Home and car servicesEvenings and weekendsA laptop and bookkeeping skills
Start a bookkeeping business
To start a bookkeeping business, make sure your skills match what clients need, check whether your country requires registration or supervision for bookkeepers, and choose a type of client to serve, such as trades or cafés. Then give each client one place to send receipts and see what you need from them.
At a glance
- You start with
- A laptop and bookkeeping skills
- Time
- Evenings and weekends
- Where you work
- From home, online with clients
- Who pays
- Sole traders and small businesses without a finance person
- Check first
- Registration or anti-money-laundering supervision rules, professional indemnity insurance
How to start a bookkeeping business
- 1
Check the rules for bookkeepers
Some countries require registration or supervision for anyone handling clients’ books.
- 2
Choose one kind of client
Trades, cafés or online shops each have similar books, which makes you faster and easier to recommend.
- 3
Offer a monthly package
A fixed monthly service is easier to sell and plan than hourly work.
- 4
Set up how clients send documents
One place for receipts and statements saves chasing emails.
- 5
Ask accountants for referrals
Accountants often want clients whose books arrive in order.
The app that runs it
A client portal for documents, requests and monthly status. Fabricate builds it from the words below; change any of them first.
Build free. No card needed.
Already run one? See what Fabricate builds for businesses like yours
Similar ideas
- Kids and learning
Tutoring
Start with: a subject you know wellOne subject you know well, taught online or at the kitchen table.
800a month search “how to start a tutoring business”
See the idea - Parties and events
Event planning
Start with: a phone and good organisationBirthdays, small weddings and work parties, planned end to end.
600a month search “how to start an event planning business”
See the idea - Home and car services
House cleaning
Start with: a car and suppliesRegular cleans for busy homes nearby, booked online by the visit.
5,000a month search “how to start a cleaning business”
See the idea
Questions about starting a bookkeeping business
- Do I need to be an accountant to do bookkeeping?
- Usually not, but some countries require bookkeepers to register or be supervised for money laundering rules. Check what applies where you live.
- Can I run a bookkeeping business from home?
- Yes, most bookkeepers work from home and online with their clients.
Or build the app for your own idea
60 credits a month, free, with 1 app online at a time.
Build free. No card needed.