Most UK individuals and small businesses pay between £150 and £3,000 a year for an accountant. A Self Assessment tax return on its own typically costs £150 to £350, a sole trader wanting bookkeeping and accounts pays £600 to £1,500 a year, and a limited company usually pays £1,000 to £3,000 a year, often £80 to £250 a month.
Below is a breakdown of real 2026 fee ranges, what pushes a quote up or down, an honest comparison of fixed fees against hourly billing, and a worked example of what a bundled fee is actually worth if you bought the same work piece by piece. Every tax figure here was checked against gov.uk on 23 July 2026.
How much does an accountant cost in the UK in 2026?
UK accountant fees in 2026 run from £150 for a standalone Self Assessment return to £3,000 a year for a limited company with VAT and payroll. Sole traders typically pay £600 to £1,500 a year. Bookkeeping, payroll and VAT returns are almost always priced on top of the core accounts fee rather than inside it.
| Service | Typical 2026 fee |
|---|---|
| Self Assessment tax return only | £150-£350 |
| Sole trader (accounts + tax return) | £600-£1,500 / year |
| Limited company (annual accounts + CT600) | £1,000-£3,000 / year |
| Monthly limited company package | £80-£250 / month |
| Bookkeeping (add-on) | £25-£60 / hour or £100-£300 / month |
| Payroll | £4-£12 per payslip / month |
| VAT returns | £100-£250 per quarter |
| One-off tax advice / consultation | £100-£250 per hour |
These are realistic market ranges, not quotes. London and specialist firms sit at the top end; online and fixed-fee practices tend to sit lower and bundle services together. If you are weighing up a remote, app-based firm, our guide to online accounting services for UK small businesses explains what you get for the lower fee. You can see transparent packages on our pricing page.
How much does an accountant cost per month?
Most UK small businesses on a fixed monthly package pay £80 to £250 a month. A simple sole trader with no VAT and no payroll sits at the lower end. A VAT-registered limited company with staff on payroll and bookkeeping included sits at the top. Monthly billing spreads the cost evenly and avoids a year-end surprise invoice.
- £80-£120 a month: a sole trader or simple limited company, no VAT, no payroll.
- £120-£180 a month: a growing limited company with VAT returns and director payroll.
- £180-£250+ a month: VAT, multiple staff on payroll, and regular bookkeeping included.
A monthly fee usually bundles your accounts, tax returns and day-to-day questions. If you would rather see fixed monthly figures for your own situation, our pricing page sets them out clearly.
Fixed fee or hourly: which actually costs less?
For ongoing compliance work a fixed fee almost always costs less than hourly billing, because the work is predictable and the accountant prices it as a bundle. Hourly billing suits genuinely one-off advice. The real risk with hourly is not the rate itself, it is that the scope, and therefore the final bill, is open ended.
A worked comparison on the same job
Take a small limited company needing statutory accounts, a CT600, a confirmation statement, twelve monthly director payslips and one Self Assessment return. Bought separately at typical market rates:
- Statutory accounts and CT600: £700 to £1,200
- Confirmation statement preparation: £50 to £100 of accountant time, plus the Companies House fee of £50 to file the confirmation statement online (£110 on paper)
- Director payroll, 12 payslips at £4 to £12 each: £48 to £144
- Self Assessment tax return: £150 to £350
That totals roughly £998 to £1,844 before anyone has answered a question by email. A bundled fixed fee covering the same list typically lands at £1,000 to £1,800 a year and usually includes routine queries. The cash saving is real but modest. The bigger gain is certainty: you know the number in advance, and asking a question does not start a clock.
When hourly billing still makes sense
One-off situations: a tax investigation, a share restructure, a valuation ahead of a sale, or a technical question that needs a specialist. Expect £100 to £250 an hour for a qualified accountant, more for a tax specialist or a partner at a larger firm, and £25 to £60 an hour for a bookkeeper. For anything routine and recurring, a fixed fee wins.
How much does an accountant cost for a small business?
Fees track compliance load, not turnover alone. A landlord with two properties and a contractor working through a limited company can pay similar amounts despite very different incomes, because the underlying filing work is similar. Add VAT, staff, multiple sales channels or foreign income and the fee climbs quickly.
| Business type | Typical annual fee | What drives it |
|---|---|---|
| Sole trader, not VAT registered | £600-£1,500 | One tax return, light bookkeeping |
| Contractor with a limited company | £900-£1,800 | Accounts, CT600, director payroll, IR35 status |
| Landlord, 2 to 4 properties | £400-£1,200 | Property pages, MTD from 2027 or 2028 |
| Ecommerce seller, VAT registered | £1,500-£3,000+ | Multi-channel payouts, marketplace fees, VAT returns |
| Limited company with staff | £1,500-£3,000 | Accounts, CT600, VAT, payroll, pensions |
The niche matters as much as the size. Ecommerce sits at the top of that table because reconciling marketplace payouts is genuinely more work, as our guide for ecommerce VAT accountants sets out. If you are just starting out on your own, our first-year contractor checklist covers what you will actually need to pay for. We also have dedicated pages for contractors, ecommerce sellers and landlords.
