Minnesota's 9.85% Top Rate Is the Highest in the Midwest — Most Owners Don't Know What They Actually Owe
In a genuine high-tax state, the pass-through entity election is close to mandatory. We keep proactive, remote guidance in your corner.
9.85%
Top Individual Rate
9.80%
Top Corporate Rate
17
Fortune 500 HQs
~80%
Clients Fully Remote
The whole financial picture
From clean books to CFO strategy — one connected team
Whether your Minnesota business needs day-to-day bookkeeping, proactive tax planning, reliable monthly reporting, or fractional CFOstrategy, we handle it as one connected system — not a bookkeeper, a tax preparer, and an advisor who never talk to each other. We meet you where you are and grow with you.
Bookkeeping
Clean, current books
Tax
Proactive planning & filing
Controller
Reliable reporting
CFO
Strategy & forecasting
And all of it delivered remotely. A Minnesota business gets the full range of our services — and the same depth as a local firm — without anyone ever needing to come into an office. About 80% of our clients run the whole relationship this way.
Quick answer
Just how high are Minnesota's business taxes?
High — among the highest in the country. Minnesota's top individual income tax rate is 9.85% and the top corporate rate is 9.80%, plus a 1% surtax on net investment income over $1M. That's exactly why the pass-through entity tax (PTET) electionis close to mandatory planning here: it moves your state tax to a federally deductible entity-level payment, clawing back value the federal SALT cap would otherwise cost you. In a state this expensive, proactive planning isn't optional.
How We Help Minnesota Businesses Thrive
Bookkeeping
Ensure accurate financial records and compliance with Minnesota-specific tax regulations, including sales tax on services and property tax.
Learn More →Payroll
Manage payroll processing, tax filings, and compliance with Minnesota labor laws, including minimum wage and unemployment insurance.
Learn More →Controller
Provide high-level financial oversight, budgeting, and strategic planning tailored to Minnesota's economic landscape and industry trends.
Learn More →Fractional CFO
Offer executive-level financial leadership, growth strategies, and risk management, navigating Minnesota's unique business environment.
Learn More →How We’d Work With You
Our Approach to a Minnesota Business
No two businesses are the same, but the path from “not sure” to in-control is consistent. Here’s what working with us looks like.
Understand Your Position
We get your books clean and reconciled so you can see where the business actually stands, month to month, without guesswork.
Find the Minnesota Opportunities
In a genuine high-tax state, the pass-through entity (PTET) election is close to mandatory planning. We put it to work, watch the 1% net-investment-income surtax on income over $1M, and get multi-state reciprocity right.
Build the System
We put bookkeeping, payroll, and reporting on a repeatable system designed from a whole-company view — so the numbers stay clean and current instead of a year-end scramble.
What You Can Expect
Clarity on what you owe and why, proactive planning instead of surprises, and financials a lender or investor can trust. That's the outcome we build toward.
What This Can Look Like in Real Dollars
IllustrativeSay you run a Twin Cities services business netting about $170,000a year and take all of it as owner’s pay. Every dollar gets hit with the roughly 15.3% self-employment tax. Elect S-corp status, pay yourself a reasonable salary of, say, $100,000, and the remaining ~$70,000 comes out as a distribution that isn’t subject to that tax.
$170K
Net profit
$100K
Reasonable salary
~$10,000
Potential SE-tax saved / yr
That’s roughly $10,000in federal self-employment tax — but in high-tax Minnesota, the PTET election is often the bigger prize, moving your 9.85% state tax to a federally deductible entity-level payment. The catch: the salary has to be genuinely reasonable, and both moves need real numbers behind them.
Run your own numbers on the S-Corp CalculatorServing Businesses Across Minnesota's Diverse Regions
Twin Cities Metro
Key Industries: Technology, Healthcare, Finance
Compliance Note: Complex payroll for multi-state employees due to reciprocity agreements.
Rochester/Southeast MN
Key Industries: Healthcare (Mayo Clinic), Agriculture
Compliance Note: MinnesotaCare provider tax for healthcare entities is a key consideration.
Duluth/Iron Range
Key Industries: Mining, Shipping, Tourism
Compliance Note: Specific tax incentives and regulations for mining operations.
St. Cloud/Central MN
Key Industries: Manufacturing, Education, Agriculture
Compliance Note: Sales tax implications for manufactured goods and agricultural products.
Mankato/Southern MN
Key Industries: Agriculture, Manufacturing, Food Processing
Compliance Note: Understanding property tax for agricultural land and equipment.
Brainerd/Lakes Region
Key Industries: Tourism, Hospitality, Construction
Compliance Note: Seasonal business considerations and sales tax on lodging and services.
Frequently Asked Questions for Minnesota Businesses
Who You’re Actually Working With
Two founders who’ve sat on both sides of your financials
You aren’t handed off to a junior bookkeeper. You work directly with the people whose names are on the door — and their backgrounds are exactly the ones a growing business needs in its corner.
Carrie Anderson
Co-Founder · The Lender’s Eye
A former commercial banker and underwriter who personally reviewed 300+ business loans. She knows exactly how a bank reads your financials to decide what you can borrow — because she used to be the one reading them. That’s why our clients’ books come out lender-ready, not just tax-ready.
Jason Anderson
Co-Founder · The Operator’s Eye
A big-firm-trained accountant with a lifelong passion for processes, efficiency, and Six Sigma— made practical, not academic. He builds the job costing, tax strategy, and systems that let a company actually see where its money goes and scale without the wheels coming off.
Both spent years in the oil & gas industry, and both design financial systems from a whole-company view— not just an accounting lens. You get a firm that reads your numbers like a lender and builds systems like an operator.
Meet the teamRemote, and better for it
You’re in Minnesota. We’re in Montana.Here’s why that’s an advantage.
The best accountant for your business almost certainly isn’t the one with the nearest office. Modern accounting runs on cloud books, a secure portal, screen-share, and video — so the relationship is built on expertise and responsiveness, not drive time. A great remote firm beats an okay local one every single time.
About 80%of even our own local Montana clients run the entire relationship remotely — and never come into the office. Working with Minnesota businesses is exactly the same.
Cloud books, always on
Your numbers live in the cloud — you can see them any time, not just at tax season.
Real conversations
Scheduled video reviews and screen-shares where we walk through the numbers together.
Secure document portal
Send and sign everything safely — no dropping off a shoebox of receipts.
Same-day responsiveness
You get faster answers from us by email and call than from most firms down the street.
Start With a Number, Not a Sales Call
Not ready to talk to anyone yet? Fair. See where your Minnesota business stands first — each takes just a few minutes and costs nothing.
Financial Maturity Assessment
See exactly where your finances stand — from chaos to strategy — in about 8 minutes.
Try it freeS-Corp Tax Calculator
Find out whether an S-corp election could cut your self-employment tax this year.
Try it freeMulti-State Nexus Finder
With Minnesota's reciprocity agreements, see where your business and employees actually owe tax.
Try it free