Close management
The month-end close on a published calendar — reconciliations verified, accruals posted, the period locked on time, every month.
Pricing · Outsourced controller · Fixed monthly retainer
Outsourced controller pricing. One fixed retainer for owning the close.
A controller is priced on responsibility, not hours: someone owns the close, the accuracy of the statements and the controls around them. At TechBrot that is a fixed monthly retainer of $1,800–$5,000 on top of monthly bookkeeping, set in a written scope after a free discovery call — the exact number in writing before you commit. No hourly billing.
$1,800–$5,000
Or send the details insteadIf your file needs our paid diagnostic first, its fee is credited in full against the cleanup. Either way, you get a fixed fee in writing before any work starts.
§ 01 · TL;DR
§ TL;DR
An outsourced controller at TechBrot is a fixed monthly retainer of $1,800–$5,000, on top of monthly bookkeeping. It covers close management, statement oversight, internal controls, bookkeeping supervision, the reporting package and CPA coordination. Entities, transaction complexity, close cadence and who relies on the statements set where you land; the written scope fixes the number.
They took something that felt overwhelming to me as a first-year business owner and made it simple.
What stood out the most was TechBrot Inc’s attention to detail.
Intuit QuickBooks Certification Level 2 and QuickBooks Workforce Certification,
§ 02 · What the retainer covers
Six things you are paying someone to own.
The full service is on the outsourced controller page. The retainer is the same scope every month, written down, and a signed controller-level specialist practice owns it.
Financial statement oversight
The P&L, balance sheet and cash flow reviewed for accuracy and reasonableness before they go out — catching what the bookkeeping process misses.
Internal controls
Controls sized to the business — approvals, segregation of duties, spend authorization, reconciliation review — so the books are not protected by one person’s memory.
Bookkeeping supervision
Someone reviewing and directing the people who record the transactions — TechBrot’s bookkeeping, your internal staff, or a mix.
Reporting calendar & package
A reliable reporting calendar and the monthly package for leadership, the board or lenders — consistent format, on schedule, defensible.
CPA & vendor coordination
Year-end and tax coordination with your CPA, and the payroll and sales-tax providers kept in step, so the whole finance function is managed.
§ 03 · What moves the number
Four things set where you land in the band.
None of them is hours. Each one changes how much there is to own each month — and the written scope names which of them apply to you.
Entities
How many sets of books
One operating company is one close. A holding company with subsidiaries, intercompany balances or multi-state operations is several closes plus the work of tying them together.
Complexity
What the transactions ask of the close
Inventory, job costing, deferred revenue, payouts from several sales channels or multiple bank and card accounts each add reconciliation and review work to every month.
Cadence
How fast and how often the close runs
A close that must lock within days for a lender or board, or reporting that runs weekly as well as monthly, needs more sustained ownership than a standard monthly close.
Reliance
Who relies on the statements
When a lender covenant, an investor, a board or a buyer’s diligence depends on the numbers, the review and the controls around them have to hold up outside the business.
§ 04 · Where it sits
Bookkeeping records it. The controller makes sure it is right. The CFO decides what it means.
- Monthly bookkeeping — $500–$2,500+/mo. Records and reconciles the transactions; priced on volume. Bookkeeping pricing.
- Outsourced controller — $1,800–$5,000/mo, on top of monthly bookkeeping. Owns the close, the accuracy of the statements and the controls; priced on responsibility for the numbers. The controller service.
- Fractional CFO — $3,500–$8,000+/mo. Forecasts, strategy and board-level judgment; priced on depth of involvement. Fractional CFO pricing.
All ranges are TechBrot’s own published fixed fees; the full table is on the pricing page.
§ 05 · How you get a number
Four steps to a retainer in writing.
- STEP 1
Discovery call
Free, 30 minutes: how your close runs today, who does what, what breaks, and what reporting you actually need.
- STEP 2
A look at the books
When the call alone cannot size it, accountant-user access to your own QuickBooks file to see the state of the reconciliations and the close.
- STEP 3
Written scope within 3 business days
The exact monthly retainer inside the $1,800–$5,000 band, the close calendar and the deliverables — in writing. If the books need a cleanup first, that is scoped separately.
- STEP 4
You decide
Nothing starts until you accept the scope. It runs month to month against that written scope.
§ 06 · The lane
Controllership, not tax or audit.
The controller retainer keeps the books accurate and the close on schedule, and hands your CPA a year they can file from. It is not tax filing and not audit or assurance: TechBrot is a bookkeeping and advisory firm, not a CPA firm, and does not perform audits, reviews, compilations, or income-tax filing. Financial statements we prepare are unaudited, for internal management use, and provide no assurance.
§ 07 · Questions
Questions about outsourced controller cost.
Is there a cheaper option if I only need the close reviewed?
If what you need is the books recorded and reconciled each month, that is monthly bookkeeping ($500–$2,500+/mo), and a close review can be part of that scope. The controller retainer, priced on top of monthly bookkeeping, is for when someone has to own the close, the controls and the statements.
Do I need a cleanup before the controller retainer starts?
Only if the books are not reliable yet. A controller cannot vouch for statements built on unreconciled accounts, so when the file needs it, a cleanup is scoped and priced separately and done first.
Is the retainer hourly, and is there a long-term contract?
Neither. It is a fixed monthly fee against a written scope, running month to month. If the work genuinely grows beyond the scope — another entity, a faster close — the change is re-quoted and approved in writing before it happens.
Can the controller supervise my in-house bookkeeper?
Yes. Supervising the bookkeeping function — TechBrot’s, your own staff, or a mix — is one of the six things the retainer covers.
How do I get an exact controller quote?
Book a free 30-minute discovery call, or call (877) 751-5575. If the fit is right you get a written scope within 3 business days — the exact monthly retainer, the close calendar and the deliverables.
Who exactly do I contract with, and how do I pay?
You contract with TechBrot, Inc., a Delaware corporation, under one written scope. You always pay TechBrot, Inc. directly, by ACH or wire. TechBrot invoices every engagement. No one on our team will ask you to pay through a personal link, a gift card or cryptocurrency. TechBrot is an independent firm and is not affiliated with Intuit.
Start here
Get a controller number in writing.
Tell us which decisions the numbers need to support. We’ll tell you whether advisory, a controller or cleaner books come first.
Or send the details instead