2026 Report
Bookkeeper Cost: US vs Nearshore vs Offshore (2026 Report)
What one bookkeeper costs a US firm on payroll, as a contractor, in Latin America and in Asia, and what each leaves the firm per billed hour.
This report is for bookkeeping and accounting firm owners deciding where to hire their next bookkeeper. It compares what a US firm pays for one bookkeeper on payroll, through a US contractor, through a nearshore team in Latin America, and through an offshore team in the Philippines or India, and what each leaves the firm per billed hour. Nearshore here means Latin America, within a few hours of US time; offshore means Asia.
Quick answer: A US bookkeeper on payroll costs a firm about $35.46 an hour, or $73,800 a year with benefits, at the BLS median. Outsourced bookkeepers billed to US firms run $12 to $25 an hour from Latin America, $7 to $14 from the Philippines and $6 to $13 from India. At a $60 billing rate, that moves the firm’s margin from about $25 an hour to $35 to $54 an hour.
Table 1: What one bookkeeper costs by location
| Option | Per hour | Full time per month | Local pay (nearest role) |
|---|---|---|---|
| US employee, BLS median with benefits | $35.46 | $5,674 | $24.36 an hour before benefits |
| US freelance or contractor | $25–$75 | $4,000–$12,000 | Billed rate |
| Latin America, outsourced | $12–$25 | $1,920–$4,000 | Accountants about $850–$1,300 a month |
| Philippines, outsourced | $7–$14 | $1,120–$2,240 | Accountants about $636 a month |
| India, outsourced | $6–$13 | $960–$2,080 | Accountants about $347 a month |
We found three things in this table:
- Benefits add about 46% to a US bookkeeper’s pay. The BLS median of $50,670 becomes about $73,800 a year once employer costs are counted.
- An outsourced Philippine bookkeeper costs a fifth to two fifths of a US employee, and a Latin American one a third to two thirds.
- Local pay is a fraction of the billed rate. Accountants in India earn about $347 a month; the agency rate covers training, tools, payroll and margin.
Table 2: What the firm keeps per billed hour
Cost only matters next to what the work bills. This table uses a $60 billing rate, the middle of the market band, and assumes each paid hour is billed. Real margins run lower once review, training and unbilled time are counted.
| Option | Cost per hour | Firm keeps per hour | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| US employee | $35.46 | $25 | 41% |
| US contractor | $25–$75 | $35 to −$15 | 58% to below zero |
| Latin America | $12–$25 | $35–$48 | 58%–80% |
| Philippines | $7–$14 | $46–$53 | 77%–88% |
| India | $6–$13 | $47–$54 | 78%–90% |
We found three things in this table:
- An offshore bookkeeper can roughly double what a firm keeps per billed hour, from about $25 to $46 to $54.
- A senior US contractor can cost more than the work bills. At $75 an hour against a $60 rate, the firm loses money on every hour.
- The margin gap is the case for keeping client contact in the US and moving the monthly close offshore.
Table 3: Working hours overlap with New York
| Location | Hours vs New York | Shared workday hours |
|---|---|---|
| Colombia | 0 | 8 |
| Mexico City, Costa Rica | −1 | 7 |
| Argentina, Brazil | +2 | 6 |
| South Africa | +7 | 1 |
| India | +10.5 | 0 without a night shift |
| Philippines | +13 | 0 without a night shift |
We found three things in this table:
- Latin America shares six to eight hours of the New York workday. That makes it the fit for client calls and same-day questions.
- India and the Philippines share none without a night shift, which suits work that can be handed off at 5 p.m. and returned by morning.
- South Africa shares only about one hour, so it fits teams that work mostly in writing.
How firms split the work
Keep the client-facing work closest to the client. Onboarding calls, advisory and month-end questions stay with US or nearshore staff. Transaction coding, bank reconciliations and catch-up work move offshore, where the margin is widest and the time difference turns into overnight turnaround.
Keep client data inside your systems. Offshore and nearshore staff should work in the firm’s own accounting software with their own logins, not on copies of client files. For what a US hire costs above the bookkeeper level, see our accounting staff salary report.
Conclusions
- Count benefits before you compare. A US bookkeeper costs about $35.46 an hour, not $24.36.
- Offshore wins on margin, nearshore wins on hours. Pick by the kind of work, not the country.
- Watch senior contractor rates. Above the billing rate, more hours means more loss.
Frequently asked questions
- How much does a bookkeeper cost in the US?
- The BLS median for bookkeeping clerks is $24.36 an hour, or $50,670 a year (May 2025). With employer benefits and taxes, a firm pays about $35.46 an hour, or $73,800 a year.
- How much does an offshore bookkeeper cost?
- Outsourced bookkeepers billed to US firms run $7-$14 an hour from the Philippines and $6-$13 an hour from India in 2026, or about $960-$2,240 a month full time.
- Is nearshore or offshore better for a bookkeeping firm?
- Nearshore Latin America shares six to eight hours of the New York workday, so it fits client-facing work at $12-$25 an hour. Offshore Asia costs less but shares no hours without a night shift, so it fits work handed off overnight.
- How much margin does an offshore bookkeeper add?
- At a $60 billing rate, a US bookkeeper on payroll leaves a firm about $25 an hour. An outsourced bookkeeper leaves $35-$48 from Latin America and $46-$54 from the Philippines or India, before review and unbilled time.
- Sources & methodology
- US pay: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, released May 15, 2026. Bookkeeping, accounting and auditing clerks (43-3031) median $24.36 an hour, $50,670 a year. BLS Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, June 2026, released September 9, 2026 (wages are 68.7% of total pay cost for office and admin workers).
- Outsourced rates: Stealth Agents, a staffing firm, May 2026 (Latin America, Philippines, India). Cross-checks inside the bands: South at $2,900 a month all-in (about $18 an hour) for Latin America, and Wing Assistant at $1,499 a month (about $9.37 an hour) offshore. US contractor band: Bookkeeper Pay in 2026. Upcision Research.
- Local pay: Accountant salary data for Mexico, Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, the Philippines and India, compiled by HiveDesk country salary guides from Indeed, Talent.com and national statistics, September 2026, converted at September 2026 exchange rates.
- Billing rate: How Much to Charge for Bookkeeping Services. Upcision Research. 2026.
- About Upcision: We have run outbound campaigns for bookkeeping and accounting firms since 2019, across 14 B2B verticals, for clients ranging from SMB to Fortune 500.
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