PRICE GUIDE · BUSINESS & PROFESSIONAL · 2026–2027
Accountant cost in the UK
£35–£150 per hour. Typically £80.
An accountant costs £35–£150 per hour in the UK, with about £80 typical for a qualified accountant. Routine bookkeeping-style work is cheapest; chartered accountants, complex tax, company accounts and London firms charge the most, and many now quote a fixed monthly fee instead.
- Search and compare — no account needed
- Nearest to you first
- One score from Google, Trustpilot and Locufy reviews
HOW MUCH IT COSTS
How much does an accountant cost in the UK?
| Low end | £35 | routine work by a part-qualified accountant |
|---|---|---|
| Typical | £80 | what most people pay |
| High end | £150 | complex tax work by a chartered firm in London |
Locufy guide prices for 2026–2027. Updated 2026. A national range, not a quote — enter your town above for real prices from the accountants, solicitors and professional firms near you.
What moves the price
- Qualifications — a chartered accountant with ICAEW or ACCA membership charges more than an unqualified one
- Type of work — tax planning and company accounts cost more per hour than routine accountant tasks
- Business size — more transactions, staff and VAT returns mean more hours for the accountant
- Record keeping — tidy digital records cut the time an accountant spends sorting paperwork
- Region — accountants in London and the South East charge more than in the North and Scotland
- Fixed fee or hourly — a monthly package can work out cheaper than paying an accountant by the hour
Professional services prices in the UK are up 12% over five years (ONS Consumer Price Inflation, Other services n.e.c., to 2026 August). Five years ago a typical accountant would have cost about £75 — an estimate from today's guide price and that index, not a recorded price. Source: ONS MM23 D7FR →
WHAT YOU GET
What an accountant visit includes
Takes: A few hours for a tax return; ongoing monthly work for a business with regular bookkeeping. Not included: Day-to-day bookkeeping, payroll and audits are priced separately — see the related guides below.
WHAT PEOPLE BOOK
Common accountant jobs
KNOW THE PRICE? NOW SEE THE REAL ONES
Accountant near you, with prices shown
The accountants, solicitors and professional firms that cover your area, nearest first, each with their price and one score from every review. No account needed to look.
Or post the job free and let them come to you, or book by the hour.
How to pay less
- Keep tidy digital records so the accountant spends fewer billable hours sorting them
- Ask for a fixed monthly accountant fee rather than open-ended hourly billing
- Use accounting software that your accountant can access, which speeds up year-end work
Before you book
- Check the accountant belongs to a body such as ICAEW, ACCA or AAT and is supervised for anti-money laundering
- Ask exactly what the accountant fee covers, including VAT returns, payroll and HMRC letters
- Get a letter of engagement that sets out the work, the fee and who is responsible for deadlines
- Authorise the accountant as your tax agent with HMRC so they can deal with your records
Accountant cost: questions people ask
£35–£150 per hour, with about £80 typical for a qualified accountant. Routine work costs the least; chartered accountants handling complex tax for a London business cost the most.
A simple tax return can take a few hours. Year-end company accounts usually take longer, depending on how complete your records are.
Anyone offering accountancy services for a fee must be supervised for anti-money laundering by HMRC or a professional body, so ask which body supervises them.
Often, yes. A fixed monthly fee makes costs predictable, and many accountants now bundle accounts, tax returns and advice into a package.
Bookkeeping, payroll, audits and specialist tax advice are often separate unless the package says otherwise.
They are Locufy guide prices for the UK, worked out from published UK accountant fee guides. They are a national range, not a quote.
MORE GUIDES