Travel agencies & tour operators
Books and taxes for freelance tour guides.
A walking tour company, a bike tour outfit, and a private client all paying you on different schedules, plus cash tips that never touch a bank statement. Your own bookkeeper stays on it all year, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
December netted $4,800. Three different companies paid you this month, so I matched each payment to the tours you actually guided instead of lumping them into one number.
- City Walks paymentTour company payments
- Private client bookingPrivate client bookings
- Bike tour liability policyLiability insurance
- New guiding headsetGuiding gear
- Gas, tour route drivingVehicle and mileage costs
Why your books are different
A freelance guide's books go wrong when five companies pay you five different ways.
You might guide for a walking tour company, a bike tour outfit, and a private client in the same month, each paying on its own schedule, plus cash tips that never touch a bank statement. Treated as random deposits, it is hard to know what a month actually paid you or what you owe by April.
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1
Payments from different companies land on different schedules
One company pays weekly, another pays monthly, and a private client might pay you cash the same day. Without matching each payment to the tours it covers, it is hard to tell whether you are actually being paid what you are owed.
What we doMatches each payment to the company and the tours it covers, so you can see whether anyone is running behind on what they owe you. -
2
Cash tips are easy to lose track of
A guide who gets handed cash at the end of a walking tour often just pockets it without logging it anywhere, and by year end there is no record of what was actually earned in tips, even though it is taxable income.
What we doAsks for a running tip total and books it as income, so your year reflects what you actually earned, not just what shows up electronically. -
3
Multiple 1099s do not always add up to what you were paid
Three or four companies each send a 1099-NEC in January, and if the totals do not match what actually landed in your account, the mismatch either understates your income or leaves money the accountant has to chase down.
What we doChecks incoming 1099s against what was actually deposited all year, so a mismatched form gets caught before the return is filed. -
4
Guiding gear and vehicle use blend with personal expenses
A headset system, a rolling cart for props, or gas for driving between tour stops can look like personal spending if it is not tracked apart from groceries and everything else moving through the same account.
What we doKeeps guiding gear and business mileage in their own lines, so what the work actually costs you is visible and deductible. -
5
A seasonal income swing throws off the set-aside
A summer of steady bookings followed by a slow winter can make a flat monthly set-aside either too much in the slow months or not enough after a busy stretch, since guide income rarely comes in even amounts.
What we doAdjusts the set-aside as the year's income actually comes in, so it tracks what you are really earning instead of a flat guess.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a freelance tour guide.
Set up once for how each company pays and what you spend to do the work. You never sort a deposit. Gus does, and an accountant checks every one.
Money in
- Tour company paymentsWhat each company pays for the tours you guided that period.
- Private client bookingsDirect payments for tours you book on your own.
- TipsCash and card tips from guests, tracked as taxable income.
- Referral feesWhat another guide or a small operator pays for covering a tour.
Money out
- Guiding gearHeadsets, props, and supplies used to run tours.
- Vehicle and mileage costsGas and wear on a personal vehicle used for tour driving.
- Liability insuranceCoverage for guiding work, often required by the companies you work for.
- Licensing and certificationCity guide licenses and any required certification courses.
- Phone and booking appsWhatever you use to manage your schedule and communicate with clients.
- Continuing educationTraining on new tour routes, languages, or historical material.
- Card processing feesWhat a payment app keeps on private client bookings.
What we watch for you
- Income by company
What each company actually pays you, so you can see who is steady work and who is not.
- Tips logged
A running total of tip income, so it is not missing when the year adds up.
- 1099 match rate
Whether the forms companies send you match what actually landed in your account.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so a strong guiding season does not leave you short come April.
Ask Gus
Things freelance tour guides 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 matched each payment to the tours you told me about, and one company's total looks light. Worth a quick check with them.
Yes, tips are taxable whether or not they show up electronically. I keep a running total so it does not get lost by year end.
That is a good catch. I flagged the mismatch so the accountant can sort out which number is right before anything gets filed.
The tax side
The tax side of a freelance tour guide's business.
Most of what matters here is adding up scattered income correctly and not missing what is actually taxable.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Tips are taxable incomeCash and card tips are taxable whether or not a company reports them. A deduction of up to $25,000 exists for tips in occupations on the Treasury list through 2028, though tips still owe self-employment tax.
- 1099s from multiple payersEach company that pays you $2,000 or more in 2026 should send a 1099-NEC by January 31. Gus checks that the total across every form and every deposit actually matches.
- Self-employment taxAs a self-employed guide, you pay 15.3 percent self-employment tax on top of income tax, on earnings up to the $184,500 Social Security wage base.
- Mileage between tour stopsDriving between guiding locations, not your regular commute, can be deducted at 72.5 cents a mile through June 2026 and 76 cents a mile from July on.
Deductions freelance tour guides miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Guiding headsets and props
- Liability insurance
- City guide licensing
- Vehicle mileage
- Continuing education
- Phone and booking apps
- Comfortable work footwear
- Printed maps and materials
- Business cards and marketing
- Home office square footage
- Retirement plan contributions
- Card processing fees
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 freelance guide's year, kept every month.
Income comes from several companies on several schedules, and taxes come on their own schedule too. Your team keeps you ahead of both. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Add it all up
Last year's return gets started, every 1099 gets checked against what actually landed in your account, and the year's set-aside gets planned.
- April
Filed before spring bookings
Your return is filed and signed, and spring booking season with the tour companies you guide for starts picking up.
- July
Midyear income check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether summer's steady bookings are covering the slower months ahead.
- October
Before the slow season
Before winter bookings thin out for many guides, Gus looks at anything worth doing while the year's income is still strong.
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 freelance tour guides. 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 freelance tour guides ask first.
I guide for four different companies. Can Gus keep them straight?
Yes. He tracks each company's payments against the tours you guided for them, so you can see who pays on time and who does not.
Do I actually have to track cash tips?
Yes, tips are taxable income whether or not they show up electronically. Gus keeps a running total so it is not missing when the year adds up.
One of my 1099s looks wrong compared to what I was actually paid. What happens?
Gus checks every 1099 against what actually landed in your account and flags a mismatch so the accountant can sort out the right number before anything is filed.
My income swings a lot between busy and slow seasons. Does the set-aside adjust for that?
Yes, it tracks what you are actually earning as the year goes rather than a flat guess, so a slow month is not set aside like a busy one.
I mostly get paid through apps, not checks. Does that change anything?
No, Gus works from your bank and payment app records either way, and matches deposits to the companies and tours they came from.
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