Marketplace sellers & custom goods

Books and taxes for Amazon FBA sellers.

An Amazon disbursement, a container of inventory landing at a warehouse, storage and PPC fees stacking up, and a reimbursement for lost stock months later. Your own bookkeeper keeps it straight, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.

Book a call What we handle
  • From $197 a month
  • An accountant on every transaction
  • Cancel whenever
FebruaryExample month
$14,200
what you made

February came in at $14,200. Amazon reimbursed you $610 for units lost in their warehouse last quarter, so I booked it apart from regular sales.

  • Amazon Seller disbursementMarketplace sales
  • Amazon inventory reimbursementInventory reimbursements
  • Manufacturer wire, unit 4 orderInventory purchases
  • Amazon FBA storage feeFBA storage and fulfillment
  • Amazon PPC spendAdvertising
Money in$68,400
Money out$54,200
Set aside for taxes$4,300
An example month. Yours will have your numbers.

Why your books are different

Amazon FBA books go wrong in a few specific spots.

A generalist sees one Amazon deposit. Your business is referral fees, FBA fulfillment fees, storage fees, PPC spend, and reimbursements all netted into a single disbursement. When the books do not untangle that, you cannot tell which product line is actually profitable.

  1. 1

    One disbursement hides five different numbers

    Amazon's payout already has referral fees, FBA fulfillment fees, storage fees, and PPC spend taken out before it lands. Booked as one deposit, your real sales price and your real selling costs both disappear.

    What we doSplits the disbursement into sales, fees, storage, and ad spend, so the real math behind each product stays visible.
  2. 2

    A container order lands as one giant expense

    A manufacturer order that restocks six months of inventory shows up as one large wire payment. Booked all at once, that month looks like a loss and the months it actually sells through look artificially strong.

    What we doKeeps inventory purchases visible against what has actually sold, so a big restock does not read as a bad month.
  3. 3

    Reimbursements arrive months after the loss

    Amazon reimburses for lost or damaged warehouse inventory, but often months after the fact and in a lump sum covering several incidents, making it look like random extra income.

    What we doBooks reimbursements in their own line, apart from sales, so they read as what they are instead of a mystery bump.
  4. 4

    PPC spend swings wildly by launch

    A new product launch can mean a heavy week of PPC spend to rank, landing in one month while the sales it drives ramp up over the next several. Read alone, the launch month looks like a loss.

    What we doFlags launch-related ad spend and keeps it visible against the sales ramp that follows, instead of letting it read as a bad month.

Your categories

The categories Gus keeps for an Amazon FBA seller.

Set up once for how Amazon pays you and what a disbursement is really made of. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.

Money in

  • Marketplace salesThe gross sale price of every unit sold, before Amazon's fees come out.
  • Inventory reimbursementsAmazon's payouts for lost, damaged, or miscounted warehouse inventory.
  • Promotional creditsCoupons, deals, and promotional funding that offset the listed price.
  • Wholesale and bulk salesLarger orders sold outside Amazon to another business or reseller.

Money out

  • Inventory purchasesManufacturer invoices, freight, and customs for stock headed to Amazon's warehouses.
  • Referral feesAmazon's cut of each sale, based on category.
  • FBA storage and fulfillmentMonthly storage fees plus the pick, pack, and ship fee on every unit.
  • AdvertisingAmazon PPC spend across sponsored products and brands.
  • Prep and labelingThird party prep centers or in-house labor getting inventory FBA ready.
  • Freight and customsInbound shipping and duties on inventory sourced overseas.
  • Software subscriptionsKeyword, listing, and reimbursement audit tools.

What we watch for you

  • Landed cost per unit

    Manufacturer cost, freight, and prep added up, so pricing keeps up when any one of them rises.

  • PPC spend against sales

    What Amazon ad spend actually returns, so a campaign that stopped paying for itself gets caught.

  • Inventory on hand

    What is tied up in stock at Amazon's warehouses, so cash is not mistaken for profit sitting on a shelf.

  • The set-aside

    What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.

Ask Gus

Things Amazon FBA sellers ask Gus.

Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.

My Amazon deposit was way smaller than what I actually sold. Where did it go?

Referral fees, FBA storage, and your PPC spend all came out before it hit your bank. I split those out so you can see the real number behind each.

