Pricing
Monthly accounting and business tax runs $800–$6,000 a month, depending on your package. Quality of earnings (QoE) reports are a fixed fee based on deal size: about $15,000 for deals under $5MM, $18,000–$25,000 for $5MM to $15MM deals or when an SBA lender requires the QoE, and from $25,000 for deals over $15MM and sell-side QoEs.
Licensed CPA firm 350+ QoE reviews completed Fixed-fee QoEs Business tax return in every monthly package
Pricing estimator
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Typical ranges for our two main services. Every engagement is quoted in writing before we start, and every QoE includes a proof of cash and net working capital analysis with a peg.
| Service | Typical price | Billing | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly accounting: Starter | $800–$1,500/mo | Monthly | Simple, cash-basis businesses |
| Monthly accounting: Accelerate | $1,500–$3,500/mo | Monthly | Growing businesses that need accrual books and weekly bookkeeping |
| Monthly accounting: Launch | $3,000–$6,000/mo | Monthly | Owners who want forecasting, budgets and monthly advisory |
| Onboarding | 1–2× your monthly rate | One time | Every new monthly client |
| QoE, deals under $5MM | About $15,000 | Fixed fee | Purchase price under $5MM |
| QoE, $5MM to $15MM deals | $18,000–$25,000 | Fixed fee | Purchase price of $5MM to $15MM, and any deal where an SBA lender requires the QoE |
| QoE, deals over $15MM | From $25,000 | Fixed fee | Any buyer on a deal over $15MM |
| Sell-side QoE | From $25,000 | Fixed fee | Owners preparing to sell |
Monthly accounting, payroll & tax
Bookkeeping, 1099s, tax planning, your business tax return and the owners’ individual tax returns in one monthly fee, with payroll through Gusto as an optional add-on. Your package sets what’s included, and where you land depends on transaction volume, entities and payroll. If your volume goes past a package’s top price, your fee moves into a higher package’s price range, and your services stay the same unless you choose to upgrade.
Typical monthly range
$800–$1,500
The basics covered
Typical monthly range
$1,500–$3,500
Fuel your growth
Typical monthly range
$3,000–$6,000
Fractional-CFO-level insight
| What’s included | Starter | Accelerate | Launch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Accounting | |||
| Monthly accounting | Cash basis | Full accrual | Full accrual |
| Weekly bookkeeping adjustments | – | ✓ | ✓ |
| Weekly accounts payable | – | ✓ | ✓ |
| Receipt management | – | ✓ | ✓ |
| Custom management reporting | – | ✓ | ✓ |
| QuickBooks support | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Payroll & tax | |||
| Payroll through Gusto | Optional add-on | Optional add-on | Optional add-on |
| 1099 filing | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Business tax return | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Tax planning | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Owners’ individual tax returns | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Advisory | |||
| Advisory calls | Quarterly | Quarterly | Monthly |
| Weekly cash forecasting | – | – | ✓ |
| Financial dashboard | – | – | ✓ |
| Annual budget | – | – | ✓ |
| In-depth financial analysis | – | – | ✓ |
Every business is different. These are the things that move your monthly price up or down.
No surprises
Here’s everything else that can be part of your monthly engagement, quoted in writing before we start.
1–2× your monthly rate
Reviewing your existing books, connecting QuickBooks Online (and Gusto, if you add payroll), and cleaning up your chart of accounts so monthly work starts from a clean base.
One-time
Included
Your business return and the owners’ individual tax returns are built from books we’ve kept all year, and tax planning is part of the package, so there’s no separate year-end bill.
In every package
Monthly rate × months behind
If your books are behind, we bring them current first. Example: $2,500 a month and four months behind is $10,000.
Only if needed
Optional add-on
Payroll through Gusto is available only to monthly accounting clients and is quoted with your package. 1099 filing is included in every package.
