Consulting & business services
Books and taxes for business coaches.
A six-month coaching package sold through Kajabi, a group mastermind that meets quarterly, one-off strategy calls, and the occasional refund. Gus sorts all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
September came in at $11,400. Two clients paid in full for the fall mastermind, so I split that income across the months the group actually meets.
- Kajabi payoutCoaching program sales
- Mastermind enrollment, K. OrtizGroup program income
- Refund, single session clientRefunds
- Hyatt Regency depositRetreat and venue costs
- ICF renewalCertification and dues
Why your books are different
A coaching practice's books go wrong in the same few places.
A generalist sees deposits and refunds. Your business is a package sold today for sessions delivered over six months, a mastermind that meets four times a year, and a retreat you pay for in deposits long before it happens. When the books do not know the timing, a good sales month can look like a bad cash month.
-
1
A six-month package counted the day it sells
A client pays $6,000 upfront for a six-month coaching package. Booked entirely the month it sells, that month looks unusually strong and the five months of actual delivery look empty.
What we doSpreads package income across the months of coaching it covers, so your monthly number reflects work delivered, not just cash received. -
2
A refund gets mixed into ordinary expenses
When a client cancels partway through a package and gets a partial refund, filing it as a generic expense hides that it was really a reversal of income, not a cost of doing business.
What we doBooks refunds against the original income they reverse, so your real revenue for the period stays accurate. -
3
A retreat deposit looks like a loss the month it is paid
A $4,000 venue deposit paid in March for a retreat happening in October makes March look like a rough month, when it is really an investment in an event five months out.
What we doTags retreat and event deposits so a big upfront cost does not read as a bad month on its own. -
4
Affiliate and referral income hides inside coaching fees
A commission for referring a client to a course or tool gets lumped in with coaching income, making it hard to tell how much of your revenue is actually coaching versus referral.
What we doKeeps affiliate and referral income in its own line, separate from what clients pay you directly to coach them.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a coaching practice.
Set up once for how you sell and what you spend. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Coaching program salesOne-on-one packages sold through Kajabi, Stripe, or Acuity.
- Group program incomeMastermind and cohort enrollments, spread across the months they run.
- Single session feesOne-off strategy calls booked outside a package.
- Affiliate and referral incomeCommissions from tools or courses you recommend, kept apart from coaching fees.
Money out
- RefundsPartial or full refunds, booked against the income they reverse.
- Retreat and venue costsDeposits and balances for in-person mastermind events.
- Certification and duesICF renewal and coaching credential maintenance.
- Scheduling and course softwareKajabi, Acuity, and email marketing tools.
- Marketing and lead generationPaid ads, a website, and a lead magnet funnel.
- Assessment toolsPersonality or business assessments used with clients.
What we watch for you
- Delivered versus sold
How much package income is actually earned by sessions delivered, not just cash collected.
- Refund rate
What share of sales gets refunded, a signal worth watching if it creeps up.
- Group versus one-on-one mix
Which part of the practice, mastermind or individual coaching, is actually growing.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so tax season is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things business coaches 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.
I spread it across the six months of sessions instead, so your monthly number reflects the coaching you actually deliver, not just the day the card ran.
I booked it against the original sale, not as a new expense, so your real revenue for the period stays accurate.
That's a cost tied to an event five months out, so I tagged it that way instead of letting it make this month look worse than it is.
The tax side
The tax side of a coaching practice.
Most of what goes wrong here is timing. Package income counted too early, a retreat deposit that skews a month, and a set-aside nobody started until April.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Contractor 1099sA co-facilitator or assistant paid $2,000 or more over the year and not on payroll gets a 1099-NEC by January 31. Gus keeps the running list so nothing is missed.
- The pass-through deductionMost owner-operators can knock up to 20 percent off taxable profit, though the benefit tapers for coaching income above $201,750 single or $403,500 joint. The accountant works out the real figure at return time.
- Self-employment tax and estimatesCoaching profit that isn't run through a paycheck owes 15.3 percent in self-employment tax up to the $184,500 wage base, and it is usually paid four times a year instead of all at once.
- Retirement savings for solo practicesA solo coach can defer up to $24,500 into a solo 401(k), plus an $8,000 catch-up at 50 and over, lowering what is taxed this year.
Deductions business coaches miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- ICF or coaching credential renewal
- Kajabi or course software fees
- Retreat venue deposits
- Assessment tool licensing
- Email marketing software
- Website hosting and design
- Laptop and headset for calls
- Home office space
- Mastermind meal and venue costs
- Business coaching supervision
- Liability insurance
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
A coaching practice's year, watched four times over.
Enrollment often surges around a new year and a fall relaunch, while your taxes move on a schedule of their own. Gus keeps both in sight. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Plan the year
Last year's return gets started, new-year enrollment income gets sorted, and you get a monthly set-aside so April is already handled.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return gets filed and signed, and the bill isn't a surprise, because the set-aside has been running since January.
- July
Halfway check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether summer enrollment held up compared to last year.
- October
Before the fall push
Fall mastermind and relaunch season is often the busiest sales window. Gus looks at retreat costs and equipment worth buying before December.
What you get
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 business coaches. 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 business coaches ask first.
I sell six-month packages upfront. Does the whole payment count as income right away?
Gus spreads it across the months the coaching actually happens, so your monthly number reflects work delivered instead of a single lump payment.
How does Gus handle refunds mid-package?
He books a refund against the original sale it reverses, not as a new expense, so your real revenue for the period stays accurate.
Do I need to track a retreat deposit differently from regular expenses?
Yes, and Gus does it for you. A deposit paid months before the event is tagged so it does not make an otherwise good month look worse than it is.
I earn a commission for referring clients to a course. Is that coaching income?
No. Gus keeps affiliate and referral income in its own line, separate from what clients pay you directly to coach them.
My books are a mess from selling through three different apps. Is that a problem?
No. Send the bank and payout statements you have from each one. Gus sorts them into one clear picture, and most people know where they stand inside 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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What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
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