I got a reimbursement for lost inventory from three months ago. How does that get booked?

As its own line, separate from sales, so it reads as what it is instead of looking like a random good month.

I just wired $30,000 for a new container. Does that count as an expense right now?

It is inventory, so it gets tracked against what actually sells rather than hitting all at once. I keep it visible so a big restock does not tank your monthly number.

The tax side

The tax side of an Amazon FBA business.

Most of what goes wrong here is untangling one disbursement into what it really is. Referral fees, storage, PPC, and reimbursements, plus inventory sitting in a warehouse at year end.

What your return has to get right

Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.

  • Inventory and cost of goods soldWhat was actually paid for units sold during the year, including landed cost and freight, is what counts against sales. What is still sitting in Amazon's warehouses at year end changes what the return shows as profit.
  • Form 1099-K from AmazonAmazon issues a 1099-K once you cross $20,000 and 200 transactions. All income is taxable whether or not the form arrives.
  • Contractor 1099s for prep and virtual helpA prep center, virtual assistant, or freelance PPC manager paid $2,000 or more in 2026 gets a 1099-NEC by January 31.
  • The pass-through deductionMost owner-operators can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when the books are right all year.

Deductions Amazon FBA sellers miss

Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.

  • FBA storage and fulfillment fees
  • Amazon PPC spend
  • Prep center fees
  • Freight and customs duties
  • Product photography and listing images
  • Keyword and listing software
  • Reimbursement audit tools
  • Sample and testing units
  • Trademark and brand registry fees
  • Virtual assistant pay
  • Business insurance
  • Home office space

General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.

All year, not just April

An Amazon FBA year, kept every month.

Restocks and launches happen whenever the business needs them. Your taxes come on a schedule. Your team keeps you ahead of both. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.

  1. January

    Plan the year

    Last year's return gets started, the contractor 1099 list is ready, and you get a monthly set-aside so April is already handled.

  2. April

    Filed. Done.

    Your return is filed and signed. No surprise bill, because the set-aside has been running since January.

  3. July

    Halfway check

    Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether Prime Day spend and sales balanced out the way you expected.

  4. October

    Before Q4 storage fees rise

    Amazon's storage fees jump for the holiday quarter. Before it hits, Gus looks at inventory levels and what to move before the higher rates land.

What you get

Starts at$197a month

What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.

Book a call
  • Monthly bookkeeping

    Every transaction sorted into categories set up for Amazon FBA sellers. You never categorize a thing.

  • An accountant checks every transaction

    Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.

  • Your business tax return, filed

    Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.

  • The monthly number

    What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.

  • Your own bookkeeper

    A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.

  • On your books all year

    Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.

  • Cancel any time

    No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.

Straight answers

Questions Amazon FBA sellers ask first.

Can Gus split my Amazon disbursement into sales, fees, and ad spend?

Yes. He works from Amazon's own settlement detail alongside your bank deposit, so referral fees, FBA fees, and PPC spend are all tracked apart from the gross sale.

How does a big inventory reimbursement get handled at tax time?

It is kept in its own income line, separate from sales, so it reads honestly on the return instead of getting mixed into revenue from actual orders.

Do I owe sales tax on my Amazon sales?

Amazon collects and remits sales tax on most of its own marketplace sales as a facilitator. Whether you owe anything beyond that depends on your setup, and the accountant checks it.

My inventory sits in Amazon warehouses across several states. Does that change my taxes?

It can affect where you have a tax obligation beyond sales tax the marketplace already handles. That is a state-by-state question the accountant looks at with your whole picture in view.

I just launched a new product and spent heavily on PPC. Will that month look terrible?

Gus flags launch-related ad spend and keeps it visible against the sales ramp that follows, so a heavy launch month does not read as a loss on its own.

My books are a year behind because I never split out FBA fees. Can that get cleaned up?

Yes. Send the bank statements and Amazon settlement reports you have. Gus sorts them out and most sellers know where they stand within a week.

Is a real accountant checking my books?

Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.

What does it cost, and can I cancel?

It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.

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Book a call

Pick a time. That's the whole signup.

Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.

  • $197 a month to start
  • An accountant on every transaction
  • Cancel whenever