There’s no single answer to what filing your company accounts costs, because the honest answer depends on three separate things: how you file, how complex your company is, and — as of this year — a rule change that quietly removed the free option most small companies used to rely on.
Here’s what filing actually costs in 2026, broken down by route, so you can see where your money’s going before you pick one.
The free option is gone
Until 31 March 2026, HMRC ran a joint online filing service with Companies House that let directors of small limited companies prepare and submit their statutory accounts and CT600 Corporation Tax return together, for free. It was basic and didn’t support more complex accounts, but for a straightforward micro-entity, it worked — and it cost nothing.
That service closed for good on 31 March 2026. From 1 April 2026, HMRC only accepts a Company Tax Return filed through HMRC-recognised commercial software. Companies House still lets you file accounts through its own web service for now, but the tax return side — the part HMRC actually assesses — now requires a paid tool or an accountant, regardless of how simple your company is.
Route 1: DIY with paid software
For a straightforward micro-entity with clean, simple records, budget commercial software for CT600 filing runs from roughly £20 to £100 a year. Some tools bundle the accounts preparation and the CT600 together for a single fixed fee closer to £50–£150. This is the cheapest route that’s still compliant post-April 2026, but it puts the responsibility for getting the figures right entirely on you.
Route 2: A qualified accountant
Pricing varies more here, mostly driven by company size and how clean your records are coming in:
- Micro-entities with low transaction volume and tidy records: roughly £250–£500 for accounts preparation and CT600 filing together
- Small companies under FRS 102 Section 1A, with more disclosure required: typically from around £800 upward, rising with complexity — director’s loan accounts, multiple shareholders, or hire purchase agreements can push this past £1,500
- Full compliance packages that bundle accounts, CT600, confirmation statement, and sometimes payroll or VAT: commonly £1,000–£2,500 a year, or paid monthly as an ongoing service rather than a single annual bill
The gap between a £300 quote and a £1,800 quote for what sounds like the same job usually comes down to which accounting standard applies — a small company under FRS 102 genuinely takes longer to prepare than a micro-entity under FRS 105, and the fee reflects that.
What actually drives the cost up
Regardless of which route you choose, a few things reliably push the price higher:
- Disorganised records. A shoebox of receipts takes far longer to turn into usable figures than records kept tidily throughout the year.
- Filing under FRS 102 instead of FRS 105. More disclosure means more preparation time, whether you’re paying an accountant or working through software yourself.
- Director’s loan accounts, multiple shareholders, or intercompany transactions. Each of these adds complexity a simple single-director company won’t have.
- VAT registration and payroll. These aren’t part of the accounts filing itself, but they’re commonly bundled into “compliance package” pricing, which inflates the headline number.
Dormant companies cost less
If your company isn’t trading, filing is simpler and cheaper across the board — fixed-fee dormant filings commonly sit around £50, since there’s no profit and loss activity to prepare or verify.
Which route is right for you
DIY software makes sense if your company is genuinely simple — one director, clean records, no VAT registration or payroll — and you’re comfortable taking responsibility for the figures being right. An accountant earns their fee the moment your situation has any complexity at all: multiple shareholders, a director’s loan account, or accounts you’d rather not personally guarantee to HMRC. If you’d like a fixed-fee quote based on your actual numbers rather than a bracket, our accounts filing service can tell you exactly where you land.
