How Much Should Bookkeeping Cost in Ireland?

For a low-volume Irish business, publicly advertised bookkeeping prices can begin below €200 per month. A small company needing regular reconciliations, VAT support or payroll may pay several hundred euro per month, while high-volume or complex businesses can pay €1,000 or more. There is no reliable official national average: the right price depends on the work included, transaction volume, frequency and condition of your records.

That broad range is not especially helpful until you compare the same service with the same service. A €150 quote for basic transaction processing is not necessarily cheaper than a €500 quote that also covers VAT returns, payroll, debtor reporting and monthly management information.

Current Irish bookkeeping price examples

The figures below are examples published by individual Irish providers, not an official price index or a recommendation of any firm. Prices and inclusions can change, and some providers quote exclusive of VAT.

The variation is the central point. A headline price does not tell you whether the provider will merely record transactions or operate a larger part of your finance function. Give every provider the same information and request an itemised scope.

What does a bookkeeping fee usually cover?

Bookkeeping is the regular recording and organisation of a business’s financial transactions. Depending on the engagement, it may include:

• posting sales, purchases, receipts and payments;
• reconciling bank, credit-card and payment-processor accounts;
• maintaining sales and purchase ledgers;
• tracking money owed by customers and due to suppliers;
• processing expenses and preparing VAT information;
• processing payroll and producing regular reports; and
• preparing clean records for the year-end accountant.

Do not assume every item is included. VAT filing, payroll, credit control, management accounts, software subscriptions, year-end accounts and tax returns may be included, sold as add-ons or handled by someone else.

The seven factors that most affect your quote

1. Transaction volume

The number of transactions is usually more relevant than turnover alone. A consultancy issuing ten invoices a month may have higher revenue but less bookkeeping work than a shop processing hundreds of daily sales.

2. Accounts and payment systems

Each bank account, card, merchant account and payment platform normally needs reconciliation. Stripe, PayPal, Revolut and online marketplaces can add work, particularly where fees, refunds, currencies or payout batches must be separated.

3. VAT, payroll and RCT

A business requiring VAT work, payroll processing or Relevant Contracts Tax support has a different scope from one needing only reconciled books. Confirm who prepares, reviews, approves and files each submission.

4. Quality of existing records

Clean digital records cost less to process than incomplete ones. Missing invoices, mixed personal spending, unreconciled balances and several months of backlog can create a separate clean-up project. Ask for this work to be priced separately.

5. Frequency and speed

Quarterly bookkeeping may cost less than weekly work but produces less timely information. A business managing cash tightly or paying many suppliers may need weekly attention; a low-volume consultancy may be adequately served monthly.

6. Reporting and finance support

A basic software report is not the same as management accounts reviewed with an accountant. Forecasting, departmental reporting, budgets, debtor follow-up and finance meetings add value and work.

7. Business complexity

Stock, cash takings, multiple locations, projects, foreign currencies and intercompany transactions increase complexity. Retail, construction and hospitality may therefore require more work than a straightforward professional-services business.

A practical way to estimate the service you need

Before requesting a quote, gather your approximate monthly transaction and invoice numbers, accounts and payment platforms, employee count, VAT or RCT status, software used, state of your records and reporting needs.

Hourly rate or fixed monthly fee?

An hourly rate can suit a defined clean-up, short project or occasional support, but it leaves the final cost uncertain. A fixed monthly fee provides predictability, although “fixed” rarely means unlimited. Check the transaction, employee and account assumptions and what happens if you exceed them.

For recurring work, ask for a fixed fee with clear inclusions and exclusions. For catch-up work, a capped project fee may offer more certainty than an open-ended hourly arrangement.

Why the lowest quote may not be cheapest

Imagine one quote at €180 for transaction entry and one bank reconciliation, and another at €420 covering three reconciliations, VAT preparation, payroll for five employees, debtor and creditor reports and a review call. The first is cheaper only if you do not need the additional work—or can obtain it elsewhere for less than the difference.

These figures are illustrative, not market quotations. List every required task, assign it to a responsible person and calculate the total annual cost, including extras and VAT.

Nine questions to ask before accepting a quote

1. Exactly which tasks and filings are included?
2. Is the price inclusive or exclusive of VAT?
3. What transaction, account and employee limits apply?
4. Are software subscriptions included?
5. How often will the books be updated and reconciled?
6. Who does and reviews the work, and who is your contact?
7. How are VAT, payroll and other submissions approved?
8. What triggers an extra charge or fee review?
9. What happens to records and software access if you leave?

Red flags in a very cheap quote

A low price is not automatically a problem. It may reflect efficient software or a genuinely simple business. Investigate further if the provider quotes without asking about volume, the scope is vague, review arrangements are unclear, there is no process for missing documents, software ownership is unexplained or extra charges are undefined.

Outsourcing does not transfer all responsibility

Revenue says a business must keep records used to calculate tax and retain original documents for six years. Although an agent or accountant may hold them, the business owner remains responsible for record keeping.

For companies, the CRO explains that adequate accounting records must correctly record and explain transactions and allow the company’s financial position and profit or loss to be determined with reasonable accuracy. Agree how documents will be collected, reviewed, stored and retrieved.

So, how much should your business pay?

Pay for the service your business actually needs, not for an unexplained package label. Public Irish examples show that basic or low-volume support may start below €200 per month, while broader recurring services run into several hundred euro and complex finance-function support can exceed €1,000.

Your next step is to prepare one accurate scope and obtain itemised quotations against it. Compare total annual cost, frequency, responsibilities, limits and exclusions—not just the monthly number.

Frequently asked questions