Bookkeeping virtual assistant for the prep work your books depend on
A bookkeeping virtual assistant keeps the paper trail moving so your accountant or your own month-end close starts from clean, complete records. On Aides you search ID-verified people by skill and time zone, see how many hours overlap with your workday, run a paid trial task on real receipts, and pay your assistant directly with no agency markup. This role covers bookkeeping prep: collecting receipts, categorizing transactions, preparing reconciliations and sending invoices. It is not accounting or tax advice, and your assistant does not sign off on your books.
- Every assistant passes an ID and liveness check. No AI personas.
- You pay your assistant directly. No markup.
What a bookkeeping virtual assistant handles each week
Most owners do not fall behind on bookkeeping because the work is hard. They fall behind because receipts sit in email, card charges stay uncategorized and nobody chases the unpaid invoice. Your assistant takes over that steady, repeatable layer of the work inside the accounting software you already use.
- 01 Collect receipts and bills from email, shared folders and phone photos, rename them consistently and attach each one to the matching transaction.
- 02 Categorize bank and card transactions against your chart of accounts, and flag anything unclear instead of guessing.
- 03 Prepare bank and card reconciliations so every line is matched, with a short list of open items for you or your accountant.
- 04 Create and send customer invoices from your price list, log payments received and send polite reminders on overdue balances.
- 05 Enter vendor bills, track due dates and prepare a weekly list of payments for your approval.
- 06 Keep a simple month-end checklist current, so the close starts with missing documents already requested.
- 07 Export reports your accountant asks for, such as an aging summary or a transaction list for a period.
Where the line sits
Your assistant prepares records. Decisions about tax treatment, payroll filings, financial statements and anything a licensed professional signs stay with your accountant or bookkeeper of record. Many teams use the assistant to cut the hours they pay that professional for cleanup.
Typical weekly hours and time zone overlap
A small business with one bank account, two cards and a few dozen invoices a month usually needs 5 to 10 hours a week. A busier operation with several entities, a stack of vendor bills or a backlog to clear often starts at 15 to 20 hours for the first month and then settles lower. Most of this work runs asynchronously, so two or three overlap hours a day is plenty for questions about an odd charge or a missing receipt. On Aides the search shows the exact overlap with your workday for each assistant, wherever they live.
How to hire a bookkeeping assistant on Aides
The process is the same one described in our guide to hire a virtual assistant, tuned for finance prep.
- 01 Search by skill (bookkeeping prep) and set your working hours, so results show real overlap.
- 02 Open profiles to see skills test results, the software they have used and their typical rate.
- 03 Message your shortlist and ask how they handle an uncategorized charge they cannot identify.
- 04 Run a paid trial task, for example two weeks of receipts matched to a test export, before you share live access.
- 05 Hire, agree the terms with the work agreement template on Growth and above, and give access with the narrowest role your software allows.
What to check before you give access
Use a view or limited user role rather than your owner login, keep bank logins with you and turn on approval for any payment. Ask your assistant to keep a short log of what they changed each session.
What a bookkeeping virtual assistant costs
Typical rates for bookkeeping prep run from 12 to 35 USD per hour, depending on experience with your software and the volume of transactions. Example monthly cost for 10 hours a week at a typical 20 USD per hour is 10 x 20 x 4.33 = 866 USD per month, and your assistant keeps all of it. If your accountant also reviews the work, Growth adds a second seat so both of you follow the same conversation and timesheet. Full plan limits are on the virtual assistant cost page.
Why a verified real person matters for financial records
Someone who sees your bank feed and customer invoices has to be exactly who they say they are. Bookkeeping assistants on Aides are identity confirmed adults, so the name on the timesheet is the person reconciling your accounts. Read how a verified virtual assistant profile is checked. On the Business plan you also get an identity verification report per hire as a PDF for your files.
Bookkeeping virtual assistant questions
Can a bookkeeping virtual assistant file my taxes?
No. Your assistant prepares records, receipts and reconciliations. Tax filings and tax advice stay with a licensed professional.
Which accounting software do assistants know?
Profiles list the accounting, invoicing and receipt capture tools each person has used. Ask about your exact setup during the conversation and test it in the trial task.
How do I keep my bank account safe?
Give your assistant a limited user role inside your software, keep bank logins to yourself and require your approval for every payment.
How many hours should I start with?
Start with 5 to 10 hours a week, or more for one month if you have a backlog to clear, then adjust once the books are current.
Is the trial task paid?
Yes. You pay your assistant for the trial at the rate you agree in the conversation.
Find a bookkeeping assistant who works your hours
Set your hours, pick bookkeeping prep and see who overlaps with your day.