# How much should an accountant charge clients?

Pick My Accountant (https://pickmyaccountant.co.uk/answers/how-much-should-an-accountant-charge-clients/): How much should an accountant charge clients? — Quick answer. Benchmark UK package rates: sole traders £39–£89/month, micro limited companies £83–£227/month, with VAT returns (£20–£45/month) and payroll (£15–£35 plus per-employee) as add-ons — London and the South East run 10–20% higher. Most practices now sell fixed monthly packages rather than hourly billing, and the commonest pricing mistake isn't the rate card — it's never raising fees on legacy clients.

## Key facts

- Sole trader packages: £39–£89/month · micro limited companies: £83–£227/month on Pick My Accountant benchmarks
- One-off self assessment: roughly £150–£600 depending on complexity
- Fixed monthly pricing beats hourly for compliance work — clients budget better and you're paid for efficiency, not punished for it
- Annual fee reviews are normal professional practice — 5–10% steps rarely lose good clients
- Publishing fee ranges attracts better-qualified enquiries and filters price-only shoppers

## Anchor to the market, then position within it

Price from data, not fear. The UK market for micro-business compliance clusters in the benchmark ranges above, and buyers comparing firms see those numbers. Pricing below the range signals inexperience as often as it wins work; pricing above it needs a visible reason — a niche, senior-only service, or advisory built in. New practices should generally start mid-range: cheap fees attract the clients who leave over £10 and stay for arguments.

## Structure: packages, add-ons, and scope discipline

The standard model is a monthly package covering the compliance core (accounts, tax returns, software) with priced add-ons for VAT, payroll, bookkeeping, and one-off advisory. Two rules make it profitable: define scope in the engagement letter tightly enough that 'quick questions' have a boundary, and price payroll per employee so growth doesn't silently eat your margin. Out-of-scope work gets a quote, not a favour.

## Raising fees without losing clients

Legacy underpricing compounds: a client onboarded at £60/month five years ago may now pay half your current rate for more work. Annual reviews fix this — a short note with the new fee, a start date one month out, and (for big gaps) a two-step path. Expect to lose almost nobody worth keeping; the occasional departure of a below-cost client is margin improvement, not churn. If raising fees feels impossible, the real problem is usually an undifferentiated service, not the letter.

## Should you publish your prices?

Increasingly, yes — at least as ranges. Buyers shortlist online before contacting anyone, and firms with visible pricing get enquiries from people who've already accepted the number. Hidden pricing doesn't protect you from cheap shoppers; it just moves the awkward conversation onto your calendar. Publishing 'limited companies from £95/month' costs nothing and quietly filters your pipeline.

## FAQs

**Q: What hourly rate should an accountant charge?**
A: Where hourly still applies (ad-hoc advisory, forensic work), UK rates commonly run £75–£150+ for qualified seniors and £150–£300+ for specialist partners. But for recurring compliance, fixed packages price the value of the outcome rather than the minutes — and reward you for being fast.

**Q: Should I charge for the initial meeting?**
A: Most practices don't — a free 30-minute scoping call converts well and costs little. The discipline is keeping it to scoping: specific advice starts when the engagement letter is signed.

**Q: How do I quote a messy-books client?**
A: Separate the clean-up from the ongoing fee: a one-off catch-up project priced on the mess (commonly £500–£2,000+), then the normal package. Quoting one blended fee hides the problem and locks you into subsidising it.

Updated: 2026-07-09

Source: https://pickmyaccountant.co.uk/answers/how-much-should-an-accountant-charge-clients/