Consulting & business services
Books and taxes for document shredding companies.
A monthly route fee for sixty bins, a storage fee for boxes sitting in your warehouse, a check from the recycling mill for last month's shredded paper, and the truck that has to keep running. 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
January came in at $7,400. The recycling mill payment moves with paper prices, so I keep it in its own line instead of folding it into your steady route income.
- Route service fees, 60 stopsRoute service income
- Off-site storage, monthlyRecords storage income
- Recycling mill paymentPaper recycling revenue
- Truck fuel and maintenanceTruck fuel and maintenance
- Destruction certificate softwareCompliance documentation software
Why your books are different
A document shredding company's books go wrong in the same few places.
A generalist sees deposits and truck repairs. Your business is a steady monthly route fee, a separate storage fee for boxes sitting in your warehouse, and a recycling check that moves with paper prices you do not control. When the books do not know that, one strong recycling month can make the whole business look better than it actually is.
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1
A one-time purge job looks like route income
A big one-time office cleanout is a different kind of job than your recurring monthly route, and blended together, it is hard to see whether your steady route business is actually growing.
What we doKeeps one-time purge project income separate from recurring route fees, so the steady base of the business stays visible. -
2
Recycling revenue swings with prices you do not control
What a recycling mill pays for shredded paper moves with commodity prices, and folded into your regular service income, those swings make a steady route business look inconsistent for reasons that have nothing to do with your work.
What we doKeeps recycling revenue in its own line, so market swings do not distort how your core service business is actually doing. -
3
Storage income gets mistaken for shredding income
A monthly fee for storing boxes in your warehouse is a different kind of business than route-based shredding, closer to running a small warehouse, and mixed together, it hides which side actually drives your growth.
What we doKeeps records storage income separate from route service income, so each side of the business is visible on its own. -
4
Truck costs are not tied to what a route actually earns
Fuel and maintenance for a shredding truck can run high some months, and without connecting that cost to the routes it serves, it is hard to know if a route is still worth running.
What we doKeeps truck fuel and maintenance visible against route income, so a route's real profitability stays clear.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a document shredding company.
Set up once for how you bill and what you spend. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Route service incomeRecurring monthly fees for scheduled bin pickups.
- One-time purge project incomeBig one-time cleanout and destruction jobs.
- Records storage incomeMonthly fees for boxes stored in your facility.
- Paper recycling revenuePayments from a mill for shredded paper, which move with commodity prices.
Money out
- Truck fuel and maintenanceFuel, repairs, and upkeep for the shredding fleet.
- Truck loan or lease paymentsFinancing costs for shredding vehicles.
- Compliance documentation softwareSystems generating destruction certificates for clients.
- Facility rent and utilitiesWarehouse space for records storage and processing.
- Commercial and liability insuranceCoverage for vehicles and for handling sensitive documents.
What we watch for you
- Route versus purge mix
How much of your income comes from steady recurring routes versus one-time projects.
- Recycling revenue swings
How much paper prices are affecting your total income month to month.
- Truck cost per route
What fuel and maintenance actually cost against what a route brings in.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so tax season is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things document shredding company owners 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.
No, I keep it separate, so your steady recurring route business stays visible without a one-time job skewing the picture.
No, that's paper prices moving, not your business slowing down. Recycling revenue is tracked separately so those swings don't distort your service income.
Often, yes. Truck fuel and maintenance are kept visible against route income, so you can see a route's real profitability.
The tax side
The tax side of a document shredding company.
Most of what goes wrong here is keeping recycling swings and storage income separate from your core route business. Handled right, the year does not surprise you.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Vehicle and equipment write-offsShredding trucks and equipment bought for the business can usually be written off in the year they are purchased. Bonus depreciation is 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025.
- Self-employment taxWith no paycheck withholding along the way, owner profit owes 15.3 percent in self-employment tax up to the $184,500 wage base.
- Quarterly estimated paymentsRather than one bill in April, owners without payroll withholding typically pay estimated taxes four times a year: April 15, June 15, September 15, and January 15.
- The pass-through deductionA shredding and records business's profit can often qualify for up to a 20 percent deduction off taxable income, and the accountant confirms the actual figure at filing time.
Deductions document shredding and records management companies miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Truck fuel and maintenance
- Truck loan or lease interest
- Destruction certificate software
- Facility rent and utilities
- Commercial auto insurance
- General liability insurance
- Shredding bins and containers
- Uniforms and safety equipment
- Marketing to businesses and law firms
- Continuing education courses
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 document shredding year, checked in four times.
Route volume, purge projects, and paper prices all move on their own timing throughout the year. Gus keeps your own taxes on schedule alongside them. 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, and you get a monthly set-aside so April is already handled, whatever paper prices did to your recycling revenue.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed, and the amount due is already covered by the set-aside that's been running since January.
- July
Halfway check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether route and storage income are both holding steady.
- October
Before year end
A look at truck maintenance and equipment worth buying before December closes out the year.
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 document shredding and records management companies. 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 document shredding company owners ask first.
I do both scheduled routes and big one-time office cleanouts. Can Gus tell those apart?
Yes. One-time purge project income is kept separate from your recurring route fees, so you can see how your steady route business is actually growing.
My recycling revenue changes even when my shredding volume doesn't. Is that a bookkeeping issue?
No. Recycling revenue moves with commodity paper prices, and Gus keeps it in its own line so those swings don't distort how your service business is really doing.
I also store boxes for clients in my warehouse. Is that the same income as route service?
No. Records storage income is tracked separately from route service income, so you can see which side of the business is actually driving growth.
Can I tell if fuel and maintenance costs mean a route isn't worth running anymore?
Often, yes. Truck fuel and maintenance are kept visible against route income, so a route's real profitability is easy to check.
My books are behind after adding several new routes this year. Is that fixable?
Yes. Send the bank statements you have from your routes and storage clients. Gus sorts them out, and most owners 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