Ceterus
Ceterus is a Charleston, SC-based financial technology company providing done-for-you automated bookkeeping, AI-powered benchmarking analytics, and tax services for franchise small business owners across 20+ franchise brands in fitness, QSR, and personal services.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2008
- HeadquartersCharleston, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Ceterus does
Ceterus is a Charleston, South Carolina-based private financial technology company founded in 2008 that delivers done-for-you automated accounting and benchmarked financial reporting to franchise small business owners and multi-unit operators. Operating as a remote-first team of 51–100 employees, the company serves franchisees across more than 20 franchise brands spanning fitness (OrangeTheory, Club Pilates, Anytime Fitness, Crumbl, StretchLab, The Joint, Pure Barre, OHM Fitness, Alloy Personal Training), QSR (Jersey Mike's, Jimmy John's, Tropical Smoothie, Cold Stone, Little Caesars, Bundt), personal services (European Wax, Amazing Lash, Waxing the City, Heyday, Hydralive), home services (MaidPro, Primrose), and automotive (Fly My Ride, Ziebart).
Ceterus's platform comprises two primary product lines. Ceterus Bookkeeping, priced at $399/month, is a subscription SaaS product that connects to franchisee bank, credit card, POS, and payroll accounts via Plaid and Finicity; integrates with payroll providers (ADP, Paychex, Gusto, Rippling, Workstream, Dominion Payroll) and QuickBooks Online; and uses automated transaction categorization, reconciliation, and a "blockers" system to deliver on-time financial statements (P&L, balance sheet, cash flow) and complete the monthly close in under five minutes. Ceterus Insights Pro, an add-on at $20/month, layers AI-powered natural-language coaching, peer benchmarking, cohort-based performance rankings, and interactive dashboards on top of the bookkeeping dataset, while a separate Ceterus Insights franchise-wide reporting platform serves franchisors with FDD Item 19 support. A native mobile app was launched on iOS and Android in 2026 to extend blocker resolution and statement upload to franchisees' phones. The bundle is rounded out with tax preparation services (company income tax at $1,500/year, personal income tax at $900/year, sales tax at $125/month, personal property tax at $50/month) and modular add-ons including catch-up bookkeeping ($250/mo), AP bill pay ($75/mo), accelerated close ($50/mo), and franchisor reporting ($50/mo).
Ceterus runs a sales-led go-to-market combining direct Zoom-based demos, franchise brand parent channel partnerships (Purpose Brands, Xponential, Ziebart, Sequel Brands, FIT Brands, Alloy Personal Training, Extraordinary Brands), payroll provider co-marketing, content marketing, and a $500 Visa gift card referral program open to both customers and non-customers. The company has raised approximately $33.65M across rounds from 2016 through 2022 from Alerion Ventures, Grotech Ventures, Harbert Growth Partners, IDEA Fund Partners, and TechOperators Venture Capital, and is led by CEO Bill Jones, COO Chris Rossie, CTO Ed Murray, CRO William Worthy, and VP Accounting & Tax Kevin Werkman.
Ceterus firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Ceterus
- Legal name
- Ceterus, Inc.
- Website
- https://ceterus.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2008
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Ceterus is a Charleston, SC-based financial technology company providing done-for-you automated bookkeeping, AI-powered benchmarking analytics, and tax services for franchise small business owners across 20+ franchise brands in fitness, QSR, and personal services.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Ceterus industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Franchise Financial Management Software
- NAICS
- Offices of Certified Public Accountants (541211), Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services (54121)
- SIC
- Finance Services (6199)
- akta.pro primary industry
- General Ledger & Close (Journal Entries, Month-End Close, Reconciliations) (BPAAAGAC)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Accounts Payable (Invoice Processing, 2/3-Way Match, Vendor Payments) (BPAAAGAA)
Keywords
Where Ceterus is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Charleston
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Ceterus business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Bookkeeping Subscription: Monthly subscription at $399/mo including automated bookkeeping, QuickBooks Online subscription, bank/POS reconciliation, financial statements, dedicated accountant support, and 1099 management. Add-ons available for catch-up bookkeeping, AP bill pay, accelerated close, and franchisor reporting
- Insights Subscription: Monthly subscription at $20/mo for AI-powered financial insights, peer benchmarking, and brand comparison features
- Tax Preparation Services: Annual and monthly tax services including Company Income Tax ($1,500/year), Personal Income Tax ($900/year), Sales Tax ($125/month), and Personal Property Tax ($50/month)
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Bookkeeping at $399/month |
| Subscription | Monthly | Insights at $20/month |
| Subscription | Annual | Company Income Tax at $1,500/year |
| Subscription | Annual | Personal Income Tax at $900/year |
| Subscription | Monthly | Sales Tax at $125/month |
| Subscription | Monthly | Personal Property Tax at $50/month |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels5 records
Ceterus product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Ceterus provides done-for-you automated bookkeeping and AI-powered financial analytics purpose-built for franchise owners and franchisors. The platform connects to banks, POS systems, payroll providers, and credit cards to automatically categorize transactions, reconcile accounts, and deliver on-time financial statements, with peer benchmarking and franchisor reporting capabilities layered on top.
