For a service business in Federal Way with 50 to 100 monthly transactions, outside bookkeeping runs $750 to $1,500 per month in 2026. That range assumes a single entity with one revenue stream and a reasonably clean QuickBooks file. Add employees or multiple entities into the mix and you are more likely in the $1,200 to $2,000 range.

If you are getting quotes below $500/month for full monthly bookkeeping with state filings included, it is worth asking what the quote excludes. B&O preparation and payroll reconciliation each add time, and firms that price at the floor often exclude one or both, or are pricing for a transaction volume that does not require much hands-on review.

Here is what actually goes into the number.

What does the price cover at $750/month?

At that level, a solid monthly package includes: bank and credit card reconciliation in QuickBooks Online, a categorized transaction register, monthly income statement and balance sheet, and WA state B&O return preparation.

The B&O piece matters. Washington does not have a state income tax on businesses, but it does tax gross receipts through the B&O system. Service businesses file under the "Service and Other Activities" classification at 1.5% of gross receipts, paid quarterly to the WA Department of Revenue. Federal Way does not add a city-level B&O tax on top of that, which is one advantage of being based here versus Tacoma or Kent, where city B&O kicks in above certain gross income thresholds.

What $750/month does not usually cover: payroll reconciliation, year-end 1099 and W-2 prep, tax planning, or advisory. If you have employees, adding payroll reconciliation to a base bookkeeping package adds meaningful cost on top; check the task list and pricing specifically before assuming it is in the base. A firm that bundles all of this at $750/month is either very efficient or scoping the work differently than it sounds.

What makes the number go up?

Transaction volume. At 50 transactions per month, a bookkeeper might spend two hours on your file. At 200 to 300, it is closer to six. Most firms tier pricing by transaction count, and the difference between tiers can run $200 to $400/month. If you run multiple bank accounts or have job-cost tracking across projects, expect to land in a higher tier.

WA payroll complexity. This is where national platforms and out-of-state bookkeepers consistently run into trouble. Washington has two requirements that require state-specific knowledge: L&I quarterly reporting, where your premium depends on your risk classification and total payroll hours by job type, and PFML (Paid Family and Medical Leave), where employer and employee shares are withheld and remitted separately. If your bookkeeper does not handle these correctly, you find out at audit time rather than during a routine quarterly check.

Catch-up work. If the previous bookkeeper left things in rough shape, or you are coming in from two years of DIY QuickBooks, month one costs more than month two. The first-month work is just different: the bookkeeper has to remap accounts and reconstruct whatever the prior system missed before the normal monthly rhythm can start. That is why most firms charge an onboarding fee of about twice the monthly rate, and why the cost drops back down in month two.

Multiple entities. A single LLC with straightforward operations is simpler than the same owner running a management company alongside it, or holding a property LLC. Each additional entity adds its own reconciliation, its own B&O filing, and intercompany journal entries. A rough market estimate is $300 to $500 per additional entity per month (illustrative; exact figure depends on activity level and the firm).

What keeps the cost lower?

The single most effective thing you can do is hand over a clean file. If your accounts are correctly mapped and business and personal expenses have always been separate, month-to-month bookkeeping is genuinely faster. Firms often price cleaner books lower because the job is more predictable.

Simple, consistent cash flow also helps. A management consultant with three retainer clients and a single business card is much easier to book than a general contractor taking varied deposits, equipment loans, sub-contractor payments, and draws. The more your monthly activity looks like a ledger rather than a reconstruction project, the lower your hourly time.

If you run payroll through ADP or Paychex and can hand your bookkeeper a clean monthly payroll summary and journal entry, you eliminate a significant chunk of the more complex WA payroll work. Many Federal Way service businesses structure it this way, particularly early on.

When it makes sense to handle it yourself

Under $500K in annual revenue with uncomplicated transactions, you probably have three to four hours of bookkeeping per month. QuickBooks Online's bank feed handles most of the categorization if you set up rules consistently. A quarterly call with a tax preparer covers your estimated B&O and federal payments. That setup works, and the cost savings are real.

It holds up as long as you reconcile every month and are not making decisions that depend on accurate mid-year financials. The moment you are trying to get a line of credit or compare this year's margins to last year's, you need something better than a QuickBooks file that has never been formally reconciled.