What drives the price up?
Book a free Tax Health Check →
Your business structure
A limited company costs more than a sole trader because there is more compliance: statutory accounts filed at Companies House, a Corporation Tax return (CT600), a confirmation statement, and director payroll. A sole trader with a single income stream is the cheapest to look after.
Turnover and VAT
Once your taxable turnover passes the VAT registration threshold of £90,000 on a rolling 12-month basis, or you expect to pass it in the next 30 days, you must register and file returns, usually quarterly. See HMRC's guidance on registering for VAT for the rules, or our explainer on when you need to register for VAT.
Bookkeeping quality
This is the single biggest swing factor. Hand over a tidy set of records or a connected accounting app and you will pay less. Hand over a carrier bag of receipts and you pay for the time it takes to sort them. Good bookkeeping habits genuinely lower your bill, often by more than switching firms would.
Payroll and pensions
If you employ staff, payroll runs, RTI submissions and auto-enrolment pension admin add £4-£12 per payslip per month, plus a small standing charge.
Making Tax Digital
Making Tax Digital for Income Tax is now live and it is repricing the market. From 6 April 2026, sole traders and landlords with qualifying income over £50,000 (measured on the 2024/25 return) must keep digital records and file quarterly updates. The threshold drops to over £30,000 from 6 April 2027 and over £20,000 from 6 April 2028, per HMRC's guidance on when you need to use Making Tax Digital for Income Tax. The first quarterly update is due by 7 August 2026.
Four extra submissions a year plus a final declaration is real work, and many firms have repriced packages to reflect it. Ask any prospective accountant a direct question: is quarterly filing inside the fee, or billed as an extra? Our guides to Making Tax Digital for Income Tax and the first quarterly deadline on 7 August 2026 explain what is involved. Landlords should read MTD for landlords.
How much for a Self Assessment tax return?
A straightforward Self Assessment tax return costs £150 to £350 in 2026. The price rises with each extra source of income: rental property, dividends, capital gains or foreign income can push a personal return to £400 or more. Complexity, not income size, is what accountants actually price.
A few thresholds worth knowing for 2026/27, all confirmed on gov.uk's Income Tax rates page:
- Personal allowance: £12,570 (frozen)
- Higher rate starts at £50,270; the additional rate at £125,140
- Dividend allowance: £500
- Trading allowance: £1,000. If your gross self-employed income is under this you may not need to register at all
One change worth flagging if you take dividends: from 6 April 2026 the basic and higher dividend tax rates rose by two percentage points, to 10.75% and 35.75%, with the additional rate unchanged at 39.35%. That makes the salary and dividend split worth more attention than it was last year, as our guide on salary versus dividends in 2026/27 explains. Our FAQ page covers what counts as a simple return and when you actually need an accountant.
How much does a limited company accountant cost?
A limited company typically pays £1,000 to £3,000 a year, or £80 to £250 a month on a package. You pay more than a sole trader because there is more to file:
- Statutory annual accounts filed at Companies House.
- A Corporation Tax return (CT600) filed with HMRC.
- A confirmation statement each year, which now carries a £50 Companies House fee to file online.
- Director payroll and, where relevant, dividend paperwork.
VAT returns and bookkeeping sit on top of that base fee. If you are weighing the running costs of a company against a sole trade, our guide on whether a limited company needs an accountant walks through the trade-offs, and our limited company page shows what a full service covers.
Does paying an accountant actually pay for itself?
For most businesses, yes, and the clearest way to see it is the downside. Penalties for late filing and late payment are automatic, they compound, and they arrive whether or not you owe tax. On a mid-sized tax bill they comfortably exceed a year of fees, which is why the fee is best read as insurance rather than admin.
Take a £10,000 tax bill filed and paid twelve months late. Using HMRC's published Self Assessment penalties:
- Automatic £100 penalty the day you miss 31 January, even if you owe nothing
- After 3 months, £10 a day up to £900
- After 6 months, 5% of the tax due or £300, whichever is greater: £500
- After 12 months, the same again: £500
- Late payment penalties of 5% of the unpaid tax at 30 days, 6 months and 12 months: £1,500
That is £3,500 before interest, on a bill of £10,000. More than most annual limited company fees, for a deadline that was in the diary all year. The fee is also an allowable business expense, so it reduces your taxable profit, and our allowable expenses guide covers what else qualifies.
