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
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.
- Services businesses with revenue of roughly $750k to $20m, led by a CEO, president, or founder.
- Nonprofits with grants, programs, and a board to report to.
- Franchise networks and payroll-heavy operations, with many sites and many pay runs.
- Professional services Professional, scientific, and technical services employ about 288,000 people in Ohio in almost 48,000 establishments, at average annual pay of $105,271 (BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2025).
- Architecture and design firms Architectural and engineering firms employ about 48,900 people in Ohio, and specialized design firms about 6,100 more, 1.17 times that industry’s share of jobs nationally (BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2025).
- Consulting firms Management, scientific, and technical consulting firms employ about 38,600 people in Ohio across more than 9,400 establishments, at average annual pay of $109,154 (BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2025).
- Nonprofits Religious, grantmaking, civic, and professional organizations employ about 46,400 people in Ohio, and civic and social organizations 1.44 times their share of jobs nationally (BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 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.
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.Sources Ohio Department of Taxation: Employer withholding Ohio Department of Taxation: Employer withholding tables, percentage method, 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.
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.Sources Ohio Department of Job and Family Services: Contribution rates, 2023 to 2026 Ohio Department of Job and Family Services: 2026 rate details Ohio Department of Job and Family Services: Unemployment insurance tax for new employers US Department of Labor: Significant Provisions of State Unemployment Insurance Laws, effective January 2026 Ohio Administrative Code: Rule 4141-11-02, quarterly payments, interest, and due date
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.
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.Sources Ohio Department of Commerce: Ohio minimum wage to increase by 3.5% in 2027 Ohio Department of Commerce: Ohio minimum wage laws
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.
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.Sources Ohio Department of Taxation: Commercial activity tax Ohio Department of Taxation: Sales and use tax Ohio Department of Taxation: Sales and use taxability
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.
What we run for Ohio businesses
The whole finance function, actually handled.
Bookkeeping, payroll, accounts payable, and accounts receivable, run end to end by a dedicated team with Delphi AI working under their oversight. Flat monthly fee. No hourly billing.
Bookkeeping
Every transaction coded and reconciled, month-end closed on schedule.
Explore bookkeepingPayroll
Pay runs prepared, checked, and paid on time, every cycle.
See how payroll runsAccounts payable
Bills captured, checked against what's already paid, and paid when you say so.
See accounts payableAccounts receivable
Invoices out on schedule, overdue accounts followed up in your name.
See accounts receivableVisory Insights
Once a month: what changed, what it means, and what to do next.
See how Insights worksBusiness Performance Partner
A named partner who walks you through the numbers and the next move.
How your partner worksVisory 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 worksGetting started
Start with clarity, not a contract.
Three steps, in whatever rhythm suits you. Each one is useful on its own.
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Book a discovery call
An obligation-free conversation about your goals and what you want the numbers to tell you.
Obligation-free -
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 -
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
State income tax
Unemployment insurance
- Ohio Department of Job and Family Services: Contribution rates, 2023 to 2026
- Ohio Department of Job and Family Services: 2026 rate details
- Ohio Department of Job and Family Services: Unemployment insurance tax for new employers
- US Department of Labor: Significant Provisions of State Unemployment Insurance Laws, effective January 2026
- Ohio Administrative Code: Rule 4141-11-02, quarterly payments, interest, and due date
Minimum wage
Gross receipts tax
Pay frequency
New hires
Local rules
- Ohio Department of Taxation: Updated school districts effective January 1, 2026
- City of Columbus Income Tax Division: Employer withholding tax, payment and filing requirements
- City of Cleveland Division of Taxation (CCA): Tax rates
- City of Cleveland Division of Taxation (CCA): Municipal income tax due dates calendar