Monthly clients only
Year one vs. three years: an example
Year one costs more because onboarding happens once. An example Accelerate client at $2,500 a month:
| Example: $2,500/month | Year 1 | Years 1–3 total |
|---|---|---|
| Onboarding (1–2× monthly, once) | $2,500–$5,000 | $2,500–$5,000 |
| Monthly fee | $30,000 | $90,000 |
| Total | $32,500–$35,000 | $92,500–$95,000 |
$2,500 is a worked example from the middle of the Accelerate range, not an average. Compare three-year totals, not first monthly quotes, when you compare firms.
Quality of earnings (QoE)
A QoE from Midwest CPA is a fixed fee, quoted in writing before we start. Fees are set by deal size: about $15,000 for deals under $5MM, $18,000–$25,000 for $5MM to $15MM deals or when an SBA lender requires the QoE, and from $25,000 for deals over $15MM and sell-side work. Extra complexity is quoted by scope.
Typical fixed fee
About $15,000
Purchase price under $5MM
Typical fixed fee
$18,000–$25,000
Perfect for independent sponsors
Typical fixed fee
From $25,000
Any buyer on a deal over $15MM
Typical fixed fee
From $25,000
Owners preparing to sell
Every QoE includes a databook, a proof of cash and net working capital analysis with a working capital target (peg). A presentation slide deck and investor or credit-committee deliverables are add-ons, quoted by scope. You get the scope and the fixed fee in writing before any work starts. How our QoE works →
Real deals we’ve worked on, shown at what each would cost under today’s pricing (not necessarily what the client paid). Every fee includes a proof of cash and net working capital analysis with a peg. Deal sizes over $30MM are rounded.
| Deal size | Side | Client | Industry | Fixed fee today |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2MM | Buy-side | Self-funded searcher | Professional services | $15,000 |
| $4.5MM | Buy-side | Self-funded searcher | HVAC | $16,000 ($18,000–$25,000 if the SBA lender requires the QoE) |
| $12MM | Buy-side | Independent sponsor | Marketing company | $18,000–$25,000, plus any investor deliverables (quoted by scope) |
| $30MM+ | Buy-side | Strategic acquirer | Multi-location lumber business | $36,000 |
| $50MM+ | Sell-side | Business owner | Manufacturing | $40,000 |
Scope moves the fee more than deal size: the $50MM+ sale costs $4,000 more than the $30MM+ acquisition.
Grow into it
Not everyone needs everything on day one. These are quoted by scope, in writing, before we start.
Quoted by scope
Included in onboarding for monthly clients; standalone setups quoted by scope.
Quoted by scope
Our Launch package covers monthly advisory, cash forecasting and budgets. Deeper CFO projects are quoted by scope.
Quoted by scope
Diligence and deal support beyond a QoE, scoped to the deal.
Quoted by scope
Extra entities or locations, rush timing, reliance letters, investor or credit-committee deliverables and a presentation slide deck. A databook, proof of cash and net working capital analysis with a peg are already included in every QoE.
We sit in between on purpose: CPA-led monthly accounting and tax, and fixed-fee QoEs done by experienced people.
Do it yourself, hire a bookkeeper, or hire a CPA firm?
One bank account, few transactions, no employees, and a CPA at tax time.
Transactions pile up, but taxes are simple and no one needs accrual financials. Budget a separate tax preparer.
You run payroll, track jobs or inventory, have lender reporting, or want books and taxes handled by one team.
You’re making decisions on cash, hiring, pricing or an acquisition and want forecasts, a budget and a monthly call.
Under about $500K in revenue with simple books? You may not need a CPA firm yet, and we’ll tell you so.
Straight answers to the questions we hear most.
At Midwest CPA, monthly accounting runs $800 to $6,000 a month and includes bookkeeping, 1099 filing, tax planning, your business tax return and the owners’ individual tax returns. Payroll through Gusto is an optional add-on. Simple cash-basis businesses fall in our Starter package ($800–$1,500). Businesses that need accrual books and weekly bookkeeping fall in Accelerate ($1,500–$3,500). Owners who want cash forecasting, budgets and monthly advisory calls fall in Launch ($3,000–$6,000). Your package sets what’s included, and where you land depends on transaction volume, entities and payroll. If your volume goes past a package’s top price, your fee moves into a higher package’s price range, and your services stay the same unless you choose to upgrade.
