accountants charge for tax returns? What are the average accountant fees for small businesses? These questions hang over your head all day.

If you’re looking for small business guides to determine the ideal accounting budget, this blog post will help you out. Take a squiz.

What are accounting costs?

Two types of accounting costs exist:

  • Accounting overhead costs
  • Accounting fees/salaries

Accounting overhead costs are basically the costs of maintaining your accountants. They include expenses such as electricity, equipment, utilities, insurance, and other expenses. These are costs that you will need to cover for each accountant you hire.

Accounting fees/salaries are the direct compensation that you pay for your accountants’ services.

Different factors influence these types of costs, determining how much you spend on accounting.

What factors affect your accounting costs?

The cost of accounting for your business can vary based on different factors. These factors include the complexity of operations, expertise needed, services provided, location, and timing.

The following factors cause your accounting costs to be higher:

  • More complex business operations
  • Higher level of required expertise
  • Bigger scope of services offered
  • If you’re outsourcing, being far away from the city costs you more
  • If you’re outsourcing too close to important dates like audits, taxes, and AGMs, the costs will be higher.

The following factors cause your accounting costs to be lower:

  • Less complex business operations
  • Lower level of required expertise
  • Smaller scope of services offered
  • If you’re outsourcing, being inside or close to the city costs you less
  • If you’re outsourcing with no audits, taxes, and AGMs around the corner, the costs will be lower.

How much should you spend on your small business accounting needs?

Study the above factors and decide whether you will have to spend a major part of your revenue on accounting costs.

If your accounting tasks are quite simplistic and the workload is low, then your budget should be on the less costly side.

If your accountant efficiently handles complex tasks, it’s reasonable that your accounting costs may be higher.
A top-notch service requires the latest technology, equipment, and skilled staff, which can be costly.

But make sure that your accounting costs are not too dear. A good accountant is an efficient one so try to find the right balance between service quality and price.

How much do accountants charge?

Depending on your requirements, accountant charges for a small business in NZ ranges between $200 – $2000 per month. For an annual audit of your business it would typically cost between $2000 – $20,000, depending on your requirements.

Anything above the upper limits of these price ranges is too costly.

How much do accountants charge for tax returns?

How much do tax accountants charge? If you’re eager to get your taxes done and dusted, you might often find yourself wondering this. In NZ, doing taxes requires a specialised and meticulous skill set.
So how much do accountants cost for taxes? The typical charges of an NZ tax accountant fall somewhere between $40 – $140 NZD per month, depending on your requirements.

We’ve got you – High quality services for affordable small business accountant fees

Accounting doesn’t generate profits for your business. As a small business owner, it’s not feasible for you to allocate a large portion of your income for it.

Outsourcing your accounting tasks to a virtual accountant can help you avoid the expensive commitments of full-time employees. These commitments include overhead expenses, insurance, and paid time off. This is just one of the many reasons why you should consider outsourcing your accounting tasks. Drop your email in the chat and we’ll send you our FREE Ebook that outlines many other reasons.

Our packages start at $60 NZD per month and include a variety of accounting services provided by Chartered Accountants.

We are proud members of the NZ Payroll Practitioners Association (NZPPA) and the New Zealand Qualified Bookkeepers Association (NZQBA). Interested to work with us? Drop a kia ora in the chat and we’ll get in touch.

Talk to us about how we can support you and your business.

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