Flat fee, per entry or per payslip? Pricing models for bookkeeping firms and how to show them on your website

Why prices belong on your website

People who want to outsource their bookkeeping don't search for “experienced bookkeeping firm”. They search for “bookkeeping cost per month”, “price per entry” or “payroll cost per employee”. These searches have a clear intent: the person wants to compare and then get in touch. A page that answers the question meets them at the right moment. A page that says “price on request” sends them on to the next result.

There is a second effect many owners underestimate: prices filter. Anyone who knows you have a minimum fee and expect receipts digitally won't enquire if a shoebox is their business model. That saves first meetings that would never have turned into a client. For many firms that are already at capacity, this is the more important reason. Where the price page fits into the overall site plan is covered in the guide to the website for bookkeeping firms.

The pricing models at a glance

In practice you will come across five basic models. None is better in itself; what matters is whether it suits your clients and the way you work.

Most firms end up with a combination: a price per entry or a package for ongoing bookkeeping, a price per payroll run for wages, an hourly rate for everything that can't be planned, and a monthly minimum fee underneath. On the website you show these building blocks separately so prospects can roughly work out their month themselves.

Flat fee or price per entry?

A flat fee is convenient for clients: they know what will be debited each month. For you it is risky as soon as a business grows or the quality of receipts drops. A flat fee therefore only works with a clear limit, such as “up to 150 entries a month”, and a rule for what happens above it. Without that limit, your most loyal client quickly becomes your least profitable one.

The price per entry is the model business owners search for most, and it is fair: more receipts, higher fee. To be understandable on the website, it needs three pieces of information.

• What an entry is: every line in the journal, including every bank transaction, or only receipts coded by hand? Charging less for automatically imported bank transactions is common and a good argument for working digitally.
• What is included: coding, bank reconciliation, open items, monthly reports? The more you list, the fewer questions you get.
• The floor: a minimum monthly fee, so a business with twelve receipts doesn't pay less than the time you spend on questions and reconciliation.

Packages bridge both worlds: “up to 50”, “up to 150” and “up to 300” entries at a fixed monthly price, with a price per entry above that. Prospects place themselves, and you keep control of the effort.

Payroll: price per employee and month

For payroll, the price per employee and month has become standard. Business owners search for “payroll cost per employee”; use exactly these terms. Watch the unit: in Germany, the monthly payslip is often colloquially called a “Lohnzettel”. In Austria, however, the Lohnzettel is the annual report (form L16), and the monthly payslip is called Lohn- or Gehaltsabrechnung. So write “per payroll run” or “per employee and month”, and the price is unambiguous in both countries.

If you offer payroll only, your price page can focus on it even more, for example with a worked example for a business with ten employees. How to build a dedicated website for a payroll bureau is covered in the guide to the website for payroll bureaus.

Calculating your hourly rate: how to do the maths

Every unit price is ultimately a hidden hourly rate: price per entry times entries per hour. That's why every price list starts with the question of what hourly rate you need. Many self-employed bookkeepers set it too low because they compare it with their former salary. That leaves out holidays, sickness, social insurance, pension, software, insurance and all the hours you can't bill.

For comparison: charging €40 an hour in the same calculation gives revenue of about €46,000. After €16,000 of operating costs, €30,000 is left for social insurance, pension and income tax, clearly less than in employment. Your own figures will look different; the method stays the same.

Now work back. If you manage an average of 60 entries an hour including coding and questions, an hourly rate of €73 means just over €1.20 per entry. If many bank transactions come in automatically and you manage 100 entries, about €0.73 is enough on paper. If a payroll run takes 15 minutes on average including changes, it comes to about €18. That's why digitalisation pays off twice for you: you can offer lower prices and still earn more.

How to show prices on your website

A good price page isn't a tariff sheet but a decision aid. It answers in this order: roughly what does it cost, what does it depend on, what's included, what isn't, and what happens next?

The sample site of our fictional bookkeeper in Cologne shows how this can look: a free introductory meeting, “booking ongoing transactions from €1.10 per entry, minimum €95 per month, coding included”, “ongoing payroll €19 per employee per month, mini-jobs €14, wage tax return included”, “setting up a chart of accounts €160 one-off” and an hourly rate for organising receipts. Below it the sentence: “All prices are net plus 19% VAT. Your tax adviser's fees for VAT returns, annual accounts and tax returns come on top.” You can find it among our example websites.

That last sentence matters in Germany. Under § 6 Abs. 1 Nr. 1 StBerG, bookkeepers may only set up charts of accounts, book ongoing transactions, run ongoing payroll and prepare wage tax returns. Under § 8 Abs. 4 StBerG, they may point to these powers and call themselves “Buchhalter:in” (bookkeeper). Your price list therefore uses exactly these terms. Saying openly that the VAT return and annual accounts are handled by the tax firm doesn't make you look smaller; it makes you look reliable. How to show your cooperation with a tax firm on the website is explained in the guide to partnering with tax advisers.

Give the price page a title that picks up the search terms, such as “Bookkeeping costs: prices per entry and per payroll run | Your firm, town”. Check how it looks in search results with the Google preview for title and description. More on search engine optimisation in the guide SEO for bookkeeping firms.

Net or gross: price information in Austria and Germany

Most clients of a bookkeeping firm are businesses and think in net amounts. Still, rules apply to prices on your website, and they differ between the two countries.

In Austria, the Preisauszeichnungsgesetz (PrAG, Price Marking Act) covers services offered to consumers under the Gewerbeordnung (Trade Regulation Act) (§ 1 Abs. 1 Z 2 PrAG). The bookkeeping professions, however, are regulated in the BiBuG, not the Gewerbeordnung. Whether the PrAG applies to you directly is therefore doubtful. Regardless, § 5 Abs. 2 ECG requires every website to make clear whether a price is gross or net. If you also address private individuals, it's best to give them gross prices as § 9 PrAG provides; that way you're on the safe side either way. What else applies to advertising is covered in the guide to advertising for bookkeepers in Austria.

In Germany, the Preisangabenverordnung (PAngV, Price Indication Regulation) only applies if you offer services to consumers or advertise prices to consumers (§ 1 Abs. 1, § 3 Abs. 1 PAngV). If your offer is aimed exclusively at businesses, say so clearly on the price page and give net prices with “plus 19% VAT”. If you also address private individuals, such as landlords or private households with a mini-job, state the final price including VAT for those services. For wording around your professional title, see the guide to advertising as a bookkeeper in Germany.

Payment terms and price adjustments

Two sentences belong on the price page that save a lot of trouble later. First: when and how payment is made, such as “billed monthly, paid by SEPA direct debit within 14 days”. Second: how prices are adjusted, such as once a year with notice or in line with an index. If you say this openly from the start, you don't have to renegotiate price increases every year.

And if an invoice does remain unpaid: stay friendly but firm. A factual payment reminder with invoice number, amount and a new deadline is enough in most cases.

Common pricing mistakes of bookkeeping firms

Checklist for your price page