At Midwest CPA, QoE pricing is based on deal size. A QoE costs about $15,000 for deals under $5 million and $18,000 to $25,000 for deals of $5 million to $15 million, or for any deal where an SBA lender requires the QoE. Deals over $15 million and sell-side QoEs start at $25,000. Every QoE is a fixed fee, quoted in writing before we start. Every QoE includes a databook, a proof of cash and net working capital analysis with a working capital target (peg).
Yes. Your business tax return, tax planning and the owners’ individual tax returns are included in every package: Starter, Accelerate and Launch. Because the same team keeps your books all year, the return is built from books that are already reconciled, so there’s no separate year-end bill for it.
You get a monthly quote before we start, based on the package you choose and your volume: transactions, entities and payroll. The package sets your services; your volume sets the price. One-time costs, onboarding and any catch-up work, are quoted up front too.
There’s a one-time onboarding fee equal to 1–2 times your monthly rate, depending on complexity. It covers reviewing your existing books, connecting QuickBooks Online (and Gusto, if you add payroll), and cleaning up your chart of accounts. At $2,500 a month, for example, onboarding would be $2,500 to $5,000.
Catch-up work costs your monthly rate times the number of months we’re catching up. If your rate is $2,500 and you’re four months behind, catch-up is $10,000. We quote it before we start.
Starter fits if cash-basis books, 1099s, your tax returns, tax planning and quarterly check-ins cover what you need. Accelerate fits if you need accrual accounting, job costing, weekly bookkeeping or custom management reports. Launch fits if you want weekly cash forecasting, a financial dashboard, an annual budget and a monthly advisory call. We’ll recommend one on a free call after looking at your books.
Not automatically. Payroll through Gusto is an optional add-on, available only to monthly accounting clients and quoted with your package. We don’t offer payroll on its own. 1099 filing is included in every package.
Yes. Your price changes when the work changes, for example when you add an entity, start carrying inventory or move up to Accelerate or Launch.
Because the scope is bigger. A lender-required QoE presents earnings the way the lender reviews debt service coverage, and includes answering the lender’s questions and a lender engagement or reliance letter. That added work is why it runs $18,000 to $25,000, the same as a $5 million to $15 million deal, instead of about $15,000. SBA rules require a QoE for 7(a) acquisitions with a purchase price of $3 million or more (applications received on or after October 1, 2026). A proof of cash and net working capital analysis with a working capital target (peg) are included in every QoE, not just SBA deals.
Fixed. You get a written scope and a flat price before we start, based on the deal’s complexity and timeline. There’s no hourly billing. If the scope changes, we agree on it with you before doing the extra work.
Every QoE includes a databook with the earnings and add-back analysis, the proof of cash and the net working capital analysis with a peg, plus a walkthrough call. If you want a presentation slide deck as well, for investors, lenders or your own team, it’s an add-on, quoted by scope.
A QoE is often completed in 2 to 4 weeks, as long as the seller provides data and answers questions promptly. We recommend budgeting 4 weeks in your diligence timeline. Rush timing is available as an add-on.
Sell-side QoEs start at $25,000. Larger sales cost more: a $50 million-plus manufacturing sale we’ve worked on would be $40,000 at today’s pricing. A sell-side QoE tests your add-backs and earnings before buyers do, so there are fewer surprises in diligence.
Yes. We price by deal size, not by who the buyer is: $18,000 to $25,000 for deals of $5 million to $15 million, and from $25,000 for deals over $15 million. Deliverables for investors or a credit committee are quoted by scope. For example, a $12 million marketing company we’ve worked on for an independent sponsor would be $18,000 to $25,000 at today’s pricing, plus any investor deliverables.
Experienced people, not a B team. The people you meet on the call do the analysis, interview the seller and walk you through the report. Midwest CPA has completed more than 350 QoE reviews.
Most of our monthly clients do between $500,000 and $10 million or more in annual revenue. If you’re under about $500,000 with simple books, you may not need a CPA firm yet, and we’ll tell you so.
Prices shown are typical ranges as of October 2026. Your quote may be higher or lower depending on the details of your business or deal, and every engagement is quoted in writing after a call.
