Industry · Construction accounting
Construction accounting that knows which job made money.
Contractors don’t fail on revenue — they fail on jobs that quietly lost money while the books looked fine. TechBrot’s team, led by a Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor, set up real job costing, WIP, and retainage so you see profit per project, bill progress correctly, and stay compliant on certified payroll. We deliver the books in your own QuickBooks file; your CPA files. Independent firm, not affiliated with Intuit Inc.
Construction accounting runs on projects, not periods — per-job revenue and cost, often on percentage-of-completion, with retainage, change orders, certified payroll, and AIA progress billing that standard bookkeeping can’t handle. TechBrot’s team, led by a Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor, set up real job costing by cost code, WIP schedules, and retainage tracking in your own QuickBooks file, keep it accurate monthly, and turn it into job-level profit you can bid from. We deliver the books and coordinate with your CPA; we do not file income taxes.
Maintained by TechBrot Inc., an independent firm — not affiliated with Intuit Inc. Bookkeeping and ProAdvisor scope; does not file income taxes — coordinates with your CPA or EA.
Construction accounting, in five questions.
Why is construction accounting different?
It runs on projects, not periods. Revenue and cost track per job — often by percentage-of-completion — with retainage, change orders, and certified payroll that standard bookkeeping can’t handle. Company-wide income and expense can’t tell you which job made money.
Do you set up job costing in QuickBooks?
Yes. Labor, materials, equipment, and subcontractor costs tracked to each project and cost code — real job-level profit you can bid from, not a company-wide guess.
Can you produce WIP schedules and handle retainage?
Yes. WIP schedules showing earned revenue vs. billings (over/under billing), and retainage receivable and payable tracked separately for an accurate balance sheet and cash position.
Do you handle certified payroll and AIA billing?
We support certified payroll for prevailing-wage and public work and AIA-style progress billing (G702/G703). Complex union or multi-state prevailing-wage cases are scoped openly on the discovery call.
What does it cost?
A fixed monthly fee against a written scope — driven by active jobs, payroll complexity, and whether certified payroll or AIA billing is required. No hourly billing. We do not file income taxes; we coordinate with your CPA or EA.
Construction accounting, plainly.
Construction runs on projects, not periods — so company-wide books that only show total income and expense can’t tell you whether a single job made or lost money. Real construction accounting needs job costing (labor, materials, equipment, and subcontractors tracked per project and cost code), work-in-progress (WIP) schedules showing over- and under-billing, retainage tracked on both receivables and payables, change-order discipline, and often certified payroll and multi-state tax. Whether you recognize revenue on percentage-of-completion or completed-contract changes how every one of those lines reads on your financials.
TechBrot is a bookkeeping and advisory firm led by a Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor who set this up correctly in your own QuickBooks file, keep it accurate monthly, and turn it into job-level profitability you can bid and grow from. We handle AIA-style progress billing (G702/G703), retainage on both sides of the ledger, equipment costing, and certified payroll for prevailing-wage and public work — with multi-state payroll for crews crossing state lines. For contractors scaling up, advisory adds cash-flow and bonding insight on top. We deliver the books; your CPA or EA files. Independent firm led by a Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor — not affiliated with Intuit Inc.
Construction job costing in QuickBooks, section by section.
How job costing is set up by project and cost code, how WIP and retainage sit on top of it, and where contractor books usually break — set out in full below.
Job costingGet the free file reviewBook the discovery call
The full explanation, section by section — job costing, WIP and retainage, certified payroll, and how an engagement runs.
Do you set up job costing in QuickBooks?
A construction company should set up job costing in QuickBooks so that every cost lands on a job. Labor, materials, equipment and subcontractor costs are tracked to each project, and to a cost code inside it. The result is real job-level profit you can bid from, instead of a company-wide guess. Work-in-progress schedules, retainage tracking and progress billing are then built on top of it.
Why is construction accounting different?
Construction accounting is different from regular bookkeeping because construction runs on projects, not periods. Revenue and cost must be tracked per job, often recognized by percentage-of-completion. Retainage is held back on both receivables and payables, change orders alter scope mid-project, and public work requires certified payroll. Books that only track company-wide income and expense cannot tell you whether an individual job made or lost money.
No real job costing.
No real job costing is the first place contractors lose the numbers. Costs land in company-wide buckets, not on jobs. You know the business made money this year, but not which jobs made it and which quietly bled, so the next bid goes out blind. The fix is job costing by project and cost code. Field time and job-management software that exports to QuickBooks can feed those cost codes directly.
No WIP or retainage tracking.
No work-in-progress or retainage tracking is the second place the numbers slip. Without a WIP schedule you cannot see over-billing or under-billing, so cash looks healthy while you have borrowed against unearned revenue. Retainage held on both sides distorts the balance sheet further. Over-billing feels like profit until the job finishes. A WIP schedule, earned against billed, shows reality before it bites.
