After that, there is a $39 monthly fee that must be paid while you are taking courses and exams. Parts 1 and 2 must be taken at a testing center and parts 3 and 4 are “take-home” exams that you can complete at your own pace and mail to the AIPB for grading. You must earn a grade of 75% for parts 1 and 2 and 70% for parts 3 and 4 to achieve certification. Once you’ve met all of your chosen credential’s requirements and completed your preparatory courses, it’s time to take the exams.
Xero Advisor
With expertise in curriculum development, business systems, and instructional leadership, she is dedicated to promoting learning and development. The following subsections explore educational and experience requirements in further detail. Understand eligibility requirements, code of ethics, and maintenance requirements for bookkeeper certification. Prepare to take and pass the American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers (AIPB) certification exam.
What are the benefits of becoming a certified bookkeeper?
After you have completed everything, you’ll schedule the certification exam. To earn your Certified Bookkeeper designation, you must pass the AIPB certification exams and be able to submit proof of at least two years of full-time – or 3,000 hours of part-time – experience. The Certified Bookkeeper course is designed for experienced bookkeepers who want to prepare for national certification. To succeed in this course, you must have at least two years of experience as a bookkeeper before enrolling. AIPB requires CB candidates to pass all six credentialing tests in no more than three years, so this is the maximum timeline for aipb certification test completing examination requirements. Your total timeline could extend to 5-6 years after factoring in AIPB’s two required years of professional experience, which you have three years to acquire.
Step 4: Choose Your Bookkeeper Certification Program
Do you want to be more credible across bookkeeping in general or just for a particular software program, like QuickBooks or Xero? You’ll receive instructions via email about how to best prepare and set up your test-taking environment at home, a local library or another place with an internet connection. To score discounted fees, consider becoming a member of the organization of your choosing before registering for any courses and exams. Requirements for CB certification are more extensive, as they ask for at least 3,000 hours of experience or two years of bookkeeping or accounting experience. In terms of hiring potential, there is little difference between the two designations.
- Wade was also Director of the Finance and Accounting service line for the San Diego office of a global, publicly held professional services firm.
- While recognized by Intuit, this certification may not hold the same weight as more established industry certifications, like the CB or CPB.
- However, earning both certifications is likely redundant, and you can save time and money by choosing only one credential to pursue.
- CareerBuilder.com cites bookkeeping skills as highly transferable to financial supervisory, analysis, or managerial roles.
- To make sure you are confident that you have mastered each advanced bookkeeping skill, every section of every bookkeeping instruction workbook includes a double-quiz with detailed answers and explanations.
- These sections reflect the higher education courses (bookkeeping, payroll, and QuickBooks Online) that future test-takers must complete.
Paper tests appear at the end of AIPB’s official study workbooks for each of those two exam subsections. Each CPB exam includes 50 questions, which examinees must finish in two hours or less. As of Feb. 2025, NACPB has set fees at $80 for members and $100 for non-members. However, AIPB recommends that candidates develop their knowledge of various bookkeeping proficiencies.
If you’re interested in learning more, read our article on how to become a QuickBooks ProAdvisor. Also, NACPB allows certification candidates to substitute the official bookkeeping experience program for one year of paid professional experience. AIPB does not have an equivalent option, though it does allow candidates to meet professional experience requirements before or after passing the exam. Alternatively, you can locate a suitable online or traditional college course that will provide you with certification along with a thorough bookkeeping education. If you’re an efficient bookkeeper, you may want to focus on one particular accounting software program.
As a QuickBooks Certified Advisor, she provides bookkeeping, payroll and QuickBooks training services. To become a CB, AIPB mandates that you must have two years of full-time professional experience or 3,000 hours of part-time or freelance experience working as a bookkeeper. However, you can accrue these hours before or after you pass the CB credentialing exam. Neither NACPB nor AIPB requires you to hold any particular diploma or degree to qualify for CPB or CB bookkeeping certifications.
Before becoming a consultant, Wade was Divisional Controller for one of the leading health and fitness club chains in the world. He has also been Internal Audit Manager and Divisional Controller for a division of a Fortune 500 global energy project management company. He began his career with Coopers & Lybrand, predecessor to PricewaterhouseCoopers, one of the “Big Four” CPA firms. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Bookkeepers’ Advisory Board. The CPB and CB bookkeeping certifications are nationally recognized, and either one makes a strong credential that can enhance your employability.
This compensation does not influence our school rankings, resource guides, or other editorially-independent information published on this site. This free 10-question test for firms on the accrual basis includes basic journal entries, corrections, accruals and deferrals and the bank reconciliation. Know how to value inventory, record costs, make entries and report inventory on financial statements. No, but a certification can significantly enhance your resume and make you a more attractive candidate to potential employers.
- Regardless of whether you are pursuing credentials through AIPB or NACPB, your supervisor or a former employer must validate your experience hours.
- To become a CB, AIPB asks for a registration fee of $25 for members and $60 for nonmembers.
- To maintain the CB credential, you must fulfill 60 continuing education credits every three years.
- Parts 1 and 2 must be taken at a testing center and parts 3 and 4 are “take-home” exams that you can complete at your own pace and mail to the AIPB for grading.
- One benefit to this type of study is that you’ll have access to instructors while you learn.
You can then use this in your email signature and on your business cards, social media profiles, and other marketing materials. This will let potential clients know that you’re qualified, which will generate new leads and allow you to negotiate higher billing rates. Becoming certified in accounting software—such as QuickBooks, Xero, or Zoho Books—is a wise decision, especially when the majority of your clients use that particular software.
What’s the difference between a bookkeeping certification and a certificate?
Register to take the first part of the exam at a Prometric test center near you. Make sure to bring proper identification and any required materials on exam day. After completing part one of the CB exam, repeat this process to take part two. Note that NACPB’s bookkeeping certification is different from its CPB license.
The National Association of Certified Public Bookkeepers (NACPB) offers the CPB certification program, and the American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers (AIPB) administers CB certification. Bookkeeping forms the backbone of every organization’s need to carefully account for its financial activities. It accounts for sales, purchases, and payments that flow through an entity. Bookkeepers are crucial to every organization and certified bookkeepers are the elite of their profession. This 100% online course will prepare you for certification by the American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers (AIPB). You can take online and in-person courses to achieve the required CPE credits each year.
Once you have received your certification, there are no further fees or memberships required. If you’re wondering whether to earn CB certification or CPB licensure, keep in mind that a professional designation can help boost your earning potential. According to Payscale, certified bookkeepers make around $57,000 each year. Give your bookkeeping career a jump-start with the certification that trains you with the most advanced bookkeeping courses. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, bookkeepers work in every industry and make and average of over $40,000 per year.
To qualify for the CPB certification exam, you must complete NACPB courses in accounting, payroll, and Intuit QuickBooks fundamentals. You can bypass these requirements by submitting academic transcripts that show you have already completed comparable coursework at an accredited postsecondary institution. Below, we’ve included a few details on the certification programs available for three of the top small business accounting software. Because the course is self-paced, the certificate can be completed within a couple of months depending on how much time is available in your schedule.