Bookkeeping in Ohio

Bookkeeping services for Ohio businesses.

Visory provides bookkeeping services for growing Ohio businesses, from professional firms and design practices to nonprofits. A dedicated team you know by name works inside your own QuickBooks or Xero file, with Delphi AI taking the repetitive parts under that team’s oversight, and keeps your books to Ohio’s withholding, municipal income tax, commercial activity tax, and unemployment insurance rules. One flat monthly fee covers the agreed scope.

  • A dedicated team you know by name
  • Ohio rules in every pay run and close
  • One flat monthly fee for the agreed scope
Downtown Columbus and the LeVeque Tower above the Scioto River and the Scioto Mile parkland, seen from the Main Street Bridge.
Photo: Jordan Griffith, Unsplash License

Who we work with in Ohio

Growing businesses across Ohio.

Health care and social assistance is Ohio’s largest private industry, with about 869,000 jobs, and manufacturing employs about 676,000 people, one and a half times its share of jobs nationally (BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2025 annual averages). Across the state, private employers averaged about 4.8 million jobs in 2025.

Ohio rules

The Ohio rules your finance function runs on.

Four rules set by Ohio, each with the law that sets it and what it does to your month. Your team works to them every pay run and every close.

Last year’s total sets this year’s deposits.

The schedule follows withholding in the 12 months to June 30 of the prior year, so a growing payroll can move to monthly or partial-weekly deposits from January, and the books track that total as it builds.

Set by Ohio Revised Code 5747.06; Ohio employer withholding tables

Every employer with an office or business in Ohio withholds Ohio income tax from residents and nonresidents, using tables effective August 1, 2026 that withhold at 1.6%, 2.99%, and 3.4% after exemptions; bonuses and other supplemental pay are withheld at 2.75%. Residents of Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia working in Ohio are exempt. With $2,000 or less of state and school district tax withheld in the 12 months to June 30 of the prior year, deposits are quarterly; under $84,000, monthly within 15 days; $84,000 or more, partial-weekly.

Ohio Revised Code 5747.06; Ohio employer withholding tables; withholding tables effective August 1, 2026.

The whole cost lands in the first quarter.

With only $9,000 of wages taxed per employee, most staff reach the cap within weeks, so January to March carries nearly all of the year’s cost, and later quarters carry it mainly for new hires.

Set by Ohio Revised Code 4141.25 and 4141.251

Employers pay contributions on the first $9,000 of each employee’s wages, unchanged from 2023 through 2026. For 2026, experience rates run from 0.4% to 10.1%, and every rate carries a 0.15% technology and customer service fee; new employers pay 2.85% in total, and new construction employers 5.85%. Quarterly wage reports are due April 30, July 31, October 31, and January 31, even for a quarter with no wages paid.

Ohio Revised Code 4141.25 and 4141.251; rate year 2026, computation period ending June 30, 2025.

The rate moves every January.

Ohio ties its minimum wage to inflation, so pay rates near the floor, including tipped cash wages, are reviewed before the first pay run of 2027, when $11.00 becomes $11.40.

Set by Ohio Constitution, Article II, Section 34a; Ohio Revised Code 4111

Ohio’s minimum wage is $11.00 an hour for non-tipped employees and $5.50 for tipped employees in 2026, for businesses above the $405,000 gross receipts threshold. On January 1, 2027, the rates rise 3.5% with inflation, to $11.40 and $5.70, and the threshold to $419,000. Employees of smaller businesses, and 14- and 15-year-olds, are paid at least the federal $7.25. Employers must display the official 2027 minimum wage poster.

Ohio Constitution, Article II, Section 34a; Ohio Revised Code 4111; 2026 rates; $11.40 and $5.70 from January 1, 2027.

The CAT is a cost, not a collection.

Unlike sales tax, it comes out of margin once receipts pass $6 million, so a growing business budgets for it, while sales tax on any taxable services is held apart for the return.

Set by Ohio commercial activity tax; Ohio sales and use tax

The commercial activity tax is 0.26% of Ohio taxable gross receipts, paid by businesses with more than $6 million of them a year, on quarterly returns, and it cannot be billed to customers. Sales tax, 5.75% plus county and transit rates up to 8.75% in all, applies to goods and listed services, including business data processing, electronic information, security, and building cleaning services. Accounting, legal, and business consulting services are not taxable.

Ohio commercial activity tax; Ohio sales and use tax; $6 million CAT threshold for tax years 2025 and after.

Rules last checked October 9, 2026 against the sources at the foot of this page. General information only. It does not take your circumstances into account.

How it works from anywhere

Can a team outside Ohio run an Ohio business?

Yes. Visory’s US leadership team is in New York, and its teams work with businesses across the United States remotely, inside your own accounting file, so nothing about the work depends on where your office is.

Your own file

Your books stay in your own QuickBooks or Xero file. Your team works inside it, so you see the same numbers they do, whenever you look.

A team you know by name

A dedicated team runs the work, led by a Business Performance Partner. You meet them by video call, and you always know who to ask.

Ohio rules, built in

Visory runs the finance function for growing businesses across the United States, with its US leadership team in New York. Your books stay in your own QuickBooks or Xero file, and your team works inside it with you. Every pay run and every close is checked against the rules on this page.

Business hours, and the platform after them

Your team works 9am to 5pm Eastern Time on business days, all year round, and the Visory platform is open to you around the clock for documents, approvals, and your numbers.

Visory Insights

What your numbers should show in Ohio.

Clean books are the start. Every month, Insights turns them into a plain-English report, and a named Business Performance Partner walks your leadership team through what they mean for the year ahead.