What should a fee quote include?
A good quote is specific about scope, not just price. Most disputes about accountancy fees are not about the headline number, they are about work someone assumed was included. Before you sign anything, get written answers on the following, because these are the items that most often turn into add-ons later.
- Which filings are covered: accounts, CT600, confirmation statement, Self Assessment, VAT returns.
- How many payroll runs and whether pension auto-enrolment admin is included.
- Whether MTD quarterly updates are inside the fee or billed separately.
- Bookkeeping: are you doing it, or are they, and up to how many transactions.
- Ad-hoc questions: included, or charged by the hour.
- Extras: references for a mortgage or a landlord, HMRC enquiry support, software licences.
- What happens if you leave: notice period and handover charges.
How to keep your accountant costs down
- Keep clean records. Use bookkeeping software and reconcile regularly. It directly cuts your fee.
- Bundle services. A combined accounts-plus-tax-return package usually beats paying for each piece separately, as the worked comparison above shows.
- Choose a fixed fee. Avoid open-ended hourly billing for routine work.
- Do not over-buy. A simple sole trader rarely needs a premium full-service package.
- Ask what is included. Surprise add-ons are where budgets blow out.
- Review annually. Fees drift. If yours has risen without the work changing, switching accountants is straightforward.
Do I need an accountant at all?
Not everyone does. If you have a single source of income, stay well below the £90,000 VAT registration threshold, and are comfortable filing online, you can often manage your own return for free. The £1,000 trading allowance means very small side incomes may not even need reporting.
Once VAT, payroll, a limited company or property income is involved, the time saved and the reliefs claimed usually outweigh the fee. If you are unsure which side of the line you fall on, see our guide on whether you need to file a Self Assessment.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does an accountant cost per month in the UK?
Most UK small businesses pay £80 to £250 a month for an accountant on a fixed-fee package. A simple sole trader sits at the lower end, and a VAT-registered limited company with payroll sits at the top. The fee usually bundles your accounts, tax returns and routine queries.
How much does an accountant charge for a Self Assessment tax return?
A straightforward Self Assessment tax return typically costs £150 to £350 in 2026. It rises with extra income sources such as rental property, dividends, capital gains or foreign income, where £400 or more is common for a more complex personal return.
How much does an accountant cost for a limited company?
A limited company usually pays £1,000 to £3,000 a year, often £80 to £250 a month. That covers your statutory accounts, the CT600 Corporation Tax return, a confirmation statement and director payroll. VAT and bookkeeping add to the fee.
Does an accountant charge extra for Making Tax Digital?
Often yes. MTD for Income Tax adds four quarterly updates plus a final declaration for sole traders and landlords with qualifying income over £50,000 from 6 April 2026, dropping to £30,000 from April 2027 and £20,000 from April 2028. Some firms have absorbed it into existing packages, others bill it separately, so ask before you sign.
Is it cheaper to do my own accounts instead of hiring an accountant?
If your affairs are very simple, with one income, well under the VAT threshold and you are happy filing online, you can often file yourself for free. Once VAT, payroll, a limited company or property income is involved, an accountant usually saves more than the fee through reliefs and avoided penalties.
Do accountants charge a fixed fee or by the hour?
Both. Fixed monthly or annual fees are now the norm for small businesses because you know the cost upfront. Hourly billing, roughly £25 to £60 for a bookkeeper and £100 to £250 for a qualified accountant, suits one-off advice but makes budgeting harder.
Why do accountant fees vary so much?
Price is driven by your business structure, turnover and VAT status, payroll, and above all the quality of your bookkeeping. Tidy digital records lower the fee, and a bag of receipts raises it. Making Tax Digital also adds quarterly filing work for qualifying income over £50,000.
Is paying for an accountant tax deductible?
Yes. Accountancy fees for preparing your business accounts and tax returns are an allowable business expense, so they reduce your taxable profit. The cost of dealing with a personal tax investigation is treated differently, so check what your engagement covers.
Talk to a Zmartly accountant
Not sure which bracket you fall into, or what a fair fee looks like for your situation? Zmartly is CIMA-regulated and our qualified accountants will give you a clear, fixed-fee quote with no jargon and no surprises, so you know exactly what you are paying before you commit. Get in touch or book a free call and we will tell you in one conversation whether you are overpaying.
All tax figures and thresholds checked against gov.uk on 23 July 2026. Fee ranges are typical UK market rates, not quotes. This article is general information and not advice for your specific circumstances.
