Paint, craft & maker studios
Books and taxes for kids art studios.
A twelve-week semester paid upfront, summer camp deposits collected months before the first day, and part-time counselors hired to keep the right ratio in every room. Gus sorts it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
May made $7,800. Summer camp registrations came in strong, and I kept those deposits out of this month's earned revenue since camp does not start until June.
- Spring semester tuitionClass tuition
- Summer camp depositsCamp registrations
- Art supply orderArt supplies
- Counselor payrollStaff pay
- Studio rentRent and utilities
Why your books are different
A kids art studio's books go wrong in the same few places.
A generalist sees tuition and a supply bill. Your business runs on a twelve-week semester paid upfront, summer camp deposits that arrive in spring for a camp that runs in June, and staffing that has to scale with how many kids are in the room. When the books do not know that, May can look flush with money that will not actually be earned until summer.
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1
Summer camp deposits get counted before camp happens
Families register for a week of summer camp as early as spring, often paying in full months before the first day. Booked as income when it lands, spring can look like the best season of the year while the studio floor is actually quiet.
What we doKeeps camp registration income tied to the week of camp it pays for, so spring deposits do not inflate a season that has not started. -
2
Semester tuition gets counted all at once
A student pays for an entire twelve-week semester the day it starts, but classes run week by week. Booked as income all at once, the first week of a semester looks great and the following weeks look like they earned nothing.
What we doSpreads semester tuition across the weeks it actually covers, so revenue lines up with classes as they are taught. -
3
Counselor pay does not scale evenly with enrollment
Keeping the right adult-to-child ratio means staffing has to grow in steps as enrollment grows, not smoothly, so a studio can end up paying for an extra counselor before enrollment fully covers that cost.
What we doKeeps staff pay visible against enrollment by class and camp session, so you can see when a ratio requirement is outpacing what tuition covers. -
4
Mid-semester withdrawals and refunds get missed
A family who withdraws partway through a semester is often owed a partial refund, and if that refund is not matched against the original tuition payment, it quietly overstates what the semester actually brought in.
What we doMatches refunds against the original tuition charge, so a withdrawal does not still look like full revenue. -
5
A supply order distorts one month
A bulk order of paint, paper, and craft supplies to stock a full semester or camp season can cover months of classes, but if the whole bill lands in one month's books, that month looks like it barely made money.
What we doKeeps supply purchases in one steady line and flags a bulk order so a heavy-buying month is not mistaken for a bad one.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a kids art studio.
Set up once for how you get paid and what you spend. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Class tuitionSemester-long after-school art classes, spread across the weeks taught.
- Camp registrationsSummer camp weeks, tied to the week of camp they cover.
- Party bookingsBirthday parties paid with a deposit.
- Homeschool co-op classesDaytime classes for homeschool groups.
- Retail suppliesArt kits or materials sold to families.
Money out
- Art suppliesPaint, paper, clay, and craft materials, bought in volume.
- Staff payTeachers and counselors, scaled to ratio requirements.
- Studio rent and utilitiesClassroom and camp space.
- Background checks and trainingRequired checks for staff working with children.
- MarketingLocal ads and camp season promotion.
- InsuranceGeneral liability, given the age of the students.
- Supply kits for take-home projectsMaterials sent home after camp or class.
- Card processing feesWhat Square or Stripe keeps before you get paid.
What we watch for you
- Camp deposit liability
What has been collected for summer camp but not yet earned, so spring does not look bigger than it is.
- Staff cost per enrolled child
Whether counselor pay is scaling sensibly against how many kids are enrolled.
- Refund and withdrawal rate
How much semester tuition gets refunded partway through, and whether it is tracked.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things kids art studio 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 hold those against the week of camp they actually pay for, so this month's number reflects classes that already happened, not camps still ahead.
I match the refund against the original payment, so the semester's income reflects the weeks actually taught, not the full amount originally charged.
Close. Camp enrollment is covering the extra pay with a little room to spare right now. Worth checking again once the last camp weeks fill up.
The tax side
The tax side of a kids art studio.
Most of what goes wrong here is timing, camp deposits and semester tuition counted before the classes actually happen.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Camp and semester income timingMoney collected for a future camp week or a semester still being taught is not fully earned yet. Spreading it across the actual weeks of instruction keeps the return matched to real activity.
- Worker classification for counselorsA counselor who works your schedule, follows your curriculum, and works alongside staff is usually an employee, even if hired only for the summer.
- Contractor 1099sAny guest instructor not on payroll who is 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 camp, semester, and party income are booked correctly all year.
Deductions kids art studios and art classes miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Art and craft supplies
- Camp take-home kits
- Background check fees
- Staff training and certifications
- Studio rent and utilities
- Liability insurance
- Local social ads
- Card processing fees
- Camp t-shirts and name tags
- First aid and safety supplies
- Cleaning supplies
- Storage bins and shelving
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 kids art studio year, kept every month.
A fall semester, spring camp sign-ups, and a busy summer all pull differently. Your team keeps you ahead of the calendar and the return both. 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 a monthly set-aside is planned so April is already handled.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed. No surprise bill, because the set-aside has been running since January.
- July
Halfway check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and how summer camp enrollment and staffing costs have tracked so far.
- October
Before winter break
Gus looks at fall semester enrollment, holiday party bookings, and any equipment worth buying before the year winds down.
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 kids art studios and art classes. 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 kids art studio owners ask first.
We collect camp deposits months before camp starts. Does that skew the numbers?
No. Gus ties camp income to the week of camp it actually pays for, so a strong spring registration season does not make it look like camp already happened.
How does Gus handle semester tuition paid all at once?
He spreads it across the weeks the semester runs, so each week of classes shows the income it actually earned instead of one big payment in week one.
What happens when a family withdraws partway through a semester?
The refund is matched against the original tuition payment, so the semester's revenue reflects the weeks actually taught, not the full amount originally charged.
Do our counselors need to be on payroll?
Usually yes, if they work your schedule and curriculum, even for just the summer. Gus tracks how each person is paid and scheduled for the accountant to weigh in on.
Is a bulk supply order going to make a month look bad?
Gus keeps supply purchases in a steady monthly line and flags a big stock-up, so a heavy-buying month is not read as a slow one.
My books are behind from tracking enrollment on a spreadsheet. Can Gus still help?
Yes. Send the bank statements you have. Gus sorts them, the accountant checks them, 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