· Reviewed by Nimra Khalid
What is payroll processing outsourcing?
Payroll processing outsourcing means a remote team prepares each pay run inside your payroll software: reconciling hours, entering changes, checking deductions and producing the run for the employer to approve. The employer keeps the payroll account, the bank authority and the legal responsibility. The provider posts the payroll journal and reconciles it, so payroll and the books agree.
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Payroll support: what we do and how it runs
Payroll processing outsourcing means a remote team prepares each pay run inside your payroll software: reconciling hours, entering changes, checking deductions and producing the run for the employer to approve. The employer keeps the payroll account, the bank authority and the legal responsibility. The provider posts the payroll journal and reconciles it, so payroll and the books agree.
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What it is
Payroll processing outsourcing means a remote team prepares each pay run inside your payroll software: reconciling hours, entering changes, checking deductions and producing the run for the employer to approve. The employer keeps the payroll account, the bank authority and the legal responsibility. The provider posts the payroll journal and reconciles it, so payroll and the books agree.
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What you get
Every pay run prepared on time, approved and released by you
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How it runs
Timesheets, rates and deductions reconciled before the run, not after
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Discovery call
A 20-minute call about your pay frequency, employee count, hourly versus salaried mix, states or provinces, benefits, and which payroll software you run.
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A named accountant, a backup and a team lead
Inside your own software, on a fixed close calendar, with a reply from a person within 1 business day. Call +1-657-777-0006 or start a quote.
Get a custom quote 06 / 06
Who it is for
Owners running payroll themselves
Every other Thursday night you chase timesheets and hope the run is right. You want someone to prepare it so you only review and click approve.
Businesses with hourly and shift staff
Home care, restaurants, clinics and field services have overtime, differentials and multiple locations. The errors come from the hours, not the software.
Businesses whose books never match payroll
The payroll register, the ledger and the tax filings each say something different. You want one team to reconcile them every cycle.
What's included
- Timesheet collection and reconciliation to schedules or scheduling software
- New hires, leavers, rate and deduction changes entered from your approved forms
- Overtime, differentials, bonuses and commissions calculated to your rules
- Pay run prepared in your payroll software for your review and approval
- Pre-run check: headcount, gross pay and variance against the last cycle
- Payroll journal posted to QuickBooks Online, Xero or your ledger each cycle
- Payroll liabilities reconciled to the ledger and to tax payments
- Payroll bank reconciliation: net pay, taxes and benefit remittances matched
- Benefits, pension, 401(k) or superannuation deductions reconciled to provider statements
- Workers compensation and payroll tax tracking by state, province or jurisdiction
- Employee pay query handling through your named accountant
- Year-end data compiled for W-2, 1099, T4, P60 or STP finalization
Deliverables and KPIs
| Deliverable | KPI we report | Cadence |
|---|---|---|
| Pay run prepared for approval | Ready at least 1 business day before your approval cut-off, every cycle | Per pay run |
| Pre-run variance check | Any employee with pay moving more than an agreed threshold flagged | Per pay run |
| Payroll journal | Posted within 1 business day of the run and tied to the register | Per pay run |
| Liability reconciliation | Payroll tax and benefit liabilities reconciled to payments and statements | Monthly |
| Payroll bank reconciliation | Zero unmatched payroll debits older than 30 days | Monthly |
| Year-end slip data | Employee and contractor data compiled and checked before filing deadlines | Annually |
KPIs are what we measure and report, agreed per engagement. Service-level commitments are set in your agreement.
How it works
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Discovery call
A 20-minute call about your pay frequency, employee count, hourly versus salaried mix, states or provinces, benefits, and which payroll software you run.
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Access and rules document
You grant a preparer or admin role in your payroll software and accountant access to the ledger. We write a one-page rules document: cut-offs, overtime rules, approval steps and who releases.
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First run in parallel
A named accountant prepares the first cycle alongside your current process, compares every employee line, and reconciles the register to the ledger before you rely on us.
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Cycle-by-cycle operation
From then on each run is prepared, checked and handed to you for approval on the calendar. Journals, liabilities and the payroll bank account are reconciled monthly under Two-Tier Review.
Software we work in
How much does payroll support cost?
Payroll support is priced as a flat fee per pay cycle or per month, based on employee count, pay frequency, the number of jurisdictions, and how much timesheet reconciliation is involved. Your payroll software subscription stays in your name. Pricing depends on volume and scope, so we send a custom quote within 1 business day.
