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Financial management

Bookkeeper vs accountant: who do you need?

Many owners use the words bookkeeper and accountant as if they meant the same thing. They overlap, but the jobs are different. A bookkeeper keeps the day-to-day record of what happened. An accountant checks that record against accounting and tax rules, prepares reports from it and helps you decide what to do next. Which one you need depends on how complex the business is, how much time you have and what questions you are trying to answer. Many businesses end up needing both.

Sora Accounting & Tax · General information · Editorial policy
Updated · 5 min read

Two roles that overlap but are not the same

A comparison of what a bookkeeper does day to day and what an accountant adds in reporting, tax and decisions, and how they work together.

Visual labels: Bookkeeper: records; Accountant: tax, advice; Both: reviewed together.

What to take away

  • Bookkeeping is one part of accounting: it records transactions, while accounting uses them for reporting, tax and decisions.
  • Bookkeepers are not required to hold formal training or certification; accountants have formal training and belong to a professional order.
  • The roles work best together, with the accountant reviewing the books and the bookkeeper keeping them current.

The short answer

BDC describes bookkeeping as recording the day-to-day financial transactions of a business, and as one part of the larger activity of accounting. In practice, a bookkeeper answers “what happened this month?” and an accountant answers “what does it mean, and what do the tax rules say about it?”

The line is not rigid. An accountant can do bookkeeping, and some bookkeepers do more than data entry. The more useful question is who is responsible for each task in your business, and whether anyone is checking the work.

What a bookkeeper does

According to BDC, a bookkeeper’s core job is recording every transaction: sales and other income, expenses, asset purchases, loan and lease payments and investments. Depending on the business, the role can also include preparing invoices and following up on payments, running payroll, keeping customer and supplier records and preparing remittances.

Good bookkeeping is timely and consistent. In practice that means categorizing transactions the same way each month, reconciling the bank and card accounts, and keeping supporting documents with the entries. If you want a picture of the routine, see our guide to the month-end close. If your records have fallen behind, a bookkeeper is usually the first person to call.

What an accountant does

BDC lists three core responsibilities for an accountant: keeping financial records accurate, reliable and timely; presenting meaningful financial information to owners and managers; and protecting the business from fraud and loss of assets. Accountants also handle tax accounting, which follows the tax authority’s rules and can differ from ordinary accounting, for example in how assets are depreciated.

Accountants can also do managerial accounting, breaking results down by product line, department or customer type, and can prepare budgets, forecasts and reports. That is where the advice comes in: whether the margins support a hire, how a purchase affects tax, or how the business looks to a lender. For tax filing, see our corporate tax and personal tax services.

Credentials: what the titles mean

BDC notes that bookkeepers do not need formal training or certification, though employers often look for a related diploma, experience and good software skills. Accountants must have formal training and belong to a professional order. That difference matters mainly when you need someone to take professional responsibility for the work.

Ask what training and experience each person has, and what they will and will not do. A skilled bookkeeper may be exactly what a small business needs. A title alone does not tell you whether the person knows your industry, your software or the tax rules that apply to you.

Where financial statements fit

BDC explains that only chartered professional accountants who are external to the business can issue reports on financial statements. There are three levels. A compilation relies mainly on the company’s own information and does not validate it. A review provides limited assurance. An audit gives the highest level of assurance. A lender, investor or buyer may ask for a particular level.

Statements prepared inside the business carry no report, and BDC says that is also the case when someone outside the business prepares them following a bookkeeping engagement. Interim statements are most often prepared this way, which can be fine for your own decisions. If a bank asks for statements, ask what level it expects before the work starts.

Which one do you need?

There is no fixed size or revenue point at which you need either role, so this is a judgment call. A few signs point toward a bookkeeper: transactions are piling up, the bank accounts are not reconciled, invoices and payroll are taking your time, or you cannot say what you spent last month. A few signs point toward an accountant: you are incorporating, a return is due, you are unsure how to pay yourself, you need statements for a lender, or you want to plan ahead rather than react.

A simple illustration: a sole proprietor with a few dozen transactions a month may manage the books in software and use an accountant once a year for the return. An owner with employees, sales tax filings and a corporation may want a bookkeeper each month and an accountant who reviews the work. These are examples, not rules.

How to make them work together

BDC recommends that an accountant or controller supervise the bookkeeper, to confirm the work meets accounting standards and tax requirements. In practice, agree who does what and by when: the bookkeeper closes the month, and the accountant reviews the numbers and flags anything unusual.

Accounting software handles the double-entry mechanics for you, which BDC notes is why a bookkeeper does not have to decide each debit and credit. BDC warns that spreadsheets carry a higher risk of errors, incorrect tax filings and poor decisions. If you want someone to deal with the CRA for you, you decide the access: the CRA offers three levels (view only, view and update, and delegated authority), and you choose the scope, from the entire business number down to a single program account.

What to bring to the conversation

Bring a list of the tasks you do now and the ones you want off your plate, your accounting software and bank access arrangements, your last return and any statements you have prepared. Ask what the scope would include, how often you would hear from them and what you would need to provide each month.

If you are still unsure, describe your business and your main worry, and ask which role would help most. That answer, and the scope you agree, are more useful than the job title. For help with either kind of work, see our bookkeeping and financial management services. If you are moving from another provider, our switching accountants checklist can help.

Sources & editorial notes

Sources checked October 24, 2026. The examples are illustrative and provide general information. Discuss how the guidance applies to your circumstances with your accountant.

Rules and guidance can change. Use the current official source and confirm the treatment for your facts. To flag an error, contact Sora.