Unemployment tax accrues by March, due April 30

At the 2.85% new-employer rate, each employee costs up to $256.50 in 2026 on the $9,000 base, and anyone paid $750 a week reaches the base within 12 weeks. Insights accrues nearly the whole year’s unemployment cost on January to March wages and plans the cash for the April 30 payment.

City tax follows work, school tax follows home

A Westerville CSD resident working in Columbus has 2.5% Columbus tax and 0.75% school district tax withheld on top of state tax: $162.50 a month on $5,000 of pay. Insights reads both from the payroll file, so each employee’s deductions and your cash plan agree.

The CAT starts at $6 million

The commercial activity tax applies once Ohio taxable gross receipts pass $6 million in a year, and the business must register within 30 days of crossing it, then file quarterly. Insights tracks receipts against the line month by month, so registration and the 0.26% cost are planned, not discovered.

Looking for a fractional CFO in Ohio? Visory has no standalone CFO offer. That work sits inside Visory Insights and your sessions with a Business Performance Partner. See Visory Insights

What customers say

In a customer’s words.

“Visory applies a commercial lens to how we manage client revenue, always ensuring we balance serving our clients with our business' best interests.”

Rachelle Harper Co-founder and COO, BrandBossHQ

Common questions

Questions Ohio businesses ask.

Straight answers about bookkeeping for an Ohio business, from a team that works remotely.

Does Visory have an office in Ohio?

Visory’s US leadership team is in New York, and its teams work with growing businesses across the United States remotely, so we support businesses in Ohio as we do everywhere else. An Ohio business gets a dedicated team you know by name, who work inside your own QuickBooks or Xero file and meet you by video call. Your records stay in your file, which you can open at any time.

What hours does my Visory team work?

Your team works 9am to 5pm Eastern Time on business days, all year round. Outside those hours, the Visory platform is your 24/7 access point, so your financial information is there whenever you need it.

Can a bookkeeper outside my office look after an Ohio business?

Yes. What matters is that the team knows Ohio’s rules and works inside your own accounting file. Visory connects to your bank feeds and software, codes and reconciles transactions through the month with Delphi AI working under an expert team, and meets you by video call. Nothing about the work depends on where your office is.

How much does a bookkeeper cost in Ohio?

Visory charges one flat monthly fee for the scope we agree, with no hourly billing and no timesheets. The fee reflects the services you take, from bookkeeping and payroll to accounts payable, accounts receivable, and Insights, and the volume of work in your business. After a discovery call, you get a clear proposal, so you know the monthly cost before you start.

See how pricing works

Do you work in QuickBooks and Xero?

Yes. Visory works inside the systems you already use: QuickBooks and Xero for the ledger, Gusto and Rippling for pay runs, and Bill, Ramp, and Stripe for payments, along with your bank feeds. Your books stay in your own accounting file, which you own and can open at any time. Any change to your setup is agreed with you first.

Does my business pay the Ohio commercial activity tax?

Only if its Ohio taxable gross receipts are more than $6 million a year, the threshold for tax years 2025 and after. The tax is 0.26% of those receipts, filed quarterly, and it cannot be billed to customers like sales tax. This is general information; the Ohio Department of Taxation sets the rules for your business.

Do Ohio cities tax wages?

Many do, and employers withhold the tax for the city where the work is done. Columbus and Cleveland both tax at 2.5%, and Columbus includes wages earned working from home in the city. Cleveland gives its residents full credit, up to 2.5%, for tax paid where they work. This is general information; each city sets its own rules.

Do Ohio businesses charge sales tax on services?

Only on the services Ohio lists, such as business data processing and electronic information services, private investigation and security services, and building cleaning and janitorial services once a provider earns $5,000 from them in a calendar year. Accounting, legal, and business consulting services are not taxable. The state rate is 5.75%, and with county and transit taxes the combined rate cannot exceed 8.75%. This is general information; the Ohio Department of Taxation sets the rules for your business.

Can you look after staff in more than one state?

Yes. Each state sets its own income tax withholding, unemployment insurance, minimum wage, and leave rules, and Ohio does not withhold from residents of Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia who work in Ohio. Visory keeps one set of books and runs payroll with each state’s rules applied to the staff who work there, so every state’s cost shows in one monthly report.

Do you offer a fractional CFO in Ohio?

A fractional CFO advises on numbers someone else produces. Visory runs the books, payroll, and payments, then delivers the insight from the same team: Visory Insights is a plain-English monthly report and a session with a named Business Performance Partner. There is no handover between the doing and the advising, and it comes on one flat monthly fee.

See how Visory Insights works
More questions, longer answers. Every question has its own link. See all common questions

Getting started

Start with clarity, not a contract.

Three steps, in whatever rhythm suits you. Each one is useful on its own.

  1. Two people shake hands across a desk beside a laptop

    Book a discovery call

    An obligation-free conversation about your goals and what you want the numbers to tell you.

    Obligation-free
  2. A woman takes notes beside a laptop showing a financial report

    Get your free financial health check

    A senior member of the Visory team analyzes your financials and shows you where your finance function can improve. It is free, and it is your own numbers.

    Free · your own numbers
  3. Top-down view of hands on a laptop showing the Visory accounts receivable workflow

    Receive a clear proposal

    A clear commercial proposal for the scope we agree, on one flat monthly fee. No hourly billing. You decide whether to go ahead.

    Flat monthly fee

Get started

The best is ahead for your business.

Start with a discovery call. We will listen first, then show you what your own numbers have been trying to tell you.

Sources (22) · rules last checked October 9, 2026

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