There’s a quiet moment for a lot of small business owners – usually sometime after midnight, usually surrounded by half-finished spreadsheets – when the penny drops: “I cannot keep doing my own books.”
If that sounds a little too familiar, outsourced accounting is probably already on your radar. The trouble is, there isn’t just one model anymore. You’ve got offshore teams, slick software-plus-bookkeeper hybrids, classic virtual CPA firms, and everything in between.
Before picking a logo, it helps to be uncomfortably honest about what you’re really after. Is it just clean books and a tidy year-end tax package? Or do you quietly want a finance grown-up who’ll tell you that your margins are too thin and your hiring plan is too ambitious?
Most small businesses need a mix of three things
Different firms lean into different parts of that triangle.
Madras Accountancy sits on the “offshore partner” end of the spectrum. They support US and UK CPA firms and corporations with bookkeeping, payroll, sales tax, audit support, and fractional CFO services – all under one roof.
For a small business that works through a CPA, or a firm that wants to scale without burning out its in‑house staff, Madras can be the invisible engine. You still have your local advisor; Madras quietly handles the heavy lifting behind the scenes.
Because of the offshore model, cost per FTE is noticeably lower than hiring in the US or UK. Their own calculator content makes the math pretty blunt – in a good way, if you’re the one paying wages.
Bench Accounting is the one you see in ads: clean dashboards, simple pricing, and human bookkeepers paired with their own software.
If you’re a straightforward service business, Bench can be the difference between “I think we made money” and “here’s our P&L by month, neatly presented.” They specialise in producing monthly financials and a year-end package that your tax preparer can work with.
More complex setups – inventory-heavy, multi-entity, or highly customised accrual needs – can stretch the model. That’s where reviews start to mention limitations.
Pilot leans into the startup world: accrual accounting, SaaS and ecommerce, and a clear path up from bookkeeping into CFO services and tax.
Cost-wise, they’re not the cheapest. But if you’re a venture-backed or fast-growing company that lives in metrics, their accrual-first mindset and board-friendly reporting can be worth it.
inDinero offers accounting, tax, and back-office services for small and mid-sized businesses. They’ll tackle AP/AR, payroll, month-end close, and management reporting.
For very tiny businesses, they can feel like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut. But once you have staff, inventory, or multiple locations, the breadth of service starts to make more sense.
Ignite Spot wraps outsourced bookkeeping, tax, and CFO-style advisory into a single team. Ideal if you’re a US-based owner who wants someone to not only keep the books tidy but also ask awkward, important questions about pricing and spending.
They aren’t hyper-niched into one industry, which is both a strength and a weakness. Great if you want generalist experience; less ideal if you’re looking for very deep sector-specific benchmarking.
Bookkeeper360 builds on Xero or QuickBooks Online and layers in analytics and advisory. Think real-time dashboards, KPIs, and periodic strategy calls rather than once-a-year tax meetings.
For US small businesses that want to grow out of “just bookkeeping” into actual financial management, they offer a nice bridge without forcing you to hire a full controller.
Merritt Bookkeeping is the no-frills option on this list: flat monthly fees, straightforward scope, and a clear focus on very small service businesses.
If you mainly need clean books for tax time and basic reporting, Merritt can be a surprisingly stress-free option. Just don’t expect deep strategic advice or CFO-style guidance – that’s not what they’re selling.
1-800Accountant offers virtual bookkeeping, tax, entity formation and payroll support across the US. Think call-centre accessibility paired with access to CPAs.
For some owners, that large-scale model feels reassuring. For others, it can feel a bit impersonal – you’re one of many, and experiences vary depending on which professional you’re assigned.
So, where does all of this leave you? A rough rule of thumb:
And if you’re still torn, here’s a simple sanity check: which provider makes you feel like you’ll sleep better at month-end, without dreading the invoice? Go with that one. Life’s too short to argue with your general ledger every quarter.
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A straight-talking overview of five small business tax prep options in 2025, including Madras Accountancy, TurboTax, H&R Block, TaxSlayer, and Bench’s books-plus-tax model.
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An on-the-ground guide to the UK’s fractional CFO ecosystem – London and beyond – including The CFO Centre, fin-house, FD Capital, BKL, BSmart, and how Madras Accountancy fits into cross-border and hybrid models.