Product overview
Ceterus offers a franchise-focused financial technology platform comprising two primary products: Ceterus Bookkeeping (core SaaS platform) and Ceterus Insights/Ceterus Insights Pro (analytics add-on). Ceterus Bookkeeping automates accounting workflows for franchisees by connecting to banks, POS systems, payroll providers, and credit cards via Plaid/Finicity, automatically categorizing transactions and delivering financial statements. Ceterus Insights Pro builds on this by adding AI-powered benchmarking, peer comparisons, and coaching. The platform integrates natively with QuickBooks Online and various payroll providers. Ceterus Tax Services provides bundled tax preparation and filing. Optional add-ons include Catch Up Bookkeeping, A/P Bill Pay Management, Accelerated Financial Close, and Franchisor Reporting. A mobile app for iOS and Android extends the bookkeeping experience to mobile devices.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Ceterus Bookkeeping: Automated bookkeeping solution for franchisees that handles bank reconciliation, transaction categorization, and financial statement preparation.
- Ceterus Insights
Products and services
- Ceterus Bookkeeping Automated franchise bookkeeping platform that pulls data from bank, POS, payroll, and credit cards; applies consistent categorization; reconciles accounts; and delivers accurate, on-time financial statements (P&L, balance sheet, cash flow) for franchise owners.
- Ceterus Insights Pro
- Ceterus Bookkeeping Mobile App iOS and Android mobile application enabling franchise owners to upload statements, update credentials, respond to transaction coding requests, add comments for the bookkeeping team, and receive push notifications for action items.
- Ceterus Insights Franchise-wide reporting and analytics platform for franchisors and franchisees that collects and normalizes franchisee financials from Ceterus Bookkeeping, QuickBooks Online, or manual uploads, delivering real-time dashboards, benchmarks, trend reporting, drill-down visibility, and FDD Item 19 support.
- Ceterus Tax Services Tax preparation and filing services including company income tax ($1,500 annually), personal income tax ($900 annually), sales tax ($125/month), and personal property tax ($50/month), provided by Ceterus accountants specializing in franchise taxation.
Quantifiable outcome
- Blockers system completes monthly close in under 5 minutes
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Ceterus
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Ceterus technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration9 records
AI capability6 records
Feature6 records
Ceterus partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
14 partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Purpose BrandscoreFranchise brand partner serving multiple franchise concepts; Ceterus provides bookkeeping and financial reporting services to franchisees within the Purpose Brands network
- XponentialcoreMajor fitness franchise brand partner with multiple fitness concepts; Ceterus serves as preferred bookkeeping provider for Xponential franchisees
- ZiebartcoreAutomotive franchise brand partner; Ceterus provides standardized bookkeeping and financial reporting for Ziebart franchisees
- ADPcorePayroll provider integration partner; Ceterus integrates with ADP for automated payroll data synchronization in franchise bookkeeping
- PaychexcorePayroll provider integration partner; automated payroll data connection for franchise financial reporting
- GustocorePayroll provider integration partner; Ceterus connects with Gusto for seamless payroll data integration
- RipplingcorePayroll and HR platform integration partner; Ceterus integrates with Rippling for unified franchise financial data
- PlaidcoreFinancial data connection provider; Ceterus uses Plaid to securely link franchisee bank accounts for automated bookkeeping
- QuickBooks OnlinecoreAccounting platform integration; Ceterus bundles QuickBooks Online subscription and syncs financial data with franchise bookkeeping platform
- Sequel BrandscoreFranchise brand partner; Ceterus provides bookkeeping services to Sequel Brands franchise network
- No to the Man BrandscoreFranchise brand partner; Ceterus serves as preferred bookkeeping provider for franchisees
- FIT BrandscoreFitness franchise brand partner; Ceterus provides standardized financial reporting for FIT Brands franchisees
- Alloy Personal TrainingcoreFitness franchise brand partner; Ceterus integrated as bookkeeping solution for franchise network
- Extraordinary BrandscoreFranchise brand partner; Ceterus provides financial reporting and bookkeeping services
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Ceterus competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Bench: Bench provides done-for-you online bookkeeping and financial reporting for SMBs using a combination of software and dedicated accountants. It is a direct competitor to Ceterus Bookkeeping in the outsourced, tech-enabled bookkeeping layer, though Bench is horizontal across SMBs rather than franchise-specialized.
