Bookkeeping
Bookkeeper hourly rate: $24.36 median wage and the real cost per hour
What bookkeepers earn per hour from May 2025 BLS data, what an employer really pays per hour once benefits and payroll taxes are added (June 2026 BLS cost data), and what changes when you pay a contractor instead.
Prepared by Aldro Accounting · Updated · Sources checked
The quick answer
The median pay for bookkeeping, accounting and auditing clerks was $24.36 an hour, or $50,670 a year, in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. An employer pays more than the wage: in June 2026, BLS data put total compensation for private-industry office and administrative support workers at $36.73 per hour worked, of which $25.22 was wages and $11.51 benefits.
What bookkeepers earn per hour
The BLS reports pay for bookkeeping, accounting and auditing clerks as one occupation. The May 2025 median was $50,670 a year, or $24.36 an hour. Half of workers earned more and half less. The lowest 10% earned less than $36,000 a year and the highest 10% more than $74,550.
Pay varies by industry. These are the May 2025 medians in the industries that employ the most bookkeepers.
Scroll sideways to see all columns.
| Industry | Share of bookkeeping clerk jobs | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Construction | 8% | $54,890 |
| Professional, scientific and technical services | 14% | $51,880 |
| Wholesale trade | 7% | $50,660 |
| Healthcare and social assistance | 6% | $49,860 |
| Retail trade | 7% | $45,830 |
One limit to keep in mind: BLS wage data in the Occupational Outlook Handbook doesn't include self-employed workers. Freelance bookkeepers who set their own hourly rates aren't in these numbers.
How the hourly wage has moved
In May 2019, the BLS put the median hourly wage for the same occupation, code 43-3031, at $19.82. The 2019 hourly spread ran from $12.44 at the 10th percentile to $30.01 at the 90th.
By comparison, accountants and auditors, a job that typically needs a bachelor's degree, had a May 2025 median of $83,680 a year.
The BLS projects employment of bookkeeping, accounting and auditing clerks to decline 6% from 2025 to 2035, with about 144,100 openings a year. With more routine tasks automated, it expects these workers to take on a more analytical and advisory role.
What an employee bookkeeper costs per hour
The wage is only part of the cost. The BLS Employer Costs for Employee Compensation survey measures what employers pay per hour worked, including benefits. In June 2026, total compensation for all private-industry workers averaged $46.89 per hour worked: $32.82 in wages (70.0%) and $14.07 in benefits (30.0%).
Bookkeepers fall in office and administrative support occupations. For that group in private industry, June 2026 total compensation was $36.73 per hour worked, with wages of $25.22 (68.7%) and benefits of $11.51 (31.3%). Full-time office and administrative support workers cost $39.04 an hour and part-time workers $24.58.
Scroll sideways to see all columns.
| Component | Cost per hour | Share of total |
|---|---|---|
| Wages and salaries | $25.22 | 68.7% |
| Paid leave | $2.77 | 7.5% |
| Supplemental pay | $1.06 | 2.9% |
| Insurance | $4.05 | 11.0% |
| Retirement and savings | $1.05 | 2.9% |
| Legally required benefits | $2.58 | 7.0% |
| Total compensation | $36.73 | 100% |
Business size matters too. Establishments with 1 to 99 workers averaged $38.43 per hour worked across all occupations, against $56.95 at establishments with 100 or more.
Payroll taxes on a bookkeeper's wage
On top of wages, an employer pays payroll taxes. IRS Publication 926 gives the 2027 rates: Social Security tax is 6.2% each for the employee and the employer, on wages up to $192,300, and Medicare tax is 1.45% each with no wage limit, unchanged from 2026. Employers also withhold a 0.9% Additional Medicare Tax from an employee's wages above $200,000 in a calendar year.
Federal unemployment (FUTA) tax is 6.0% of FUTA wages, but a credit of up to 5.4% can bring the net rate to 0.6%. Wages over $7,000 a year per employee aren't subject to it.
Paying a contract bookkeeper instead
A bookkeeper paid as an independent contractor gets no benefits or payroll taxes from you, but you may owe an information return. For tax years beginning after 2025, the minimum threshold for reporting these payments rose from $600 to $2,000, adjusted for inflation starting in 2027.
Anyone with 10 or more information returns in total, counting Forms W-2, must file them electronically. There is no automatic extension for Forms W-2 or 1099-NEC. For returns due in 2027, the IRS penalty per late return or statement runs from $60 if up to 30 days late to $340 after August 1, and it charges separately for the return and for the recipient's statement.
