Bookkeeping for
Installation
Contractors.
Some installs come from a big-box retailer or a dealer that pays you in batches, minus chargebacks. Others are direct jobs with a deposit and materials you order yourself. When both run through one account, you can't tell what an install actually paid. We sort it by job and by source.
Flat monthly pricing · Cancel anytime · Dedicated bookkeeper
Retail Programs,
Dealers or Direct
Installers get work from three places: retail install programs, dealers and their own sales. Each source pays differently and leaks money in different ways, so your books should keep them apart.
Retail & Dealer Installers
You install for a big-box store's install program, a flooring or cabinet dealer, or a window company. They sell the job and pay you for labor, often on a remittance that lumps many jobs together with deductions.
- Remittances split back to each job
- Deductions and chargebacks recorded
- Extra work and return trips tracked
- Labor-only revenue by program
- Payments matched to job or PO numbers
Direct-to-Homeowner Installers
You sell, measure, order and install. Deposits come in at signing, materials get ordered and paid for weeks before install day, and the final payment comes at completion. Margin depends on all three.
- Deposits held until the install is done
- Special-order materials coded to the job
- Supplier deposits and prepayments tracked
- Final payments and financing matched
- Material and labor margin per job
Multi-Trade Install Shops
Flooring and countertops, windows and doors, or fence plus garage doors. Each product carries its own material costs, crews and callback patterns, and they shouldn't share one line on your P&L.
- Revenue and margin by product line
- Installer crews and subs by trade
- Multi-visit jobs tracked start to finish
- Vehicle and trailer costs categorized
- Callbacks tracked by product line
The Financial Headaches
We Fix
Install work pays on volume, so small deductions and missed costs add up quietly. Here's where the books usually slip.
Remittances that lump jobs together
A retailer or dealer pays a batch of jobs in one deposit, net of chargebacks and adjustments. Booked as one lump, you can't tell which jobs were paid in full, which were shorted, and which never paid at all. We break each remittance back out to the job or PO.
Chargebacks that vanish into sales
Rework, damage claims, missed appointments and material shortages can all be deducted from what a retailer or dealer pays you. If chargebacks get netted out of sales, they disappear. We record them on their own so you can see the total, question the wrong ones, and spot patterns.
Materials paid long before the job pays
On direct jobs, special-order flooring, cabinets or windows get paid for weeks ahead, and the deposit may not cover them. Expensed when paid, they make one month look terrible and the install month look great. We hold them to the job so each install shows its true margin.
Labor-only and supply jobs in one bucket
A labor-only install and a job where you supply the materials can bill similar amounts and earn very different profit. Mixed together, your margin is an average that tells you nothing. We separate the two so you can see what each type of job really pays.
Every Month
Everything You Need,
Nothing You Don't
We set up your books around where your installs come from: retail program remittances, dealer payments and direct jobs with deposits. Everything runs in QuickBooks Online, and we connect to your scheduling or job software or work from its reports.
Monthly Bookkeeping
Every account reconciled, every transaction categorized, every month. You get a clean P&L and balance sheet you can read and use to make decisions.
See Full Details →Financial Reporting
A P&L split by source and product line, profit per install, a chargeback summary by program and crew, and labor-only work shown apart from furnish-and-install jobs.
See Full Details →Bank Reconciliation
Every business account and credit card matched and verified each month. No mystery charges. No unresolved transactions. No surprises.
See Full Details →Accounts Payable & Receivable
We match retailer and dealer remittances to jobs, track deposits and final payments on direct work, and record supplier orders and prepayments against the job they're for.
See Full Details →Catch-Up Bookkeeping
Months or years behind? We clean it all up before monthly service starts, at a flat price per month behind that we quote up front.
See Full Details →Payroll Support
Payroll for employee installers runs through Gusto, which files the payroll taxes, W-2s and 1099s. We reconcile every run and track sub installer payments by job.
See Full Details →"Dan is crucial to the financial management of my business. I am a busy guy that started a side hustle and it took off. It became too tedious for me to manage bookkeeping, and I decided to outsource that service to create time to focus on my operations, customers, and services."
Installers
FAQ
Questions we hear from installers before they sign on with Tides.
Based in Greenville, SC —
Serving Clients Nationwide
100% remote bookkeeping for small businesses across South Carolina and throughout the United States.
Beyond Installers,
We Serve All These Businesses
Tides Bookkeeping specializes in bookkeeping across 12 distinct industries. Industry-specific expertise means fewer errors, better categorization, and a bookkeeper who already understands how your business makes money.
More for installers
Related guides and pages.
Finance terms worth knowing
Plain-English explainers, no jargon.
Finish the Install.
We'll Handle
The Books.
Schedule a free 15-minute call. We'll review your current setup, answer your questions, and give you a flat monthly quote — no pressure.
No credit card required · No long-term contracts · Cancel anytime
Simple, Flat-Rate Pricing
Flat monthly plans scaled to your business — no hourly billing and no surprise invoices. You always know the price up front.
★★★★★ 5.0 · 8 client reviews on Intuit's ProAdvisor directory
✔ Reviewed by Daniel Cope, Advanced QuickBooks ProAdvisor · Updated August 2026