Hiring a second or third employee usually tips the math, because WA payroll requirements spike in complexity faster than most owners expect. So does trying to use your financials for a business decision that actually has stakes attached to it.

Who outside bookkeeping is probably not for

If you are under $500K in revenue and primarily want an annual tax return, a monthly accounting package is not the right fit. The cost-to-benefit math does not work in your favor at that stage, and a tax preparer who works with small businesses can handle the annual filing at a fraction of what monthly accounting costs.

Outside bookkeeping also adds little if your books are genuinely simple and you have someone internal who handles them competently. The value in a monthly accounting relationship is the financial visibility and the ongoing advisory work, not the data entry. If you already have that working and just want a tax return, a tax-only preparer is the honest answer.

Worth being direct about Caro & Associates' fit here: we work with Federal Way and South Sound service businesses generally at or above $500K in revenue that want ongoing accounting alongside tax planning. That is not the right answer for every business, and if you are not there yet, there is no benefit to forcing the match.

For service businesses comparing outsourced options to keeping it in-house, the broader accounting cost breakdown at How Much Does Monthly Accounting Cost for a Small Business? covers the same question outside the local framing.

What to ask a Federal Way bookkeeper before you sign

Before you compare prices, get answers to a few Washington-specific questions:

Do they handle B&O return preparation for your specific classification? Most service businesses file under "Service and Other Activities," but businesses with mixed revenue sometimes split across classifications. If the bookkeeper does not know the difference, you might underpay (audit risk) or overpay.

Are they familiar with L&I risk class assignments for your industry? If you have employees doing different types of work, an incorrect risk classification affects your quarterly premium and your payroll costs. This is a detail that out-of-state or purely online bookkeeping platforms miss regularly.

What is included in the base fee versus add-ons? Get the task list in writing before you commit. A price that looks competitive at $700/month but charges separately for B&O filings and payroll reconciliation can land you at $1,300 in practice once you add those back in.

Caro & Associates publishes its package pricing publicly at caroandassociates.com/pricing/. If you are a service business in Federal Way or the surrounding South Sound area and want to see what a full-service accounting relationship looks like versus what you are getting now, that is a reasonable first stop. The Federal Way accounting and bookkeeping services page covers how we work with local businesses specifically.

If you are not ready to talk and just want to understand the cost landscape, the articles above should answer most of what you need to know. Call us at (206) 497-0671 if you have a specific question.

Questions owners ask about this

What is included in a $750/month bookkeeping package in Federal Way?

At $750/month, a quality package typically covers monthly reconciliation in QuickBooks Online, categorized transactions, a monthly income statement and balance sheet, tax planning, WA state B&O return preparation, and year-end 1099. It usually does not include payroll reconciliation or W-2 prep. Check the specific task list and pricing for the firm you are evaluating, as add-on costs vary significantly.

Does Federal Way have a city B&O tax on top of the state B&O?

No. Federal Way does not levy a city-level Business and Occupation tax. You still file and pay WA state B&O to the Department of Revenue on a quarterly basis, but there is no separate city return. That is not true everywhere in King County: Tacoma businesses owe city B&O above $250,000 in gross income, and Kent has had a city B&O since 2013. If you work across city lines, it gets more complicated.

What does bookkeeping onboarding cost?

Most firms charge a one-time onboarding fee equal to about twice your monthly rate. On a $900/month package, expect to pay roughly $1,800 in the first month. That higher cost covers the time to remap your chart of accounts, reconcile prior months, and fix whatever the previous bookkeeper or your DIY file left behind. Month two should cost the standard monthly rate.

Can I just do my own bookkeeping and hire someone only for taxes?

Yes, and many Federal Way small businesses do this, especially under $500K in revenue. If your books are clean and reconciled monthly, your tax preparer can work from them at year-end without a lot of cleanup. The risk is that a messy or unreconciled file will cost you extra in tax prep fees, and you will not have reliable financial data to make decisions through the year. Once you have employees, the WA payroll complexity often tips the math toward outside help.

How do I know if my current bookkeeper is charging a fair price?

Look at what you are actually receiving: monthly reconciliation, categorized transactions, an income statement and balance sheet, WA B&O return preparation, and payroll reconciliation if you have employees. If you are paying $400/month and getting all of that, it is fair. If you are paying $400/month and getting a transaction dump once a year, you are paying for something that does not actually serve the business. Price alone does not tell you much without the task list.