Certified payroll & AIA gaps.
Certified payroll and billing gaps are the third place contractors lose the numbers. Public and prevailing-wage projects require certified payroll reporting, and general contractors expect AIA-format progress billing. Get either wrong and payments stall or penalties land. The fix is certified payroll reporting and AIA-style progress billing handled within your QuickBooks workflow, month by month.
Percentage-of-completion vs. completed-contract.
Percentage-of-completion and completed-contract are the two ways construction revenue is recognized, and the choice changes how every job reads. Percentage-of-completion recognizes revenue as the job progresses, by cost or milestone. It needs a WIP schedule, shows profit mid-job, and suits long, multi-period jobs and bonded work. Completed-contract recognizes revenue only when the job is finished, and suits short jobs and smaller contractors. Which method you can use for tax is a question for your CPA.
WIP & over/under billing
A work-in-progress schedule compares earned revenue with billings on every open job, showing where you are over-billed or under-billed, so cash and profit reflect reality mid-project. Retainage is tracked separately, as retainage receivable and retainage payable, alongside AIA-style progress billing and lien-waiver discipline. Kept that way, your balance sheet and cash position stay accurate on either revenue method.
Certified payroll
Certified payroll reporting covers prevailing-wage and public projects, under Davis-Bacon and state prevailing-wage rules, with the prevailing-wage schedules and reporting that general contractors and agencies require. Multi-state crew payroll has to be handled correctly when crews cross state lines. AIA-style progress billing workflows run alongside it. Complex union or multi-state prevailing-wage situations are scoped openly on the discovery call.
Job-cost cleanup
A job-cost file that is already a mess starts with a cleanup. Past costs are reclassified to the correct jobs and cost codes, job costing is rebuilt, and the books are reconciled to a known-good baseline. Only then does accurate monthly bookkeeping begin, with WIP and retainage kept current. Most contractors arrive mid-mess, and it is the normal starting point. Cleanup scope and pricing have their own videos in this series.
From guesswork to job-level profit.
Every construction engagement follows the same four-phase rhythm, from guesswork to job-level profit. Discovery maps your jobs, crew, payroll requirements and where the books are breaking. Job-cost setup and cleanup configures job costing and cost codes, and reclassifies past costs where needed. Monthly close and WIP brings reconciliation, job-cost reporting, WIP schedules, retainage tracking and certified payroll where required. Reporting and advisory follows as you scale.
Cash flow & bonding advisory
Accurate job costs are the start; winning bids is the point. Once every job shows real profit and WIP is clean, the question shifts from whether the books are right to how to bid the next one better: which job types carry margin, when to chase bonded work, and how cash flows across overlapping projects. Cash flow and bonding advisory turns job-cost data into forecasts, bonding-ready financials and bid-margin strategy.
What does it cost?
Construction bookkeeping is quoted as a fixed monthly fee against a written scope, with no hourly billing. The price depends on the number of active jobs, payroll complexity, whether certified payroll or AIA billing is required, and reporting needs. The work is delivered in your own QuickBooks file. TechBrot does not file income taxes; it coordinates with your CPA or EA. General ProAdvisor pricing has its own video in this series.
See which jobs actually make you money.
Construction work here is reviewed by the Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor team, certified in QuickBooks Online Level 2 and Payroll, at an independent bookkeeping and advisory firm that is not affiliated with Intuit. See which jobs actually make you money: book the discovery call. Send this to whoever runs job costing for your company, and subscribe for the rest of the series.
Three places contractors lose the numbers.
Profitable-looking companies go under when these go unmanaged. Knowing which one you’re in tells us where to start.
No real job costing.
Costs land in company-wide buckets, not on jobs. You know the business made money this year — you don’t know which jobs made it and which quietly bled, so you bid the next one blind. The fix is job costing by project and cost code — labor, materials, equipment, subs — so every job shows true profit. If you can’t pull profit on a single completed job in under a minute, this is your starting point.
No WIP or retainage tracking.
Without a WIP schedule you can’t see over- or under-billing — so cash looks healthy while you’ve borrowed against unearned revenue. Retainage held on both sides distorts the balance sheet further. The fix is WIP schedules (earned vs. billed) and retainage tracked separately on receivables and payables. Over-billing feels like profit until the job finishes; WIP shows reality before it bites.
Certified payroll & AIA gaps.
Public and prevailing-wage projects require certified payroll reporting; GCs expect AIA-format progress billing (G702/G703). Get either wrong and payments stall or penalties land. The fix is certified payroll reporting and AIA-style progress billing handled within your QuickBooks workflow — with complex union or multi-state prevailing-wage cases scoped openly on the call.
Construction accounting, done by an expert.
