Finance

Outsource Bookkeeping: How It Works and How to Start

Outsource Bookkeeping: How It Works and How to Start illustration
Quick answer

To outsource bookkeeping, hand off the routine tasks such as invoicing, reconciliation and expense tracking, share access to your software safely and agree a monthly close date. Keep approvals, tax decisions and your accountant relationship with you.

To outsource bookkeeping is to hand the routine record-keeping to a trained person, while you keep control of decisions. Done well, your books stay current, month end is calm and your accountant gets clean records. Here is how it works and how to start safely.

A simple bookkeeping hand-off
1Pick the tasks
2Share safe access
3Agree a close date
4Review each month

What you can outsource bookkeeping tasks for

  • Invoicing. Create, send and chase client invoices.
  • Reconciliation. Match and categorise bank transactions.
  • Expense tracking. Collect receipts and code them.
  • Payroll prep. Log hours and queue payments for your approval.
  • Monthly close. A checklist delivered on the same date each month.

What to keep in-house

Keep approvals, payment sign-off and tax decisions. Outsourced bookkeeping keeps records current. Advice on tax and compliance belongs with your accountant.

How to share access safely

  1. Create a separate login in your software.
  2. Give only the permissions needed.
  3. Never share your owner password.
  4. Remove access when the work ends.

How to start

Begin with one task, such as weekly reconciliation. Write the steps, name the categories you use and agree a monthly close date. Review the first two months closely, then add invoicing or expense tracking. A team lead at MyRemoteVA reviews the work, and AI helps with routine sorting while a person checks the result.

Compare this with hiring in our guide to how to hire a bookkeeper, or see the bookkeeping service.

Ready to outsource bookkeeping? See pricing or start for $1.

Frequently asked questions

What does it mean to outsource bookkeeping?

It means paying an outside person or team to keep your records current, such as invoices, reconciliations and expenses, in your own software.

What should I keep in-house when I outsource bookkeeping?

Keep approvals, payments sign-off, tax decisions and your relationship with your accountant.

How do I share access to my accounts safely?

Give a separate login with only the permissions needed, never your owner password, and remove access when the work ends.

Your numbers, not ours

What is doing this yourself costing you?

Doing it yourself: $2,165 a month of your time.

The same hours at our $12/hr pay-as-you-go rate: $520. Dedicated plans start at $5.62/hr.

Simple maths from the numbers you enter. It assumes a VA can take on those hours.

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About this guide

Written by the MyRemoteVA team. Search-trend figures come from Google Trends. Prices shown are our current plans. Last updated September 30, 2026. Questions or corrections? Contact us.

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Bookkeeping & Data Entry

A bookkeeping virtual assistant for invoicing, reconciliation, expense tracking and clean spreadsheets — so your books are never the thing you're scrambling to fix at tax time.

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