Guides · Comparing quotes
A worksheet for putting cleanup quotes side by side.
Three quotes for the same messy books can differ widely and still not describe the same job. This grid asks each firm the same thirteen questions, so what you compare is the work each one will deliver.
Quick answer
Fill in the first two rows before looking at any total. If one firm covers fewer months or skips an account, its lower figure is for a smaller job. Then check reconciliation to statements, who reviews the work and what is excluded; a quote that stays vague on any of those isn't finished yet.
The worksheet
Thirteen questions, one column per firm.
Print it, or copy the rows into a spreadsheet. Leave a cell blank when a firm hasn't answered; a blank marks the question to ask before you compare totals.
Working template — fill in your own figures. Not client data.
Before you fill it in
Assumptions: every quote covers the same months in scope and the same bank, card, loan and processor accounts. If one quote covers a shorter stretch or fewer accounts, write that in the first two rows before comparing totals, because a quote for less work is not a cheaper quote for the same work.
The quotes, side by side
| Ask each firm | Quote A | Quote B | Quote C |
|---|---|---|---|
| Months in scope: first month and last month | |||
| Accounts included: bank, card, loan, processor | |||
| Fixed fee in writing, or an hourly estimate? | |||
| Total quoted, and any cap on hours | |||
| Every account reconciled to its statements, every month? | |||
| Holding and suspense accounts reconciled — only identifiable receipts awaiting deposit left, nothing stale or unmatched? | |||
| Opening balances agreed to last year's filed return? | |||
| Who checks the work before it is delivered? | |||
| Written list of open items at delivery? | |||
| What happens if more is found mid-job? | |||
| Start date and delivery date | |||
| Whose QuickBooks file holds the books afterwards? | |||
| Stated exclusions: tax returns, amended returns, payroll filings |
Reading the answers
- A lower total that leaves out reconciling each account to its statements prices a smaller job. The unfinished part lands on your CPA at tax time.
- An hourly estimate is a forecast; the invoice is the price. Ask for a written cap, and what happens when the cap is reached.
- A quote that can't name its months and accounts isn't a quote yet. Ask for them in writing.
- Tax returns, and any amended return, stay with your CPA or tax preparer whichever bookkeeper you choose. A cleanup can list what changed in a filed year; the decision to amend is not bookkeeping.
Questions to send every firm
- Which months and which accounts does this price cover?
- Is the figure fixed in writing, and what would change it?
- Will every account be reconciled to its statements for every month in scope?
- What will I receive at the end: reports, reconciliations, an open-items list?
- Who reviews the work before delivery, and what do they check?
- Will the books stay in my own file, with my own login, when you finish?
Using it
Where the rows pull the quotes apart.
Scope rows first. Months and accounts decide how much work exists. Two firms quoting different stretches are pricing different jobs, and no total tells you which is better value until those rows match.
Then the proof rows. Reconciliation to statements, cleared holding accounts and opening balances that agree with the filed return are what make books usable by your CPA. A quote that leaves them out has priced a tidy-up.
Then the terms. A fixed fee moves the estimating risk to the firm; an hourly estimate leaves it with you. Neither is wrong, but only one of them is a price.
Hold our quote to the same grid. Our range, what it covers and what is quoted separately are on the pricing page; the checks our work passes before delivery are listed in the review protocol; and a sample findings report shows what the free review sends back.
Add a column
Get a written fixed fee to put in the grid.
A free books review measures the file and ends with one written fee that answers every row.