Guides

Guides for starting and running a small business

Step-by-step guides for owners in the United States and Canada, each with a checklist, the official sources and the date we last checked them. General information, not legal or tax advice.

Starting up

Tax numbers, the legal structure and the bank account: the first decisions, in order.

A new business owner filling in a form at his kitchen table beside a maroon folder

US · 10 min

How to get an EIN for your business: a step-by-step guide

Who needs an employer identification number, what to have ready, how to apply free on IRS.gov, the hours, and what to do with the number once you have it.

Last reviewed October 26, 2026

A woman starting a business from her home office in winter, writing in a maroon notebook

Canada · 10 min

How to get a CRA business number and program accounts

What the business number is, which program accounts you need (RT for GST/HST, RP for payroll, RC for corporations), and how to register through Business Registration Online.

Last reviewed October 26, 2026

Two business partners talking over printed pages in a coffee shop

US · 11 min

Choosing a business structure in the US: sole proprietorship, LLC, S corp, C corp or partnership

How each US business structure is taxed, what it means for your bookkeeping and paperwork, and the questions to take to an attorney or CPA before you file.

Last reviewed October 26, 2026

A craft studio owner reading printed pages at her worktable, holding a maroon pen

Canada · 11 min

Choosing a business structure in Canada: sole proprietorship, partnership or corporation

How sole proprietorships, partnerships and corporations are taxed in Canada, federal vs provincial incorporation, and what each choice means for your books.

Last reviewed October 26, 2026

A young business owner signing papers at a bank desk with a maroon folder

US and Canada · 10 min

How to open a business bank account, and set it up in your books

The documents US and Canadian banks ask for, how to choose an account, why keeping business money separate matters, and how to enter the account in your books.

Last reviewed October 26, 2026

Running it

The first employee, the first set of books, and the records and deadlines that come with them.

A landscaping business owner handing his first employee a clipboard of forms on her first day

US · 12 min

Hiring your first employee in the US: the complete checklist

Everything to do before and after the first payday: EIN and state accounts, W-4 and I-9, new-hire reporting, payroll taxes, workers' comp, posters and the records to keep.

Last reviewed October 26, 2026

A bakery owner going over forms with her first employee at a table in the back of the shop

Canada · 12 min

Hiring your first employee in Canada: the complete checklist

The steps before and after the first payday: the CRA payroll account, SIN and TD1, CPP, EI and income tax deductions, remittances, ROEs, T4s and provincial rules.

Last reviewed October 26, 2026

A self-employed designer sorting paper receipts into two neat stacks beside a maroon file

US and Canada · 11 min

How to do bookkeeping for a small business for the first time

A step-by-step system for your first set of books: separate money, pick a method and tool, set up accounts, record sales and expenses, reconcile and close each month.

Last reviewed October 26, 2026

A row of manila file folders fanned out on a desk, one with a maroon tab

US and Canada · 11 min

How to set up your chart of accounts, with examples for a service and a retail business

Step by step: choose a numbering scheme, match your tax return, add only the accounts you need, and two complete example charts you can copy.

Last reviewed October 26, 2026

A business owner shelving storage boxes in a tidy back office, one box maroon

US and Canada · 12 min

Small business tax deadlines and record keeping: what to keep, for how long, and how

The main US and Canadian filing dates for the 2026 tax year, how long the IRS and CRA say to keep records, what to keep, and a simple system for keeping it.

Last reviewed October 26, 2026

More on everyday bookkeeping, payroll and deadlines is on the blog, with dates for the year ahead in the tax calendar and free spreadsheets in the templates.

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