If you’re thinking about starting a bookkeeping business from home, there are some startup costs you’ll need to consider. In this blog post, we’ll break down the different expenses you can expect, so you can plan accordingly.
The good news here is that bookkeeping startup costs are very low when it comes right down to it. additionally, while some things you will need right away, others you won’t have to get until you begin to find clients. At that point in the game, some of your costs will then be passed on to your clients.
So, what will you need to get your new bookkeeping business off the ground? How much is it going to cost you? Let’s take a look and see what we can come up with.
Bookkeeping Business Startup Costs
Let’s get right to it and see what kinds of costs are going to be involved in getting your new bookkeeping business off the ground.
- Business Cards – If you are going to start a business, business cards are a must. Vistaprint can easily handle this need for you and will cost you anywhere from $15 to $25, and that includes shipping.
- Office Supplies – We are simply talking about basic office supplies here. Chances are, you will already have most of these laying around your home or office already. Depending on what you already do have, let’s say anywhere from $0 to $75.
- Website Domain and Hosting – The first thing you are going to have to do is register a domain name. This is the name of your website (ex. bookkeepersparadise.com). This will cost about $15 to $40 a year depending on the name of your site but typically $15 to $20 is what you can expect. You are also going to need hosting. This is what keeps your site up and running. No need to get too technical here, all you really need to know is that you need it. For a month of hosting your site, you’re looking at $5 to $15 although you may be able to find cheaper. You may also have the option to pay for a full year at once which may save you a little more money as well.
- Insurance – You need to protect yourself and your business with insurance. In most cases, a down payment of a couple of months will get you going. This will run you some in the ballpark of $150- $200 to start with. Just like you don’t want to go without home insurance, insurance for your business is a must as well.
- Bookkeeping Software – You are going to need software to do all the number crunching for you. You can look for this to cost anywhere from $70 to $165. Here’s the cool part, this is the same software that will be used to work with your clients. That means that your clients will use it as well so you will end up being reimbursed for these expenses as your business continues to grow.
- Business License – You may or may not need a business license depending on which state you live in. Prices on a license will also vary and can be anywhere from $0 up to $200. This is for the initial licensing. Depending on the town, state, and country you live in you are looking at an additional $299- $734 on the high end of things. A little research on your part is going to be necessary to find out what kinds of licensing you will need depending on where you live.
- Setting Up Your LLC – LLC or, Limited Liability Company, is something that you are definitely going to want to research. This isn’t something that you have to have set up to you are first getting started, but as you start getting clients you will want to have. This can cost anywhere in the range of $350 to $600.
- Scanner – This is also something that you won’t need right away but having a scanner once you get going is probably going to be a good idea. Your phone can even be used in the beginning to scan documents but eventually, a real scanner is probably going to be preferred. A good scanner will run you around $150 to $350.
- Database Management System – This helps manage your business by sending emails and helping keep up with potential clients. Something like using Aweber is around $20 a month but this isn’t really required. You can use a simple spreadsheet and accomplish the same thing.
And Your Total Comes To…
Adding up everything, along with the few things that you can put off until you start landing clients, you are looking in the ballpark of $800 to $1,800 to get you completely up and running. The one thing that you have to keep in mind is that you don’t have to get everything right away. Simply get what you have to get and then upgrade later.
Don’t go out and buy something new until you NEED something new. Luckily, bookkeeping is one of those businesses that can be started on a shoestring budget.
As your business begins to grow, you will know what you need to upgrade. Until you get to that point, just go with what you absolutely need. Remember that this is your bookkeeping business, so treat it as such. There is no need to break the bank from the get-go.
Look At It This Way
According to the SBA (Small Business Administration), the average startup cost for a typical business is around $30,000! When talking about your new business as a bookkeeper, on the high end, you are looking at under $2,000! Also, keep in mind that some of those costs can be put off until you actually have paying clients.
When you think of it in this way you see how cheap it actually is to do. This is one of the reasons why bookkeeping is the most profitable business out there and has some of the lowest startup costs possible!
Bookkeeping can be a great way to start your own business. It is important to know what your startup costs will be and how you can best manage them. I hope this article has been helpful in giving you an idea of what to expect when you are first starting up.
Knowing what kinds of costs that you will have beforehand will keep you from going into sticker shock, so to speak. Luckily, these costs are very low! Especially considering that some of the things that you will need will not need to be purchased until you actually start getting clients.
Now that you are aware of what it costs to run a bookkeeping business, how do you go about learning how to actually do it? If learning how to become a bookkeeper and start your own business is something that sounds interesting to you then I may have the solution for how you can learn how to actually do it.
What I want you to do is to learn more about the #1 bookkeeping business course online. Here you will get a deep-dive look into the program and what it’s all about. You will also have the opportunity to evaluate yourself to see if a bookkeeping business is right for you.
Check out my full review of this amazing program now!
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out. I wish you the best of luck as you take the plunge into entrepreneurship!