Accounting for Agency Owners (Marketing, Design, Dev)
Project profitability, contractor payments, and cash flow for creative agencies.
AI accounting for UK creative and digital agencies. Track project profitability, manage contractor payments, handle retainers, and understand which clients are actually profitable. Built for agency economics.
Free during Early Access - No credit card required
Problems We Solve
No idea which projects are actually profitable
Per-project P&L shows real profitability after all costs
Managing payments to contractors and freelancers
Track contractor costs per project with easy invoicing
Retainers, projects, and ad-hoc work create billing complexity
Flexible invoicing for any billing model
Cash flow gaps between project stages
Cash flow forecasting based on project milestones
How AccountsOS Helps
Project profitability clarity
See actual profit per project after team time, contractor costs, software, and overheads. Know which clients to grow and which to fire.
Contractor cost management
Log contractor invoices against projects. See your blended team cost and pass-through margins.
Flexible billing support
Invoice retainers, milestone payments, hourly work, or fixed-fee projects. All tracking built in.
Cash flow visibility
See when milestone payments are due and how contractor payments affect your runway.
Features for Agency Owners (Marketing, Design, Dev)
Project-level P&L tracking
Contractor payment management
Retainer and milestone billing
Time tracking integration
Client profitability reports
Resource cost allocation
Agency-specific tax planning
Multi-client invoicing
“We thought our biggest client was our best. AccountsOS showed they were actually our least profitable after contractor costs. Changed how we price completely.”
Emma Blake
Founder, Pixel&Code (Digital Agency), Leeds
Common Deductible Expenses
Contractor and freelancer costs
30-50% of project revenueDesign, development, copywriting subcontractors
Design and dev tools
£200-800/monthAdobe CC, Figma, InVision, dev environments
Project management tools
£100-500/monthMonday.com, Asana, Basecamp, Harvest
Stock assets
£100-500/monthPhotography, video clips, fonts, icons
Client entertainment
£200-1,000/monthNot tax-deductible but track for pricing purposes
AccountsOS automatically categorizes these expenses when you scan receipts or import bank transactions.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I track profitability per client or project?
Create projects and tag all income and expenses to them. Include contractor invoices, team time (valued at your internal rate), software allocated to projects, and any pass-through costs. AccountsOS calculates true profit per project.
What about contractor payments and CIS?
Track contractor invoices and payments. For construction-related work, CIS deductions are handled. We help you stay compliant with subcontractor payment rules and reporting.
How do agencies handle retainers in accounting?
Retainer payments can be recognized monthly or as work is delivered, depending on your preference and accountant's guidance. AccountsOS supports either approach with proper revenue recognition.
Can I see utilization and team costs?
If you track time, we calculate utilization rates and effective hourly costs. See if your team is over or under-utilized and how that affects project margins.
What about work in progress (WIP)?
Track unbilled time as work in progress. See your WIP balance and convert to invoices when milestones are hit. Important for accurate financial reporting.
How do multi-entity agencies work?
Some agencies have separate Ltd companies for different services or partners. AccountsOS can track each entity separately with consolidated reporting if needed.
Accounting for Other Industries
Ready to simplify your accounting?
Join agency owners (marketing, design, dev) across the UK who trust AccountsOS with their books.
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