Running a business means you’re always looking at your incoming and outgoing costs. Some things you can afford to splash on, some you might be wondering whether you can save a few pennies.

When it comes to accounting or bookkeeping, this is often seen as a necessary cost, and one that can be relatively costly. Many solopreneurs or sole traders even consider cost savings by doing their own accounting.

But is accounting an expensive service, considering the service you’re getting? And, how much does an accountant cost in the UK?

Lets first of all look at the basics.

What does an accountant do?

A professional accountant handles the legal financial requirements of a business. This can include preparing your accounts for tax returns, reconciling bank account transactions, processing payroll and even managing relatively complex financial planning.

For most professionals, an accountant prepares and submits accounts for tax to the relevant department. In the UK, of course, this is HMRC. This will include either corporation tax, also known as end of year accounts, or self-assessment tax returns.

For businesses registered for VAT, they can also prepare and submit the VAT tax returns. And, in the case of any problems, an accountant can also chase up HMRC on behalf of the business owner.

An accountant may also be on hand to answer queries around business finance, to help with things such as preparing to apply for funding (in the case of business expansion) or even winding down a business when it ceases trading.

Do I need to hire an accountant?

For most business owners or sole traders, an accountant takes the burden and hassle associated with balancing their books and provides a done for you service. This means that the business owner doesn’t need to spend time going through forms on the HMRC website, or doing fiddly financial transactions.

And most business owners would agree that this is money well spent.

For the sake of an affordable monthly fee, the business will remain legally compliant in its tax requirements. They also handle all the complex requirements and save you having to learn accounting jargon.

The alternative, which you are perfectly within your rights to follow, is to do your own accounts.

But ask any business owner about the hassles of DIY accounting, and you will soon see why hiring an accountant makes sense. Not just from the angle of cost, but from the time saved (not to mention tears and headaches).

How much does an accountant cost?

The cost of an accountant in the UK varies depending on the services needed or transactions per month. But the average figure for an accountant in the UK is between £60 to £250 per month.

You can estimate a monthly cost at around £140 per month for a small firm with a team of accountants handling a small to medium sized business.

For a sole trader handling a handful of regular clients with minimal transactions or bank reconciliations, you could expect to pay under £100 per month.

When paying on an hourly basis, the price can be as low as £25 per hour, up to around £150 per hour for more complex tasks.

When it comes to one-off tasks such as a tax return, the price will be between £150 to £250.

The best thing is to discuss your specific requirements with an accountant and they should give you a bespoke price, based on your unique needs.

Here at Henderson and Co Accountants, we pride ourselves on offering a top quality accounting service for a fair price. And we believe that small business owners need all the help they can get in the current economic environment.

So if you’re looking for an accountant for a reasonable price, get in touch for a no obligation chat.

We are a small independent accountants based in York, with offices in Northern Ireland.