- Pilot: Pilot offers automated bookkeeping, tax, and CFO services primarily to startups and SMBs, with dedicated bookkeepers and software integrations. It is a direct competitor to Ceterus on tech-enabled bookkeeping, with broader vertical reach but less franchise-specific tooling.
- Botkeeper: Botkeeper combines AI-driven bookkeeping automation with human accountants for SMBs and accounting firms. It competes with Ceterus on the automated bookkeeping and reconciliation capability, with a horizontal SMB and accounting-partner focus.
- Bookkeeper360: Bookkeeper360 provides cloud-based bookkeeping, accounting, tax, and advisory services to SMBs, often integrated with Xero and QuickBooks. It is a comparable done-for-you bookkeeping provider competing in the SMB market that Ceterus also targets.
- inDinero: inDinero provides outsourced bookkeeping, accounting, tax, and CFO services to growth-stage SMBs. It overlaps directly with Ceterus's accounting-and-tax service bundle and serves a comparable SMB segment.
Broad incumbents
- QuickBooks Live: QuickBooks Live (Intuit) bundles human bookkeeping services with the dominant QuickBooks Online platform. It competes with Ceterus as a broad incumbent offering bookkeeping at scale, with significantly greater brand reach but no franchise-specialized workflows.
- Xero: Xero is a global cloud accounting platform with an accountant/bookkeeper partner ecosystem. It is an adjacent broad incumbent that Ceterus integrates around rather than directly competes with, but it enables alternative bookkeeping stacks for franchise customers.
- FreshBooks: FreshBooks is a cloud accounting platform aimed at SMBs and service-based businesses. It is a broader incumbent in the SMB accounting software market that competes indirectly with Ceterus's QuickBooks-integrated stack.
Emerging players
- Crunchtime: Crunchtime provides restaurant and multi-unit operator software including back-office, inventory, and labor management. It is comparable as a multi-unit operator technology platform that touches franchise financial workflows, though it is more operations-focused than bookkeeping-focused.
- FranConnect: FranConnect is a franchise management software platform for franchisors covering operations, sales, and performance. It is comparable as a franchise-vertical SaaS player that touches franchisor financial reporting and benchmarks, overlapping with Ceterus Insights at the franchisor level.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Ceterus social profiles
Digital presenceCeterus financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Ceterus leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
Ceterus funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds5 records
Investors5 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Ceterus M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Ceterus
What does Ceterus do?
Ceterus provides done-for-you automated bookkeeping and AI-powered financial analytics purpose-built for franchise owners and franchisors. The platform connects to banks, POS systems, payroll providers, and credit cards to automatically categorize transactions, reconcile accounts, and deliver on-time financial statements, with peer benchmarking and franchisor reporting capabilities layered on top.
Is Ceterus a public or private company?
Ceterus is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Ceterus founded?
Ceterus was founded in 2008. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Ceterus based?
Ceterus is headquartered in Charleston, United States, in the North America region.
How does Ceterus make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Bookkeeping Subscription is the primary driver. The others are insights Subscription and tax Preparation Services.
Who are Ceterus's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Bench, Pilot, Botkeeper, Bookkeeper360 and inDinero. Broad incumbents are QuickBooks Live, Xero and FreshBooks. Emerging players are Crunchtime and FranConnect.
Does Ceterus have an API?
No public API is recorded for Ceterus.
What industry is Ceterus in?
Ceterus's product category is Franchise Financial Management Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAAAGAC, General Ledger & Close (Journal Entries, Month-End Close, Reconciliations), with a secondary code of BPAAAGAA, Accounts Payable (Invoice Processing, 2/3-Way Match, Vendor Payments). Its NAICS code is 541211 and its SIC code is 6199.