Keeper vs LedgerSync: Bookkeeping Workflow Automation

Keeper and LedgerSync solve different bottlenecks. Keeper is the operational hub for month‑end close, client Q&A and requests, reporting, and light CRM/tasking tightly connected to QBO/Xero. LedgerSync is the upstream backbone, automating bank connections, daily transactions, monthly statements, and check/deposit images into your GL and cloud storage. If closing work is slow, start with Keeper. If chasing statements is the drag, start with LedgerSync. Many firms at this size pair the two to reduce manual work and shorten cycle time without adding headcount.

Who are these tools really for?

• Keeper: Built for bookkeeping and accounting firms that want one place to run month‑end close, client collaboration and requests, reporting, and task management. Best when review workflows, client messaging, and practice management need to be tightly connected to QBO/Xero.

• LedgerSync: Built for firms that need reliable bank data operations at scale. It fetches transactions, monthly statements, and check/deposit images from thousands of institutions and files them into your GL and cloud storage. Strong fit when "chasing statements" is the bottleneck.

What problem does each one actually solve?

• Keeper: Reduces the friction of monthly close and client communication. Review uncategorized or suspicious transactions, assign follow‑ups, manage requests, track status, and deliver reports from one place.

• LedgerSync: Eliminates manual document collection and fragmented bank feeds. Centralizes transaction and statement fetching and delivers standardized outputs to your accounting system and document storage.

How do they pull in financial data?

• Keeper: Two‑way integrations with QuickBooks Online and Xero bring ledger data into review workflows and push corrections back to the books. Newer modules like AI Bank Feeds and AI Journal Entries expand automation on top of the GL.

• LedgerSync: Uses secure open‑banking connections to link many thousands of institutions, then fetches daily transactions, monthly statements, and images where supported. It can export common bank formats and sync outputs to GLs and storage nightly.

How is categorization handled, and who answers “what is this transaction”?

• Keeper: Surfaces uncategorized and potentially miscoded transactions for review, with built‑in client Q&A and tasking to resolve edge cases inside the month‑end workflow.

• LedgerSync: Provides a Global Rules Engine so firms can standardize "if description/payee/date → then code" logic across clients. For ambiguous items, it can trigger secure client prompts and route answers back for review.

Where do the docs and statements live once they are fetched?

• Keeper: Client documents, requests, and deliverables live in a secure portal tied to each engagement, alongside reports and review artifacts.

• LedgerSync: Nightly pushes organize statements and images into structured folders in tools like Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, SharePoint, Xero Files, or SmartVault.

What integrations matter day-to-day for firms?

• Keeper: Deep QBO and Xero integrations, plus workflow features for email, client portal, CRM, tasks, reporting, 1099s, and more in one system.

• LedgerSync: Cloud storage syncs, exports in GL‑friendly formats, and app integrations that keep statements and images where your team works.

How do pricing and minimums compare?

• Keeper: Keeper offers client-based pricing with three main tiers: Core ($10/client/month) includes ledger integration, client portal, AI Bank Feeds, and task management; Plus ($25/client/month) adds AI financial summaries and receipt management; Scale ($50/client/month) includes accruals and AI journal entries. Add-ons include Tax Suite ($200/month with annual commitment) and Keeper Emails ($10/month per team email). Keeper Lite is available at $8/client/month with limited features. All plans include unlimited users with no flat monthly fee—pricing is based solely on connected clients, with some features requiring annual commitments.

• LedgerSync: LedgerSync prices at $20 per client for standard connections (Mastercard API), with minimums of $180/month for the first two months, then $400/month. Each client gets seven financial institution connections with daily transaction fetching, multi-account access, statement tools, employee access, and cloud sync. Check/deposit images cost $8-200 per client monthly based on volume (1-5 checks to 251+ checks), with client charges capped at $200 monthly. Historical statements (up to two years) cost $50 per account. A 30-day free trial is available for new users.

What about security and compliance?

• Keeper: Cloud‑based platform with enterprise‑grade security, operating as an application layer on top of your accounting systems.

• LedgerSync: Secure credential flows for bank linking and encryption in transit and at rest on major cloud infrastructure. Review current assurances before firm‑wide adoption.

So which should your firm choose?

For U.S.-based accounting firms with fewer than 50 employees and $1–10M in annual revenue, the typical constraints are limited capacity, fragmented tools, and manual processes. Use this rubric:

• If month‑end execution is the main bottleneck

  • Choose Keeper. You'll accelerate closes with structured reviews, built‑in client Q&A and requests, reporting, and lightweight CRM/tasking in one place. This reduces context switching and shortens cycle time without adding headcount.

• If upstream data collection is the main bottleneck

  • Choose LedgerSync. You'll eliminate time spent chasing statements and missing transaction detail by automating bank connections, nightly statement fetching, check/deposit images, and standardized filing to storage/GL.

• If both bottlenecks exist (common at this size)

  • Pair them. Use LedgerSync to industrialize bank data ops and Keeper to run the month‑end and client collaboration. This combo is often the fastest path to reclaiming capacity without a full systems overhaul.

• Buying tip for this firm profile

  • Pilot for 90 days on a representative client cohort. Track close cycle time, number of client follow‑ups per month, and hours spent on statement retrieval. Expand only if KPIs improve by pre‑agreed thresholds, for example 25–40% fewer follow‑ups and 20% faster closes.

What would a combined workflow look like in practice?

1. Connect client banks in LedgerSync to automate daily transactions and monthly statements into your storage and GL.

2. Work your month‑end in Keeper: review flags, assign follow‑ups, message clients, post corrections back to QBO/Xero, and produce deliverables.

3. Use storage integrations to keep the statement archive audit‑ready while Keeper houses the close checklist, comments, and reports.

Conclusion

Keeper and LedgerSync tackle different ends of the bookkeeping pipeline. LedgerSync is the ingestion and filing backbone for bank data. Keeper is the operational hub for closing and client collaboration. If you must pick one, prioritize the biggest bottleneck in your firm today. If you can pair them, you’ll cover both data collection and month‑end execution with less manual work and clearer accountability.

Contact Genwise today to get expert advice tailored to your business and confidently move forward with the right platform.