Overview: Accountants
An accountant takes a year of receipts, invoices and bank activity and turns it into statements you can file and figures you can run a business on. For an incorporated company that means year-end financial statements, the corporate return, and the sales tax filings that sit alongside them. For a sole proprietor it means the same work compressed into the personal return.
Practices vary in how involved they get. Some produce the year end and send it over. Others check in through the year about owner pay, dividends against salary, and whether the numbers support the plan. Ask who prepares the file, how often you will hear from them, and whether the engagement is billed monthly or by the job.
Bring last year's statements and returns, access to your bookkeeping, bank and loan statements, payroll records, and anything that changed: a new province, a shareholder, a vehicle, a second location. Behind books are the single biggest driver of a higher quote, so mention them at the start.
Listings show what each firm states on its own website about the sectors it serves and the software it supports. The province and city lists lead to firms near you, and each city page separates those in the city from those nearby.
Cost of accounting services in Canada
Start with the work you need: year-end reporting, current bookkeeping or advice. A lender-requested review or audit needs a separate scope.
Check the report before comparing prices
A corporate tax return, a compilation, a review and an audit deliver different work. Ask the lender or other recipient which report they require.
| Service or situation | Planning fee | Scope and extras |
|---|---|---|
| Corporate year-end with financial statements | Starting fees: C$1,900–2,400 | Compiled financial statements and a corporate tax return (T2) for a small corporation with complete, reconciled books. A compilation provides no assurance.Cleanup and complex tax work cost extra; this is not a maximum fee. |
| Monthly bookkeeping: about 100 entries | Starting packages: about C$300–400/month | Income and expense recording, bank reconciliation and basic monthly reports for about 100 entries. Agree whether invoices and bank lines are counted separately.Setup, cleanup, payroll, subscriptions and tax filings may add charges; complex files can exceed these entry prices. |
| CPA consultation on accounting or tax | C$225–250/hour | A scheduled consultation about your records, reporting or a routine tax question. Bring the relevant documents and agree the required preparation.Written opinions, implementation and corporate reorganizations need a separate scope. |
| Financial statements for a lender or investor | Quote after scope review | Confirm the required report first: a review provides limited assurance; an audit provides reasonable assurance. The accountant quotes after reviewing your business and records.Preparing or repairing the underlying books may be additional. |
Ask before you hire
Does your total include the corporate return, the required financial statements and any work needed to make our books ready?
Ways to control the cost
Provide reconciled records and confirm whether a compilation or assurance report is actually needed before ordering one.
More cost details
What changes the quote
- Missing reconciliations, unreconciled balances and past years to repair.
- Business size, inventory, related companies and cross-border transactions.
- The report required by a lender or investor and the deadline.
Check your quote
- Specify the financial year, business structure and required report.
- Separate annual filing, ongoing bookkeeping and additional advice in the quote.
- Confirm the full fee, applicable taxes and approval process for extra work.
Canadian context
For corporations with relevant operations in Alberta or Quebec, confirm whether the separate provincial corporate return is included.
Planning ranges from published Canadian fees, not a Canada-wide average. Actual quotes can fall outside them. Fees exclude applicable sales taxes and separate expenses unless stated.
Frequently asked questions
What does a general accounting firm handle?
Year-end financial statements, the corporate return, personal returns for the owners, sales tax filings, payroll reporting, and interim figures through the year. Many firms also advise on salary against dividends and on incorporating. Assurance engagements and tax disputes are separate work, and a firm should say plainly when a file needs someone else.
Do I need figures during the year or only at year end?
The year end covers your filing obligations. Interim figures exist so you can make decisions in time, particularly around instalments, owner pay and large purchases. Businesses with staff, stock or a line of credit generally benefit. A small operation with steady income and few transactions can reasonably stay with an annual cycle.
How are accounting fees usually set?
Most firms quote a fixed price for a defined package, or bill by the job with hourly rates for anything outside it. Messy or incomplete bookkeeping is the usual reason a quote rises after the file opens. Ask what is included, what triggers an extra charge, and whether questions during the year are covered.
What should I bring to a first accounting meeting?
Last year's financial statements and returns, your bookkeeping file, bank and loan statements, payroll records, sales tax filings, and any correspondence from the tax authority. Note anything that changed: a new shareholder, a vehicle, a property, work in another province. It turns a vague quote into a real one.
How do I move to a different accounting firm?
Sign with the new firm and it sends a professional letter to the previous one requesting the file and prior-year working papers. Your own records belong to you. Move between year ends rather than in the middle of one, and clear any unpaid account first, because that is what usually delays the transfer.
