Bookkeeping Certifications (CPB and CB)

Bookkeeping certifications validate advanced skills in financial reporting, payroll management, and taxation. These optional credentials can build your credibility and help you qualify for higher-paying jobs.

Bookkeepers often pursue certified professional bookkeeper (CPB) or certified bookkeeper (CB) credentials. The National Association of Certified Public Bookkeepers (NACPB) offers the CPB certification program, and the American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers (AIPB) administers CB certification.

CPB and CB certifications overlap in some ways but differ in others, requiring you to consider the merits of each option. Use the information below to help guide your research.

Why Pursue a Bookkeeping Certification?

How Do You Qualify for a Bookkeeping Credential?

CPB and CB certification programs both require candidates to pass rigorous examinations, but the credentials have different eligibility guidelines.

Aspiring CPBs must first complete NACPB's proprietary training program, which includes coursework and applied components. Meanwhile, AIPB's CB credentialing program emphasizes professional experience, requiring candidates to have relevant professional experience.

While CPB and CB credentials are recognized nationally in the United States, many other countries have bookkeeping certification programs. Keep this in mind if your career goals include international job placements.

The following subsections explore educational and experience requirements in further detail.

Educational Requirements

Neither NACPB nor AIPB requires you to hold any particular diploma or degree to qualify for CPB or CB bookkeeping certifications. However, specific educational requirements still apply.

To qualify for the CPB certification exam, you must complete NACPB courses in accounting, payroll, and Intuit QuickBooks fundamentals. You can bypass these requirements by submitting academic transcripts that show you have already completed comparable coursework at an accredited postsecondary institution.

AIPB offers optional CB prep courses. However, AIPB recommends that candidates develop their knowledge of various bookkeeping proficiencies. According to AIPB, more than 1,000 postsecondary institutions offer courses that prepare students for the CB exam. You can also take such courses to prepare yourself.

Professional Requirements

CPB and CB bookkeeping certifications include experience requirements, which you must meet to fully qualify for initial credentialing. To earn the CPB designation, you will need at least one year of professional experience. Notably, NACPB offers a bookkeeping experience program that can help you meet this requirement.

To become a CB, AIPB mandates that you must have two years of full-time professional experience or 3,000 hours of part-time or freelance experience working as a bookkeeper. However, you can accrue these hours before or after you pass the CB credentialing exam.

If you choose to acquire experience after the CB exam, you will have three years from the date you earned your passing score to meet the requirement.

What Do CPB and CB Exams Cover?

As of 2024, NACPB's nationally standardized CPB exam covered four parts, though its website currently refers to a "three-part" exam, indicating that the organization may have combined some subject matter on the test or slightly altered the format. These sections reflect the higher education courses (bookkeeping, payroll, and QuickBooks Online) that future test-takers must complete.

Each CPB exam includes 50 questions, which examinees must finish in two hours or less. As of Feb. 2025, NACPB has set fees at $80 for members and $100 for non-members.

AIPB's CB exam has a more complex structure and comprises four subsections:

• Part 1: Adjustments and Error Correction
• Part 2: Payroll and Depreciation
• Part 3: Inventory
• Part 4: Internal Controls and Fraud Prevention

Two of the four subsections (Parts 1 and 2) contain two separate tests instead of one. The two tests in Part 1 cover:

• Adjustments (Adjusting Entries)
• Error Correction

Similarly, Part 2 covers each of the subsection's two key topics with separate tests:

• Payroll
• Depreciation

Each test uses a multiple-choice format. Parts 1 and 2 are closed-book, computerized tests issued at Prometric Test Centers, while Parts 3 and 4 use an open-book format.

You can take each part individually and in any order. However, you must pass all four parts within three years, or you will have to start over.

The following table offers a simplified breakdown of the CB exam:

Scoring the Exams

As of 2024, NACPB requires candidates to earn a cumulative score of at least 75% on the CPB exam to qualify for certification. Each question carries equal weight when exams are scored. Examinees have their tests scored electronically immediately after completion and receive the results immediately.

