Intuit QuickBooks - QuickBooks is the most well known small business accounting and bookkeeping software, and it's well-deserved. All plans make it easy to track income and expenses, send invoices, and receive payments, and as you grow, you can upgrade your plan to track inventory, track time, and run your payroll.

You might hear stories of people that found their first client within the first few months of trying, but this isn't the norm. In fact, it took one experienced bookkeeper: 10 months to find their first client. Two years to go parttime; an additional year to full-time.

Here's an easy way to think about it—bookkeepers lay the groundwork by recording financial transactions so that accountants can analyze financial statements and provide strategic recommendations.