California · Pricing
Fixed-fee California pricing — written scope before any work.
Most firms hide pricing and bill by the hour. TechBrot does the opposite: every California engagement is a fixed fee against a written scope, agreed before work begins — monthly bookkeeping from $400/mo, cleanup from $1,500. No hourly billing, no surprise invoices. A named Certified ProAdvisor works inside your own QuickBooks file across all 58 counties. We deliver the books and the CPA-ready handoff; your CPA files the returns and the $800 franchise tax.
TechBrot prices every California engagement as a fixed fee against a written scope, agreed before any work begins — never hourly. California ranges: monthly bookkeeping $400–$2,500+/mo, cleanup $1,500–$15,000+, catch-up $2,000–$20,000+, QuickBooks setup $750–$5,000+, migration $2,500–$10,000+, sales-tax tracking $250–$1,500+/mo, payroll $150–$800+/mo, fractional CFO $3,000–$8,000+/mo. The free 30-minute discovery call returns your exact fixed fee in writing within 3 business days. The full California pricing detail is below.
Maintained by the Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor team at TechBrot Inc., an independent firm — not affiliated with Intuit Inc. California facts (the $800 FTB franchise tax; CDTFA district sales tax) reflect FTB and CDTFA guidance and are reviewed periodically. TechBrot does not file California tax returns; your CPA files the returns and the $800 franchise tax.
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California pricing, in five questions.
How much does a California bookkeeper cost?
Monthly bookkeeping runs $400–$2,500+/mo by transaction volume and accounts; one-time cleanup $1,500–$15,000+; multi-year catch-up $2,000–$20,000+. Every fee is fixed against a written scope, quoted within 3 business days of a free discovery call — never hourly.
Do you bill hourly?
No. Every California engagement is a fixed fee against a written scope, agreed before any work begins. No hourly billing, no surprise invoices, no scope creep — if the scope changes, we re-quote in writing first.
What does QuickBooks setup or migration cost in California?
QuickBooks setup runs $750–$5,000+ by complexity; a Desktop-to-Online migration $2,500–$10,000+. Both include the California specifics — district sales tax by location, the $800 franchise-tax accrual, AB5 contractor tracking.
How do I get my exact price?
Book a free 30-minute discovery call. A Certified ProAdvisor reviews your file and your California situation and sends a written fixed-fee scope within 3 business days, before any work begins.
Does the price include filing my California taxes?
No — TechBrot is an independent ProAdvisor firm that keeps the books CPA-ready. Your CPA or EA files the FTB, CDTFA, and income returns and the $800 franchise tax. We coordinate directly with them.
How TechBrot California pricing works.
TechBrot prices every California engagement as a fixed fee against a written scope, agreed before any work begins — never hourly. You know the cost before we touch the books, and it doesn’t change unless the scope does. A named Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor works in your own QuickBooks file across all 58 counties.
California ranges: monthly bookkeeping $400–$2,500+/mo, cleanup $1,500–$15,000+, catch-up $2,000–$20,000+, QuickBooks setup $750–$5,000+, Desktop-to-Online migration $2,500–$10,000+, sales-tax tracking $250–$1,500+/mo, payroll $150–$800+/mo, and fractional CFO $3,000–$8,000+/mo. The free 30-minute discovery call returns your exact fixed fee in writing within 3 business days. We deliver the books; your CPA files the returns and the $800 franchise tax.
Every California engagement fits one of three shapes.
Pricing structure follows the shape of the work. All three run to the same standard: fixed fee, written scope, named ProAdvisor.
Monthly engagements
Ongoing bookkeeping, payroll, and sales-tax work priced as a fixed monthly fee by volume and complexity.
Examples: monthly bookkeeping ($400–$2,500+/mo), payroll ($150–$800+/mo), sales-tax tracking ($250–$1,500+/mo), fractional CFO ($3,000–$8,000+/mo).
Project engagements
A defined start and finish — cleanup, catch-up, setup, or migration — priced as a one-time fixed fee against a written scope.
Examples: cleanup ($1,500–$15,000+), catch-up ($2,000–$20,000+), setup ($750–$5,000+), migration ($2,500–$10,000+).
