Most small businesses need both. The question isn’t really which one to hire. It’s how to get both functions covered in a way that makes sense for your budget and business stage.

A bookkeeper handles the ongoing record-keeping. Categorizing transactions, reconciling bank accounts, processing payments, sending invoices, generating financial reports. Without accurate bookkeeping, you’re guessing at your cash position and scrambling at year end. This is the day-to-day work that keeps your books current so you can actually see what’s happening in your business.

An accountant handles taxes, compliance, and higher-level financial analysis. They prepare your returns, advise on tax strategy, help with business decisions that have financial implications. Some accountants also do bookkeeping, but many don’t want to. They’d rather work with clean books and focus on the parts that require their expertise.

If you’re choosing one to start with, get bookkeeping handled first. Accurate books are the foundation everything else builds on. An accountant can’t prepare a good tax return if your records are a mess. They’ll spend billable hours cleaning up instead of optimizing your tax position.

You’ll still need accounting services at minimum once a year for tax filing. Some business owners handle bookkeeping themselves and only hire an accountant at tax time. This works until it doesn’t. Usually it breaks down when the business grows past a certain point or when you’ve made enough mistakes that cleanup takes longer than the original work would have.

The cleanest solution for many small businesses is working with a firm that handles both. A Queen Creek area bookkeeper maintains accurate records throughout the year while also handling tax preparation. When everyone is at the same firm, there’s no finger-pointing when something doesn’t match. The books are done right because the same people who prepare your taxes are responsible for maintaining them.

If your books are already a mess and you don’t know where to start, that’s a bookkeeping problem. If you’re current on record-keeping but confused about tax obligations or strategy, that’s an accounting problem. If you’re not sure which applies to you, it’s probably both.