The best places to find bookkeeping and accounting jobs

A woman studying an invoice and spreadsheet on a pair of screens

By Kathy Kristof

California Times

Nov. 7, 2021 5 AM PT

Are you detail-oriented and great at math? You might be a perfect fit for bookkeeping and accounting side hustles.

Winter months are high season for this type of financial work as businesses of all sizes prepare their books for year-end and the tax season that follows. So if you want to secure bookkeeping and accounting side hustles, now’s the time to look.

Pay hinges on experience

How much do bookkeeping and accounting side hustles pay? That depends on your experience and credentials. Freelancers with experience, but lacking a certified public accountant designation, can earn $20 to $50 per hour. However, if you have formal accounting credentials, you can easily make six figures.

Where to find work

There are more than a dozen online platforms that can help you find bookkeeping and accounting side hustles. However, some of these platforms, including Upwork, Freelancer and PeoplePerHour, require a bidding process that often sends freelance rates into the basement.

Better platforms in this category allow you to set your own rates and terms, provide set rates for set services, or simply hire you as a remote employee. Notably, some platforms will only hire accountants with experience and lofty credentials, but others are open to anyone with the right skill set.

Here are a half-dozen options, starting with those that are open to job seekers without college degrees.

Degree optional

There are no degree or credential requirements to offer bookkeeping through Fiverr. This broad-based job site allows freelancers to post a profile and job “packages” without demanding any particular background in the field. However, if you do have substantial experience and/or credentials, you can apply to be a Fiverr “pro.” This site-evaluated stamp of approval elevates your profile and gives you the ability to charge more for your services.

Belay, which enlists freelancers for contract work, also does not require a college degree. But it does require some experience with bookkeeping, payroll and Quickbooks, a popular bookkeeping software program. Bookkeepers are generally paid between $20 and $30 an hour. However, the site does not accept applicants from states with restrictive freelance laws, including California, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania.

Robert Half is a well-established staffing company that places full-time, part-time, contract, and remote workers in a variety of fields, including finance and accounting. Because the site has such a wide variety of clients with myriad needs, you can sign up without specific credentials. The site will attempt to match you with an appropriate opportunity. The better your experience and credentials, the better the options.

Credentials required

However, the bulk of the other bookkeeping and accounting side hustle platforms require college degrees and, often, plenty of experience. Several will hire you but allow you to say how many hours you want to work. Others seek freelancers only.

Sites hiring remote employees

Acuity Financial is a full-service financial services firm that enlists remote workers to handle accounting, bookkeeping, tax and other financial jobs. The site works primarily with small businesses and start-ups, offering them fixed-rate accounting service packages and a la carte work. Although the company is headquartered in Atlanta, the site’s accountants and bookkeepers can work from anywhere in the world. And this is one of the few remote accounting sites where you don’t hear professionals complain about their salaries.

AccountingDepartment.com hires accountants, bookkeepers and other financial professionals and puts them on staff. You work from home. However, you’re working a traditional 40-hour week and getting benefits, including a 401(k) account, health insurance and paid time off. The pay is lower than with other traditional accounting jobs, but you save money by not having to go into an office. If you’re hired, you’ll do business via video and conference calls. Pay generally ranges from $16 to $50 per hour.

Bookminders is recommended by many websites as one of the best places to find home-based accounting and bookkeeping jobs. But if you are interested in employment with the company, you must reside in reasonable proximity to one of the company’s physical locations. That’s mainly because the site occasionally asks workers to come in for training and meetings. Workers here are also employees, not freelance.

Freelance platforms

Paro aims to connect freelance accountants, bookkeepers and other finance professionals with clients that need help. And, from reviews of independent accountants who work through the site, it’s highly effective at delivering prospects. However, the site appears to charge 50% of your billings in exchange for those introductions. And if you want to take a client off the network, you’ll pay dearly.

WAHVE, which stands for “Work at Home Vintage Experts,” finds jobs in the insurance, accounting and human resources fields. The site is looking for people in their 50s and 60s who want flexible schedules. WAHVE is primarily interested in people with substantial contemporary experience who won’t mind taking a pay cut for additional flexibility.

… And a red herring

If you’ve previously searched for remote accounting work, you’ve probably also heard of a site called BidAWiz. It’s mentioned in dozens of stories on remote bookkeeping and accounting side hustles, but SideHusl.com came to the conclusion that BidAWiz is a red herring.

Why? The site invites freelancers to fill out a lengthy application for available jobs, and even offers a working phone number. But no one answers. The site’s only listed employee took another job several years ago and the site appears to be dormant. We’ve mentioned BidAWiz here simply to wave you away from wasting your time.

Kristof is the editor of SideHusl.com, an independent website that reviews moneymaking opportunities in the gig economy.