Cleanup-then-monthly
The most common California start: a one-time cleanup or catch-up to get CPA-ready, then a recurring monthly fee to stay there.
Example: a $4,000 cleanup followed by $700/mo monthly bookkeeping — both fixed and scoped in writing up front.
Every California service, every range.
The complete pricing landscape for California businesses. Every fee is fixed and scoped in writing before work begins.
| Service | Engagement type | Fee range | Cadence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly bookkeeping | Recurring | $400–$2,500+/mo | By volume, accounts & complexity |
| Bookkeeping cleanup | One-time | $1,500–$15,000+ | One-time, written scope |
| Catch-up (multi-year) | One-time | $2,000–$20,000+ | One-time, by years behind |
| QuickBooks setup | One-time | $750–$5,000+ | One-time, 2–4 weeks |
| Desktop → Online migration | One-time | $2,500–$10,000+ | One-time, 3–8 weeks |
| Sales-tax tracking (CDTFA) | Recurring | $250–$1,500+/mo | Recurring; + $500–$3,000 nexus review |
| Payroll management | Recurring | $150–$800+/mo | Recurring; CA SDI/PIT/EDD config |
| Fractional CFO | Recurring | $3,000–$8,000+/mo | By application; books clean first |
Indicative starting ranges. Final fees scale with transaction volume, employee and contractor count, district-tax footprint, industry specifics, and multi-state exposure. Get a written fixed-fee scope →
Why we don’t bill by the hour.
Hourly billing punishes you for our learning curve and rewards slow work — the worse the books, the bigger the bill. Fixed-fee aligns us with you: we quote the job, and if it takes longer than we thought, that’s our problem, not your invoice.
It also means you can budget. A California business deciding whether to bring in a bookkeeper shouldn’t have to gamble on an open-ended hourly meter. You get the scope and the number in writing, before any work begins — and it only changes if you change the scope.
Every fixed fee includes these.
Regardless of service or price, every California engagement includes the same six standards. They’re not add-ons — they’re the baseline.
A written scope first
Every engagement starts with a written scope and fixed fee — agreed before any work begins, never a surprise.
A named ProAdvisor
The same Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor on your file every month — not a rotating queue.
Your own QuickBooks file
Your file, your data, in QuickBooks Online or hosted Desktop — no proprietary lock-in.
California built in
District sales tax by location, the $800 franchise-tax accrual, and AB5 tracking handled as standard.
CPA-ready handoff
Clean monthly statements your CPA can file from — we coordinate directly with them.
No hourly billing
No meter, no surprise invoices, no scope creep — the fee changes only if you change the scope.
California pricing maintained by the TechBrot ProAdvisor team.
Pricing on this page is maintained by the Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor team at TechBrot Inc., a Delaware-incorporated independent ProAdvisor firm serving California businesses across all 58 counties. Ranges reflect current operational pricing for California engagements and are reviewed periodically; specific fixed fees are quoted per engagement after a free discovery call. California tax references — the $800 FTB franchise tax and CDTFA district sales tax — reflect FTB and CDTFA rules current as of the date below. TechBrot performs bookkeeping and QuickBooks work and coordinates with your CPA, who files; it does not file California tax returns.
Reviewer
TechBrot Certified ProAdvisor team · 40+ years combined operational accounting experience
Pricing standard
Fixed-fee against a written scope · No hourly billing · Quoted per engagement after a free discovery call · Reviewed periodically
Independence
Independent Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor firm · Not affiliated with Intuit Inc.
Questions about cost.
How much does a California bookkeeper or QuickBooks accountant cost?
Why fixed-fee instead of hourly?
What changes the price?
Is the discovery call really free?
Does the price include filing my California taxes?
Do you require a long-term contract?
Do these prices apply across California?
California businesses start here
Get your exact California fixed fee.
Book a free 30-minute discovery call. We'll review your file, scope the right engagement, and quote your exact fixed fee — in writing — within 3 business days, before any work begins. No hourly billing, no surprise invoices. Independent firm — does not file CA taxes; coordinates with your CPA.