Aldro sits outside the hourly model. Our team keeps the books for a flat $20 a month, covering unlimited bank and card accounts, monthly reconciliation and statements, and the flat yearly tax price covers everything tax.
Worked example
Say a business needs 10 hours of bookkeeping a month. At the May 2025 median wage of $24.36 an hour, the wages alone are 10 × $24.36 = $243.60. The employer's Social Security and Medicare share on that is 6.2% + 1.45% = 7.65%, or $243.60 × 0.0765 = $18.64. Using the BLS June 2026 cost for private-industry office and administrative support workers instead, $36.73 per hour worked including benefits, the same 10 hours cost 10 × $36.73 = $367.30 a month, or $4,407.60 a year. A part-time worker in that group averaged $24.58 an hour in total, so 10 hours would be $245.80.
Common questions
What is the hourly rate for a bookkeeper?
The BLS median for bookkeeping, accounting and auditing clerks was $24.36 an hour ($50,670 a year) in May 2025. The lowest 10% earned under $36,000 a year and the highest 10% over $74,550.
How much does an employee bookkeeper really cost per hour?
More than the wage. In June 2026, private-industry office and administrative support workers cost employers $36.73 per hour worked: $25.22 in wages and $11.51 in benefits. Full-time workers in the group cost $39.04 an hour.
Do BLS bookkeeper wages include freelancers?
No. The BLS says its Occupational Outlook Handbook wage data doesn't include self-employed workers.
What payroll taxes does an employer pay on a bookkeeper's wages?
For 2027, the employer pays 6.2% Social Security tax on wages up to $192,300 and 1.45% Medicare tax with no limit, plus FUTA tax on the first $7,000, which can net to 0.6% after the credit.
Do I file a 1099 for a contract bookkeeper?
For tax years beginning after 2025, the reporting threshold for these payments is $2,000, up from $600, and it is adjusted for inflation starting in 2027.
The cheapest way to get your business taxes done: $399 flat.
Business tax filing is $399 USD a year, and it covers everything tax for that year.
How it works
- Tell us about your business. A two-minute form. No payment is collected through it.
- Get your next steps by email. We’ll email you the next steps within one business day. After you sign up we’ll send you a secure upload link for your documents.
- We file it. Our team prepares and files your return. Add bookkeeping for $20 a month if you want it.
What's included
$399 a year covers everything tax for that tax year.
- Every business return for the year. All the federal and state or provincial business returns you need for the tax year: Schedule C, 1065, 1120-S, 1120 and their state returns in the US; T2, or T1 with T2125, in Canada.
- More than one state. Multi-state returns are included at the same price.
- Your personal return. The owner’s personal return (1040 or T1) is included when it’s needed for the business income.
- Quebec. Quebec returns (CO-17, TP-1 and TP-80) are included. Our Quebec pages are in French, and our team works with you in English.
- Extensions and reminders. Extensions (Form 7004 or 4868) and quarterly estimate reminders are included.
- Information returns. 1099-NEC, T4/T4A and T5018 slips are included in the tax price.
- City and excise returns. City and local business tax returns, and state excise returns such as Washington B&O, are included in the yearly price.
- Franchise tax reports. State franchise tax reports, such as the Texas franchise tax report, are included.
- Estimated tax and instalment amounts. We work out your quarterly estimated tax payments in the US, or your CRA instalments in Canada, and tell you what to pay and when.
- Unfiled past years. Each unfiled prior-year return is $399 per tax year, the same flat price.
- Bookkeeping at $20 a month. Unlimited bank and card accounts, monthly reconciliation and monthly statements.
Basic inventory tracking for online stores, such as Shopify, is included. Full cost-of-goods reconciliation is quoted separately. Payroll processing and sales-tax filing aren’t included in bookkeeping. Prices are in USD. Our team prepares and files your return.
Sources
- BLS: Occupational Outlook Handbook, Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks · checked October 31, 2026
- BLS: Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2019, 43-3031 · checked October 31, 2026
- BLS: Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, June 2026 · checked October 31, 2026
- BLS: The Economics Daily, June 2026 compensation costs · checked October 31, 2026
- IRS: Publication 926 (draft for 2027) · checked October 31, 2026
- IRS: Publication 1099, General Instructions for Certain Information Returns · checked October 31, 2026
- IRS: Information return penalties · checked October 31, 2026
This guide explains general rules from the sources listed. It isn’t tax advice for your situation.