What moves the quote
- Number of employees and contractors, and pay frequency
- Hourly, shift and overtime complexity versus salaried staff
- Number of states, provinces or jurisdictions with separate payroll taxes
- Whether payroll journals and reconciliations are included or done by your bookkeeper
Market benchmarks
| Market | Typical range | Source |
|---|---|---|
| US | In-house bookkeeper handling payroll costs $40k to $60k salary, over $6k per month loaded; outsourced bookkeeping $150 to $1,600 per month | RadCity, UseCalcPro, indinero (2026) |
| UK | Hourly bookkeeping and payroll support £20 to £55; in-house £24.7k to £32.1k plus employer NI at 15% | UK provider pricing surveys (2026) |
| Canada | Freelance bookkeeping C$30 to C$90 per hour; in-house alternative C$45k to C$60k | Outsource Bookkeeping CA (2026) |
| Australia | Bookkeepers A$40 to A$100 per hour; fixed fees A$850 to A$1,800 per month for 1 to 5 staff | Australian bookkeeping fee surveys (2026) |
Third-party ranges for orientation, not our prices.
Get a custom quote No setup fee. Month-to-month.
Payroll support for your industry
Case study
1 state to 5 states
Case studyHow a NEMT provider scaled from 1 state to 5 with an outsourced back office
A non-emergency medical transportation provider in the southern US ran a single-state operation with one office manager handling trip billing, broker portals and the books. Each new state meant a new Medicaid broker, new claim formats and new timely-filing rules, and the office could not absorb the volume. The owner engaged LedgerBPO for NEMT billing, insurance follow-up calls and accounts receivable, with a named billing agent, a backup and a team lead working inside the provider's own dispatch software and QuickBooks Online. Over the engagement the provider expanded from 1 state to 5 states without building an in-house billing department. The same back-office playbook was repeated for each state contract, so growth did not depend on hiring and training local staff every time a contract was won.
- States served15
Security and compliance
- Preparer role only; you approve and release every run. We never move money
- MFA on every login, access logged per client, no local downloads of employee data
- Employee bank and tax identifiers stay inside your payroll software
Full control list on the security page and country rules on the compliance page. Certifications are listed only when held.
Frequently asked questions
How much does payroll processing outsourcing cost?
Pricing depends on volume and scope, and we send a custom quote within 1 business day. As a market reference, an in-house bookkeeper who also runs payroll costs $40k to $60k in salary in the US, over $6k per month fully loaded (RadCity, UseCalcPro, 2026). In the UK, in-house staff cost £24.7k to £32.1k plus employer NI at 15 percent. We quote per cycle or per month on top of your software fee.
Do you file payroll taxes or are you the payroll provider?
Neither. Your payroll software (Gusto, ADP, Paychex, QuickBooks Payroll, Xero Payroll, KeyPay or Wagepoint) remains the provider of record and handles tax filings and payments through your account. We prepare each run, you approve and release it, and we reconcile what the software filed to the ledger. The legal responsibility stays with the employer.
Which payroll software do you work in?
Gusto, ADP, Paychex and QuickBooks Payroll in the US; Wagepoint and ADP in Canada; Xero Payroll and KeyPay (Employment Hero) in the UK and Australia. We work in your subscription with a preparer or admin role, so nothing changes for your employees.
How do you handle timesheets and overtime?
We collect hours from your scheduling or time system, reconcile them to rosters, apply your overtime and differential rules, and flag anything unusual before the run. The rules are written down at onboarding so a substitute accountant applies them the same way.
What does the payroll journal include?
Gross wages by department or class, employer taxes, benefit and pension contributions, deductions, and net pay, posted to your ledger each cycle and tied to the payroll register. Monthly we reconcile the liability accounts to actual payments so nothing sits unexplained. Our payroll reconciliation service describes the full tie-out.
Can you handle employees in several states or provinces?
Yes. Multi-state US payroll, Canadian provincial rules and Australian award-based pay are common in our client base. Your payroll software calculates the jurisdiction-specific taxes; we make sure employees are set up in the right jurisdiction and that the liabilities reconcile by state or province.
What happens if my named accountant is on leave?
A trained backup who already knows your rules document steps in, and the team lead still reviews the run. Pay runs do not wait for one person's vacation. You will know the backup's name from day one. Handover notes for each client are kept current in the LedgerDesk portal, so nothing depends on memory.
Do you handle year-end forms like W-2, 1099 or T4?
We compile and check the data so your payroll software or preparer can file on time: W-2 and 1099 in the US, T4 in Canada, P60 in the UK and STP finalization in Australia. See our year-end slips service for the detail. We do not sign or file on your behalf.
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