The Difference Between “Bookkeeper” & “Accountant” Small Business Accounting

A bookkeeping course can teach you the basic knowledge you’ll need to prepare financial reports, organize data using tools like Microsoft Excel, or understand how to balance books. Two of the most common are single-entry bookkeeping and double-entry bookkeeping. It may take some background research to find a suitable bookkeeper because, unlike accountants, they are not required to hold a professional certification. A strong endorsement from a trusted colleague or years of experience are important factors when hiring a bookkeeper. Your business’s accounting needs might not require the in-depth expertise of a hired professional. You might also be watching your company’s list of expenses and wondering where to reduce spending.

Their focus is on accurate record keeping and summarizing data, and less focused on interpreting the data and analytics. If you’re interested in becoming a QuickBooks Live bookkeeper, Intuit can provide you with the tools necessary to learn bookkeeping and accounting skills and get certified. Get started by signing up for the Intuit Bookkeeping Certification program today.

What is bookkeeping?

Bookkeeping focuses on recording and organizing financial data, including tasks such as invoicing, billing, payroll and reconciling transactions. Accounting is the interpretation and presentation of that financial data, including aspects such as tax returns, auditing and analyzing performance. Both bookkeepers and accountants need to be comfortable working with numbers all day. Bookkeepers especially should be able to spot issues with daily expenses and make sure all the data points are tracked correctly. Accountants take the information that your bookkeeper compiles and use it, along with their broad knowledge of financial topics, to give you advice on your business’s finances.

Yet as mentioned earlier, they serve the business in different stages of the financial process. Ultimately, what strengthens your credentials are sufficient experience and a good track record, either in bookkeeping or accounting. In these documents, transactions are recorded as a single entry rather than two separate entries.

When Should You Seek Financial Support?

The NACPB offers a certified bookkeeping professional (CPB) designation, and AIPB confers a certified bookkeeper (CB) license. As an accountant, you must pay attention to figures and financial details, but it is more essential to possess sharp logic skills and big-picture problem-solving abilities. While bookkeepers make sure the small pieces fit correctly into place, accountants use those small pieces to draw much more significant and broader conclusions about a company’s finances. With bookkeepers, there are a lot of minutiae involved, and keen attention to detail is paramount.

• Your bookkeeper may help you generate the invoice, collect a payment, enter the transaction into the general ledger, and document the paid invoice.
• If you’re unsure, ask your prospective bookkeeper for advice about how often they think they would need to work to get your business’ financials in shape.
• If you’re unfamiliar with local and federal tax codes, doing your own bookkeeping may prove challenging.
• While bookkeepers make sure the small pieces fit correctly into place, accountants use those small pieces to draw much more significant and broader conclusions about a company’s finances.

A Bookkeeper is responsible for recording and maintaining a business’ financial transactions, such as purchases, expenses, sales revenue, invoices, and payments. They will record financial data into general ledgers, which are used to produce the balance sheet and income statement. Take routine bookkeeping off your never-ending to-do list with the help of a certified professional. A QuickBooks Live bookkeeper can help ensure that your business’s books close every month, and you’re primed for tax season. Our expert CPAs and QuickBooks ProAdvisors average 15 years of experience working with small businesses across various industries.

Accounting

The BLS notes that job growth for accountants should track fairly closely with the broader economy. However, bookkeepers will face pressure from automation and technology that will reduce the demand for such workers. You can become a bookkeeper right out of high school if you prove you are good with numbers and have strong attention to detail.

Bookkeepers don’t need a special certification, but a good bookkeeper is important for an accountant to have accurate financial records. Modern accounting software is the repository of all financial transactions for your company and can generate requisite reports in real-time. So even if you have accounting software, odds are, you still need a bookkeeper to manage the software, enter data, file reports, identify errors and keep everything current. Both bookkeepers and accountants play pivotal roles in businesses and for individuals.

Double-entry bookkeeping

Generally, bookkeepers focus on administrative tasks, such as completing payroll and recording incoming and outgoing finances. Accountants help businesses understand the bigger picture of their financial situation. Bookkeeping is a transactional and administrative role that handles the day-to-day tasks of recording financial transactions, including purchases, receipts, sales and payments. Accounting is more subjective, providing business owners with financial insights based on information gleaned from their bookkeeping data. A bookkeeper is responsible for recording and maintaining a company’s daily financial transactions.

In fact, many small business owners perform their own bookkeeping tasks using software like GoDaddy Online Bookkeeping. However, as a business grows, it is often more time- and cost-efficient to hire a bookkeeper (either as an employee or contractor) to handle bookkeeping tasks. People often confuse bookkeepers and accountants—and with good reason. While there zoho books review are certain similarities and overlaps between the two, there are distinctions that set these two roles apart. Bookkeepers don’t necessarily need higher education in order to work in their field while accountants can be more specialized in their training. Because bookkeepers tend to work for smaller companies, they may not be paid as much as accountants.

The differences between a bookkeeper and an accountant

Bookkeeping is a great starting point if you are interested in the field but not fully committed and want to test the waters. You may also be an ideal bookkeeping candidate if you want a good job with a respectable wage and decent security but may not be looking for a long-term career. Bookkeeping offers much lower barriers to entry, and the competition you face in the job search is less fierce. After completing your education, you can seek an internship and get on-the-job training to become a bookkeeper.

” You could also list their primary job duties and recognize the benefits of bookkeeping. If you’re thinking about hiring a bookkeeper or want to improve your business’s bookkeeping operations, consider your bookkeeping options. Therefore, there are often opportunities opening up for in-house bookkeepers, remote bookkeepers, or freelance bookkeepers.

So, generally, an accountant’s role requires more education than a high school diploma. Accountants may have a bachelor’s degree in finance and training in bookkeeping roles. Of course, education depends on the individual or bookkeeping service you hire.

This is one of the reasons why pursuing a career in accounting is a bit more challenging. Our partners cannot pay us to guarantee favorable reviews of their products or services.

Each bookkeeping professional has their own expertise, just like each business has unique financial circumstances and bookkeeping needs. Bookkeeping plays a vital role in your business operations, but how much do you know about the profession that makes mathematical magic? Let’s explore what bookkeepers do, examine some of the benefits of bookkeeping, and explore your options for using a bookkeeper.

As the terms “bookkeeper” and “accountant” are often used interchangeably by the general public, business owners can understandably become confused about which one they actually need. When it comes to selecting a bookkeeping style, business owners have several options. Learn how QuickBooks Live Bookkeeping can help you streamline your bookkeeping and free up time spent on finances. At this point, you could confidently answer, “What does a bookkeeper do?