The comparison that matters
Every option below is a legitimate choice for some company. This is where each one tends to break.
| Approach | Overlap with US hours | Where it breaks |
|---|---|---|
| Hire domesticallyPost, screen, interview, offer | Full | Three to five months to fill, and the fully loaded cost is roughly double the salary line |
| Offshore to South AsiaLarge BPO or dedicated provider | 1 to 3 hours | Questions asked at 4pm get answered tomorrow, which quietly adds days to every close |
| Freelance marketplacesUpwork, Fiverr, and similar | Varies | Split attention across clients, high turnover, and no continuity of institutional knowledge |
| Outsourced accounting firmFractional or fully managed | Full | You buy an output, not a team member, and pricing climbs steeply with transaction volume |
| Nearshore in Latin AmericaWhat we do | 6 to 8 hours | Requires real vetting, which is the part we own |
What the time zone buys you
An unexplained variance found at 2pm gets chased down before end of day rather than sitting in a queue overnight. Across a five day close that difference compounds fast.
AP cycles depend on approvals moving between people in hours, not across a date line. Your specialist is online when your approvers are.
Standups, Slack threads, and the informal knowledge that never makes it into documentation. People who work your hours absorb how your company operates.
The talent pool
This is not a region being retrofitted for finance work. Business and accounting are among the most common degrees across the major LATAM markets, and the local profession has its own certification tracks, licensing bodies, and Big Four presence.
The regional equivalent of a licensed public accountant involves a five year university program and, in most countries, registration with a professional council. Many candidates also carry IFRS training, and some hold US CPA or CMA credentials outright.
QuickBooks, NetSuite, Sage Intacct, Xero, Bill.com, and ADP are widely used by the multinationals and shared service centers operating across the region. Most of our candidates have touched the platform you run before you hire them.
We interview for the ability to explain a reconciliation difference to a US controller, not for conversational small talk. Candidates who cannot do that do not reach your shortlist regardless of how strong the technical evaluation was.
A role with a US company at a competitive local salary is a strong position in most LATAM markets. That shows up as tenure, which matters more in accounting than almost any other function because institutional knowledge is the job.
Where we recruit
Salary bands, English levels, time zone overlap, and labor law all differ meaningfully across the region. Part of scoping a role is picking the right market for it.
| Market | Overlap with US Eastern | Typically strongest for |
|---|---|---|
| Mexico | Full day | AP/AR, payroll, shared service experience |
| Colombia | Full day | Bookkeeping, staff accounting, analysis |
| Costa Rica and Panama | Full day | Controllers, audit background, strong English |
| Ecuador and Peru | Full day | Reconciliation-heavy roles, cost efficiency |
| Argentina and Uruguay | 1 to 2 hours ahead | FP&A, financial analysis, IFRS depth |
| Brazil and Chile | 1 to 2 hours ahead | Senior finance, multinational experience |
| Dominican Republic | Full day | Bookkeeping, AP/AR, back office support |
We recruit across more markets than these. If your role has an unusual profile, ask and we will tell you where it is easiest to find.
Send us the role and we will tell you what it costs, how long it takes, and which country makes the most sense for it.
