Marketplace sellers & custom goods
Books and taxes for live-selling resellers.
A Whatnot payout after commission, a box of cards or clothing bought for tonight's show, shipping to dozens of buyers after the stream ends, and giveaways that cost real money. Your own bookkeeper keeps it straight, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
August came in at $5,500. You ran two mystery box breaks this month, so I kept the box cost and the payouts tied to the same show.
- Whatnot payoutShow sales
- Card shop wholesale buySourcing and inventory
- Whatnot commissionShow commission
- ShipStation postageShipping and packaging
- Giveaway prize purchaseGiveaways and promotions
Why your books are different
Live-selling books go wrong in a few specific spots.
A generalist sees one weekly payout. Your business is a commission taken from every single sale in a show, inventory bought specifically for that night's stream, dozens of individual packages to ship afterward, and giveaways that cost real money without bringing in a dollar. When the books do not know that, a great show night can still look thin on paper.
-
1
A show's commission and sales get blended together
Whatnot's payout already has its commission taken out across every item sold in the stream. Booked as the deposit amount, you cannot see the real sale price of what you sold or what Whatnot actually kept.
What we doBooks the full sale price as income and the commission as its own cost, so pricing and true margin both stay visible show by show. -
2
Inventory bought for one show reads like a random expense
A wholesale buy made specifically to stock a Friday night show can look like an unexplained cost if it is not tied to the sales that show actually produced.
What we doKeeps sourcing buys visible against the show they were bought for, so a stocking trip and its show read together, not as two separate surprises. -
3
Post-show shipping piles up after the money already landed
A single show can produce dozens of individual packages to ship over the following days, and the postage cost lands separately from the sale, sometimes in the next statement period entirely.
What we doKeeps shipping costs tied to the show that generated them, so a heavy shipping week does not read as an unrelated expense. -
4
Giveaways and breaks cost money with no guaranteed sale
Mystery box breaks and viewer giveaways are part of building an audience, but the product given away or broken open is a real cost even when the payout for that segment is uneven or a slot does not sell.
What we doKeeps giveaway and break costs in their own line, so you can see what building the audience actually costs against what it brings back.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a live-selling reseller.
Set up once for how a show gets stocked and sold. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Show salesItems sold live during a Whatnot stream, kept apart from commission.
- Break and slot salesPaid spots in a card or collectible break.
- Direct repeat-buyer salesSales arranged with a regular customer outside a live show.
- Case and bulk sales to other resellersSelling a group of items at once to another dealer instead of one at a time on stream.
Money out
- Sourcing and inventoryWholesale buys, card shop purchases, and thrift runs stocked for shows.
- Show commissionWhatnot's cut of every sale made during a stream.
- Shipping and packagingPostage, boxes, and card sleeves for outbound orders after a show.
- Giveaways and promotionsProduct given away or broken open to build audience and engagement.
- Streaming equipmentCameras, lighting, and microphones used for shows.
- Show scheduling and promo toolsApps and services used to schedule and promote upcoming streams.
What we watch for you
- Margin per show
What a show actually returned once commission and sourcing cost are counted, so you know which formats are worth repeating.
- Commission percentage
How much Whatnot keeps on average, so pricing during a show can account for it.
- Shipping cost per order
What it actually costs to get each sold item to a buyer, since a heavy show can mean dozens of packages.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things live-selling resellers 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.
Whatnot's commission comes out before it lands in your bank. I keep the full sale price and the commission tracked separately so you can see the real math.
Yes, I keep it tied to that show, so the buy and the sales it produced read together instead of looking like two unrelated things.
It shows up honestly as a cost, kept in its own line so you can see what building your audience actually cost against what came back.
The tax side
The tax side of a live-selling business.
Most of what goes wrong here is tying commissions, sourcing, and shipping back to the show they belong to. Get that right and the rest follows.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Inventory and cost of goods soldWhat was actually paid for items sold during the year, including cards, apparel, or other resale stock bought for shows, is what counts against sales. Unsold stock at year end changes what the return shows as profit.
- Form 1099-K from live-selling appsWhatnot and similar apps issue a 1099-K once you cross $20,000 and 200 transactions. All income is taxable whether or not the form arrives.
- Giveaways as a business expenseProduct given away to build an audience is generally a deductible cost of doing business, tracked the same as any other inventory used up rather than sold.
- The pass-through deductionMost owner-operators can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when the books are right all year.
Deductions live-selling resellers miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Sourcing and wholesale purchases
- Whatnot commission fees
- Shipping supplies and postage
- Card sleeves and protective cases
- Streaming camera and lighting
- Microphone and audio equipment
- Giveaway and break product cost
- Show scheduling software
- Internet used for streaming
- Business insurance
- Home studio space
- Storage for show inventory
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 live-selling year, kept every month.
Shows happen most nights of the week. Your taxes come on a schedule. 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
Plan the year
Last year's return gets started, unsold show inventory is counted, and you get a monthly set-aside 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 whether commission and shipping costs have shifted your real margin per show.
- October
Before the holiday rush
Show viewership and buyer demand often climb before the holidays. Before it hits, Gus looks at sourcing costs and what to stock up on.
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 live-selling resellers. 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 live-selling resellers ask first.
Can Gus tell me if a show actually made money once everything is counted?
He keeps sourcing cost, commission, and shipping all tied to the show, so the real number is there. Reading it show by show is something your bookkeeper can walk through with you.
Do I owe sales tax on items I sell during a live show?
Whatnot and similar apps usually collect and remit sales tax on their own marketplace sales as a facilitator. The accountant checks whether anything beyond that applies to you.
I run mystery box breaks. Is that treated differently from a regular sale?
Not really. The product cost and the payout are tracked the same way as any other inventory, kept tied to the show it happened in.
I got a 1099-K but some of what I sold was personal stuff I no longer wanted. Does that count?
Usually items sold at a loss from personal use are not taxable income, while resold items bought to sell for profit are. The accountant can sort out which is which for your situation.
My shipping backs up for days after a big show. How does Gus handle that?
He keeps shipping costs tied to the show that generated them, even when the postage bill lands a few days later, so it does not read as an unrelated expense.
My books are behind because I never separated show inventory from personal collection items. Is that fixable?
Yes. Send the bank statements and whatever purchase records you have. Gus sorts out what belongs to the business, and most sellers know where they stand within 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