Tutoring, test prep & alternative schools
Books and taxes for kids coding schools.
Monthly membership dues, summer camp weeks that sell out by spring, laptops and coding kits that need replacing, and a franchise royalty check every month. 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
June made $11,300. Camp week deposits from July and August posted early, so I kept those as money not yet earned rather than counting it all now.
- Weekly class enrollment draftsMembership dues
- Summer camp depositsCamp enrollment
- Franchisor royalty transferFranchise royalty
- Coding coach wage runInstructor wages
- Laptop replacement orderClassroom hardware
Why your books are different
Kids coding school books go wrong in the same few places.
A generalist sees membership dues and a rent check. Your business runs on a franchise royalty, laptops that need replacing every few years, and camp weeks that get paid for months before they happen. When the books do not know that, a strong deposit month hides a summer that has not been taught yet.
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1
Camp week deposits get counted before camp happens
Families reserve and pay for summer camp weeks as early as spring, and if that payment is booked as income the day it lands, spring looks artificially strong while the actual camp months show nothing to match the work.
What we doHolds camp deposits as unearned until the camp week actually runs, so revenue lines up with when the teaching happens. -
2
Franchise royalty gets buried in general expenses
A percentage of revenue paid back to the franchisor plus a marketing fund contribution often lands as one lump expense, so you cannot see what the brand costs against what your center itself spends.
What we doSplits the royalty check and the marketing fund contribution into their own lines, away from your lease and hardware spending. -
3
Laptops and coding kits get filed as a routine supply cost
A batch of replacement laptops or a set of robotics kits for a new class is a real equipment investment, not a routine monthly cost, and filing it as supplies muddies both the month and the year's real spending.
What we doFlags larger hardware purchases as they happen and logs them so the accountant can treat them as the equipment they are. -
4
Membership dues get counted the day they draft, not the month they cover
A monthly membership billed on the first covers a month of classes still ahead, and booking the whole draft as same-day income can make one month look stronger than the instruction it actually paid for.
What we doRecognizes membership revenue as the month is taught, so the number matches the classes actually delivered.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a kids coding school.
Set up once for memberships, camps, and what you owe the franchisor. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Membership duesMonthly enrollment fees for ongoing weekly classes.
- Camp enrollmentSummer and school-break camp weeks, held as deposits until the camp runs.
- Registration feesA one-time enrollment fee that covers the intake session and starter materials.
- Birthday parties and eventsOne-off coding-themed events billed apart from regular classes.
Money out
- Franchise royaltyThe cut of monthly revenue owed back to the franchisor under the license agreement.
- Marketing fund feesA required contribution toward the brand's national and regional ad spend.
- Instructor wagesHourly or salaried pay for staff teaching classes and camps.
- Classroom hardwareLaptops, tablets, and coding kits, replaced on a multi-year cycle.
- Curriculum licensingThe coding curriculum license and coursework subscription the center pays.
- Center rent and utilitiesRent, electricity, and internet for the storefront classroom.
- Marketing and local adsSignage, local search ads, and school partnership outreach.
What we watch for you
- Active enrollment
The base your monthly dues rest on. A steady count beats one strong camp season.
- Royalty as a share of revenue
How much of every strong enrollment month the franchisor's cut actually eats into.
- Camp deposit liability
Money collected for camp weeks not yet run. It is earned only once camp happens.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things kids coding school 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.
It would, if I booked it all now. Instead I hold it until each camp week actually runs, so the deposit month and the camp months both show what really happened.
That's bigger than a routine supply purchase. I flagged it and logged it as equipment so the accountant can decide the right way to handle it on your return.
It tracks with your revenue, so a strong month means a bigger royalty. I keep it in its own line so the pattern is always easy to see.
The tax side
The tax side of a kids coding school.
Most of what goes wrong here is camp money counted too soon and hardware filed as a routine supply. Fix the timing and the labels, and the return follows.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Franchise royalty deductionThe royalty percentage and marketing fund contribution paid to the franchisor are ordinary deductible operating costs, kept apart from your lease and hardware spending so they never blur together.
- Equipment write-offs for hardwareLaptops, tablets, and robotics kits can usually be written off in the year they are bought, up to $2,560,000 under Section 179, with 100 percent bonus depreciation for property acquired after January 19, 2025.
- Deferred camp revenueCamp deposits collected before the camp runs are not fully earned yet, and good books recognize them once the camp week actually happens.
- 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 deposits and royalty are tracked cleanly all year.
Deductions kids coding schools miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Royalty and marketing fund payments
- Laptops and tablets
- Coding curriculum licensing
- Storefront signage
- Liability insurance
- Staff background checks
- Local search ads and listings
- Classroom desks and seating
- 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 kids coding school year, kept every month.
Enrollment runs on the school calendar, but camp season drives the bigger swings. Gus keeps both organized alongside the tax calendar. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
New term, new sign-ups
Winter enrollment picks up. Last year's return gets started and the monthly set-aside gets planned.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed, right as camp deposits for the summer start rolling in.
- July
Camp season check-in
Where you stand as summer camp weeks run, and whether the deposit timing changed what you will owe.
- October
Before the fall push
Fall enrollment brings the year's next wave of sign-ups. Gus looks at hardware or software 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 kids coding schools. 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 coding school owners ask first.
How much does the franchisor actually take out of a strong month?
Gus keeps the royalty and marketing fund payment in its own line every month, so you can watch it move with revenue instead of guessing what the brand costs you.
We take camp deposits months before camp runs. How does that get booked?
Gus holds camp payments as unearned until each camp week actually happens, so a big deposit season does not make one month look better than it was.
We just bought new laptops for a whole classroom. Is that a deduction I'm missing?
Often it can be written off the year you buy it. Gus flags a purchase that size and logs it as equipment so the accountant makes the right call for your year.
Do I need to send 1099s to my part-time instructors?
If they're on payroll, no separate form is needed. If you pay any instructor $2,000 or more this year outside of payroll, that's a 1099-NEC by January 31. Gus keeps the list running.
My books have never separated the royalty payment from rent. Can Gus fix that going forward?
Yes. He splits royalty, rent, and hardware into their own lines starting with your very first month, so the mix stops muddying every report after that.
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