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Book Free Consultation
Clean, accurate, tax ready books for Chicago small businesses, delivered remotely by a certified ProAdvisor, with automation that ends manual data entry.
Overview
Chicago is one of Illinois’s key business hubs, with finance, manufacturing, and agriculture shaping much of the local economy. We keep Chicago businesses current and accurate, reconcile every account, and deliver clear monthly reports, so your numbers are always something you can act on.
Sample month for a Chicago business
A snapshot of the kind of clean, reconciled month we deliver.
Main industries
We handle the bookkeeping quirks specific to finance businesses, from how revenue and costs flow to the reports that matter.
We handle the bookkeeping quirks specific to manufacturing businesses, from how revenue and costs flow to the reports that matter.
We handle the bookkeeping quirks specific to professional services businesses, from how revenue and costs flow to the reports that matter.
Try it free
Upload or paste a bank statement and instantly get auto-categorized transactions and a live profit and loss. Automation you can see, private in your browser.
Open the P&L tool →Free toolPaste your open invoices and see who owes you and how overdue it is, with a ready to work chase list. Private, in your browser.
Open the receivables tool →Local tax & compliance
Illinois taxes personal income, so owners of pass-through businesses (sole proprietors, LLCs, and S corporations) need clean, reconciled year-end books for their state return.
Illinois’s statewide base sales tax rate is 6.25%. Local taxes are often added on top, so the rate you charge depends on where your sales happen. We track sales tax collected separately from revenue so filing is simple.
Illinois has a flat personal income tax, and local sales taxes are added in most cities and counties.
Most Illinois business filings go to the Illinois Department of Revenue. We keep your books organized so these returns are a simple handoff to you or your CPA.
General information as of 2026, not tax advice. Rates and rules change, so confirm current requirements with the Illinois Department of Revenue or your tax advisor.
Nearby
Local business guide
Every city adds its own licenses, local taxes and deadlines on top of federal and state rules. These are the ones Chicago business owners ask us about most, and the ones we build into your monthly bookkeeping calendar so nothing is missed.
The Illinois Department of Revenue rate file lists Chicago (Cook) at 10.50% from August 1, 2026, up from 10.25%. The DuPage County portion of Chicago has a lower rate. (source) Keep your POS, invoicing and accounting software on the current rate. Out-of-date rates are one of the most common errors we fix during bookkeeping cleanup.
Chicago’s economy is built around life sciences and healthcare, fintech, finance and insurance, manufacturing and transportation and logistics. (source) We support local companies in these sectors and the service businesses around them, from contractors and agencies to professional firms and online sellers. Related services: professional services bookkeeping, technology and SaaS bookkeeping, inventory and cost-of-goods bookkeeping, e-commerce and inventory bookkeeping.
Because we work 100% remotely, businesses across the Chicago area get the same service, including Evanston, Oak Park, Skokie, Naperville, Schaumburg, Oak Brook, Arlington Heights, Des Plaines, Elmhurst, Orland Park, Aurora and Joliet. There are no office visits: we work in your QuickBooks Online or Xero file with secure, read-only bank access and one dedicated bookkeeper.
Looking for a bookkeeper in Chicago?
Get a free consultation and a clear quote based on your transaction volume. Most Chicago clients are fully onboarded within a week.
Book Free ConsultationCall +1 (832) 240-0830FAQ
Yes, we serve small businesses in Chicago and across Illinois entirely remotely, with secure access and one direct contact.
No. Everything is handled remotely through your accounting software, so location inside Chicago or Illinois is never a barrier.
A wide range, with strength in finance, manufacturing, and professional services businesses common in the Chicago area.
We aim to respond within 24 hours, often much faster during business hours.
For the Cook County part of Chicago the combined rate is 10.5% from August 1, 2026, up from 10.25%, because of a 0.25-point increase in the regional transit tax. Update your POS and invoicing and confirm rates with the MyTax Illinois Tax Rate Finder.
Generally yes. Chicago requires a Home Occupation license for business activity at your primary residence, and the business must follow zoning limits on space, employees and deliveries.
Book a free consultation and we will show you exactly how we would support your Chicago business.
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