What Is a Full-Charge Bookkeeper and When to Hire One

There’s a stage every growing business hits. You’ve moved past the messy spreadsheets and late-night DIY bookkeeping sessions. But you’re not at the point where hiring a full-time CFO makes sense either.

You’re in the middle ground. And that's when you might need a full-charge bookkeeper.  

But how is that different from a bookkeeper or a data-entry person? How do you know if your business actually needs one? And if you do, what’s the difference between hiring a bookkeeper, a full-charge bookkeeper, or working with an accountant? 

At Haven, we see founders wrestle with these questions all the time. That’s why in this guide, we’ll break down what a full-charge bookkeeper really does, how the role compares to others, and how to decide whether it’s the right fit for you.

What Is a Full-Charge Bookkeeper?

A full-charge bookkeeper is the person in a company who manages all the financial recordkeeping from start to finish. Instead of splitting the work between a basic bookkeeper (to record transactions), an office manager (to run payroll or pay bills), and someone else to prepare reports, a full-charge bookkeeper takes on the entire process themselves.

They’re responsible for:

• Entering sales, expenses, and other transactions into the accounting system

• Reconciling bank accounts, credit cards, and payment platforms

• Managing payroll and reimbursements

• Sending invoices and following up on customer payments

• Recording and scheduling supplier payments

• Preparing financial reports like profit and loss statements and balance sheets

• Handing over accurate records to an outside CPA when it’s time for taxes

Fullcharge Bookkeeper Responsabilities

Source 

The “full-charge” part means the business trusts this one person to keep the books complete, accurate, and up to date without needing extra staff to cover different pieces.

Let's say you run an ecommerce store selling home décor. Every day, new orders come in through Shopify, and customers pay using different methods like credit cards or PayPal. Your expenses add up—shipping fees, Facebook ads, packaging supplies, and vendor invoices. A full-charge bookkeeper would:

• Record every order, return, and refund

• Match Stripe and PayPal deposits to the store’s bank account

• Track ad costs against sales to see which campaigns are profitable

• Log supplier invoices and schedule payments so bills are paid without straining cash flow

• Deliver monthly reports showing whether the shop is actually making money

Their focus is on recording and organizing.

Bookkeeper vs. Full-Charge Bookkeeper vs. Accountant

These titles may sound interchangeable, but they describe different levels of responsibility. Knowing the differences helps you decide what your business actually needs.

• Bookkeeper: Focuses on recording day-to-day financial transactions, like sales and business expenses, and doing simple reconciliations.

• Full-Charge Bookkeeper: Handles all bookkeeping tasks end-to-end, including payroll, payables, receivables, and monthly reports. They manage the entire bookkeeping process without needing multiple people.

• Accountant (or CPA): Works at a higher level. They review the books, make adjustments, file taxes, ensure compliance, and advise on financial strategy.

Here’s how they compare side by side:

Another key difference is where each role fits inside the business structure. They report to different people in a company:

Bookkeeping roles’ reporting line

Do You Need a Full-Charge Bookkeeper?

Whether or not you need a full-charge bookkeeper depends on the stage of your business and how much financial work is piling up on your desk. For very small businesses, a simple setup with basic bookkeeping (or even just a tool) might be enough. But as you grow, the demands change.

Ask yourself these questions:

• Are you spending hours each month entering transactions or fixing mistakes?

• Do invoices or bills sometimes get missed because no one is keeping a close eye on them?

• Is payroll eating up time you’d rather spend on sales or operations?

• Do you only see how your business is doing at tax time, instead of having regular reports?

• Is your accountant spending a lot of time fixing your books before filing taxes? 

If you answered “yes” to more than one, you’re likely at the point where a full-charge bookkeeper makes sense. Think of a full-charge bookkeeper as more than someone who types numbers into software. They pull everything together so you always know where the business stands without drowning in admin work. 

The hesitation to hire a full-charge bookkeeper is normal. You might be wrestling with questions like:

“Am I really big enough to need this yet?”

“Shouldn’t I just keep costs low and do it myself a little longer?”

“What if I hire someone and I still don’t get the clarity I need?”

These are fair concerns. But the reality is that falling behind on bookkeeping is rarely obvious in the moment. You don’t notice the missed invoice or the misclassified expense until cash flow gets tight or your accountant calls at tax time.

It also reduces risk. 

Missed tax deadlines, payroll errors, or unpaid invoices can create unnecessary headaches and even damage relationships with employees or vendors. A full-charge bookkeeper keeps everything on track so you avoid costly surprises.

Most importantly, you reclaim time. Instead of stressing over reconciliations or late-night spreadsheets, you can focus on strategy, sales, and customers—knowing your financial foundation is solid.

How to Hire a Full-Charge Bookkeeper (and What to Look For)

Once you’ve decided a full-charge bookkeeper makes sense for your business, the next step is figuring out how to hire one. The right fit can save you time and stress; the wrong one can create even more problems.

Start with the basics:

• Experience in your industry: An e-commerce business has very different bookkeeping needs than a construction company. Look for someone who’s handled similar workflows — like online sales platforms, inventory tracking, or project-based billing.

• Technical skills: At a minimum, they should be fluent in the accounting software you use (QuickBooks, Xero, NetSuite, etc.) and comfortable reconciling payment platforms like Stripe, PayPal, or Square.

• Reliability: Because this role touches payroll, vendor payments, and customer invoices, you need someone dependable and detail-oriented.

• Communication: A good full-charge bookkeeper doesn’t just hand over reports; they explain what the numbers mean. They should help you understand whether your business is profitable, where cash flow is tight, and what to prepare for next.

How to hire a full-charge bookkeeper

Next, consider the setup. Some businesses bring in a full-time employee. Others work with a part-time or outsourced bookkeeper through a firm or service. Both options can work. It depends on how many transactions you have and how much support you need.

A Smarter Way to Handle Your Books

Hiring the right financial help can take weeks (job postings, interviews, trial periods!), and even then, you might end up juggling between a bookkeeper and an accountant to get everything covered. As a founder, your time is better spent growing the business, not managing back-office roles.

That’s where Haven comes in. We combine the strengths of a bookkeeper, a full-charge bookkeeper, and a CPA into one dedicated team that already knows how startups run. You get accurate books, payroll handled, bills paid, and taxes filed, all without building out a finance department yourself.

A strategy call with us is the easiest way to see what this looks like for your business. In the call, we'll cover: 

• Where your current books stand and whether they’re helping or holding you back

• What kind of support (bookkeeper, full-charge bookkeeper, accountant, or a mix) actually fits your business right now

• How Haven’s team of startup-native bookkeepers and CPAs can keep your finances running smoothly without slowing you down

👉 Book your free strategy call and see how simple your finance stack can be when it’s handled by people who actually get startups.