Every engagement is scoped to your jobs and crew, delivered in your own QuickBooks file by a named Certified ProAdvisor.
Job costing setup & maintenance
Labor, materials, equipment, and subcontractors tracked to each project and cost code — real job-level profitability you can bid from.
WIP & over/under billing
Work-in-progress schedules showing earned revenue versus billings, so cash and profit reflect reality mid-project — on percentage-of-completion or completed-contract.
Retainage tracking
Retainage receivable and payable tracked separately, with AIA-style progress billing and lien-waiver discipline, so your balance sheet and cash position stay accurate.
Certified payroll
Certified payroll reporting for prevailing-wage and public projects (Davis-Bacon and state prevailing wage), plus multi-state crew payroll handled correctly across state lines.
Job-cost cleanup
Rebuild job costing from messy books, reclassify costs to the right projects and cost codes, and reconcile to a known-good baseline before monthly bookkeeping begins.
Cash flow & bonding advisory
Job-cost data turned into cash-flow forecasting, bonding-ready financials, and bid-margin strategy as you grow — the judgment layer above the books.
Connected to how you build.
- QuickBooks Enterprise — contractor edition, common on larger GCs
- Buildertrend — job management synced to job-cost ledgers
- Procore — project financials reconciled to QuickBooks
- Knowify — AIA billing and change orders
- Hammr — certified-payroll-aware time tracking
- CompanyCam — job documentation tied to cost codes
- Gusto — crew payroll reconciled to job costs
- QuickBooks Time (TSheets) — field time to job costing
Using different job-management software? If it exports to QuickBooks, we can work with it. Ask on a discovery call.
Percentage-of-completion vs. completed-contract.
Which method you use changes how every job reads on your financials. We set up your books for the right one and keep the WIP behind it accurate.
| Consideration | Percentage-of-completion | Completed-contract |
|---|---|---|
| When revenue is recognized | As the job progresses, by cost or milestone | Only when the job is finished |
| WIP schedule required | Yes | No |
| Best for | Long, multi-period jobs & bonded work | Short jobs & smaller contractors |
| Profit visibility mid-job | Yes | No |
| Tax-method eligibility | Often required above gross-receipts threshold | Available to many small contractors — confirm with your CPA |
From guesswork to job-level profit.
Every construction engagement follows the same four-phase rhythm — books accurate first, profit visibility second, advisory third.
Discovery
A 30-minute call to map your jobs, crew, payroll requirements, and where the books are breaking. No pitch.
Job-cost setup & cleanup
Configure job costing and cost codes, plus a cleanup to reclassify past costs to the right projects where needed.
Monthly close & WIP
Monthly reconciliation with job-cost reporting, WIP schedules, retainage tracking, and certified payroll where required.
Reporting & advisory
Job-profitability reporting and, as you scale, cash-flow and bonding advisory.
Accurate job costs are the start. Winning bids is the point.
Once every job shows real profit and your WIP is clean, the question shifts from “are the books right?” to “how do we bid the next one better?” Which job types actually carry margin, when to chase bonded work, how cash flows across overlapping projects, what overhead each job should really absorb — the decisions that separate contractors who grow from those who stall.
That’s where construction advisory comes in: a Certified ProAdvisor who knows your job-cost data turning it into bid strategy, cash-flow forecasting, and bonding-ready financials. Accurate job costs come first; then that judgment turns them into decisions. As automation handles routine entry, this advisory layer is where contractors find their edge. Explore fractional CFO & advisory →
Maintained under a Certified ProAdvisor.
This page reflects how TechBrot actually handles construction engagements. It is maintained by TechBrot Inc., a Delaware-incorporated independent bookkeeping and advisory firm, and kept current on job costing, WIP, retainage, AIA progress billing, and certified payroll. Where our approach or scope changes, this page is updated. TechBrot delivers the books and coordinates with your CPA, who files.
Certifications
Active Intuit Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor — Online (L2) and Payroll
Scope
Job costing, WIP, retainage, AIA billing, certified payroll · income-tax filing coordinated with your CPA/EA
Engagement
Fixed-fee, written scope before work · delivered in your own QuickBooks file
Independent
Not affiliated with Intuit Inc. · QuickBooks is a registered trademark of Intuit Inc.
Construction accounting questions.
Why is construction accounting different from regular bookkeeping?
Do you set up job costing in QuickBooks?
Can you produce WIP schedules and handle retainage?
Do you handle certified payroll and AIA billing?
What does construction bookkeeping cost?
My job costing is a mess. Where do we start?
Contractors start here
See which jobs actually make you money.
Book a discovery call. A Certified ProAdvisor reviews your jobs, your payroll requirements, and where the books are breaking, flags any certified-payroll or WIP exposure, and sends a written fixed-fee scope within 3 business days. No pitch. TechBrot does not file income taxes; coordinates with your CPA.