AIPB's CB exam uses a more complex scoring system, as passing standards differ among the six individual multiple-choice tests covered in the exam:

For Parts 1 and 2, which occur at Prometric Test Centers, you will automatically receive your grade immediately after the test ends. For Parts 3 and 4, you can choose between paper and online test formats. Paper tests appear at the end of AIPB's official study workbooks for each of those two exam subsections.

AIPB's retesting policies also vary by section. Parts 1 and 2 each contain two separate tests. If you pass one test but not the other, you receive credit for the test you passed. You can retake the other test after 30 days for a $60 fee, and you will take a different test from the first time.

If you do not pass Part 3 or 4 the first time, you can retake either exam anytime and at no cost.

How Do You Register for the Exam?

You qualify to register for the CPB exam after completing NACPB's required prep courses. If you have already completed acceptable equivalents to these bookkeeping courses at accredited postsecondary institutions, you can register for the exam once NACPB reviews your academic transcripts and approves your waiver request.

For additional information on examination and registration requirements, visit the NACPB's CPB licensing resource.

To register for AIPB's CB exam, you must:

• Complete a paper application form and mail a signed, dated copy to AIPB.
• Wait for AIPB to notify you that they have reviewed and approved your application.
• Use the testing identification number you will receive with your application approval to schedule your testing sessions at a Prometric Test Center.

You can cancel or reschedule your Prometric test appointment without fees or penalties if you contact the Prometric National Call Center before 12:00 noon (local time) at least two days before your scheduled test. Alternatively, you can cancel or reschedule your test online.

When you arrive at Prometric for your test, you will need to present one of the following forms of primary identification:

• Valid state driver's license
• Valid passport
• State or military ID card
• Student ID card

You will also need to supply a secondary form of identification, which can be a credit card, debit card, or U.S. permanent resident card (green card).

How Can You Prepare for a Bookkeeper Exam?

Start studying early for your bookkeeper certification exam and focus specifically on the material you know will be tested. To that end, review the topics covered on the CPB exam and the concepts included in the CB exam.

From there, you can follow these strategies to prepare for the examination:

Practice Exams and Study Resources

CPB Exam

• NACPB Bookkeeper Education: These official CPB exam prep courses cover the accounting concepts and test topics you must master to earn your bookkeeper certification. NACPB requires them of all candidates unless they have completed substantially similar equivalents at accredited postsecondary institutions.
• NACPB Assessment Exams: NACPB members can access pre- and post-assessment tests. They can take these tests before and after each NACPB bookkeeper education course to identify their strengths and areas for improvement before sitting for the certification exam.

CB Exam

• AIPB's Certified Bookkeeper Online Course: This online prep course offers a structured method of practicing the material on the CB exam. The self-paced, asynchronous course includes workbooks with exercises, homework, and quizzes you can use to assess your progress.
• Certified Bookkeeper Course Series: As an alternative to taking an AIPB course, you can purchase softcover workbooks for each of the six tests in the CB exam. AIPB also offers workbooks in e-Book form, and the materials include quizzes that closely match the questions on the exam.

What Is Needed to Maintain the Certification?

NACPB's CPB bookkeeping certification does not expire. However, NACPB offers certification and licensing programs. You qualify for a license by completing all certifications required for the class of licensure you seek. NACPB licenses expire annually on Dec. 31. To maintain a CPB license, you must complete at least 24 hours of continuing professional education (CPE) each year.

AIPB also requires CBs to complete CPE to maintain their credentials. This process involves completing at least 60 CPE hours every three years, except for the initial certification cycle. After receiving their initial certification, CBs receive 40 CPE hours, leaving them with only 20 hours to complete by the beginning of the first renewal period.

Should You Get CPB or CB Certification?

The CPB and CB bookkeeping certification programs overlap in many ways. However, the CPB path may be better for less experienced bookkeepers as it requires only one year of professional experience. AIPB's CB program requires two years or 3,000 hours.

Also, NACPB allows certification candidates to substitute the official bookkeeping experience program for one year of paid professional experience. AIPB does not have an equivalent option, though it does allow candidates to meet professional experience requirements before or after passing the exam.

Either credential can broaden your appeal to prospective employers. However, earning both certifications is likely redundant, and you can save time and money by choosing only one credential to pursue.

Questions About Bookkeeping Certifications