Gyms & fitness studios
Books and taxes for MMA gyms.
Members paying for striking, wrestling, and grappling under one roof, four different coaches paid four different ways, and a fighter's purse from an amateur card. Gus sorts all of it, and an accountant checks every transaction.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
August came in at $8,800. One of your amateurs got a purse from a regional card, and I booked it separate from gym income since it belongs to him, not the business.
- Zen Planner EFT batchMembership dues
- Private training paymentPrivate training
- Cage mat resurfacingEquipment
- Coaching staff payrollCoach pay
- Fighter camp expensesFighter development
Why your books are different
An MMA gym's books go wrong around specialties and fight camps.
A generalist sees dues and a rent bill. Your gym runs striking, wrestling, and grappling under one membership, pays specialty coaches on different arrangements, and sometimes sponsors a fighter's camp for a real bout. When the books miss that, you can't tell what each discipline actually costs to run.
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1
One membership covers three disciplines with different coaches
A member pays one monthly rate to train striking, wrestling, and grappling, but each coach is paid differently, which makes it hard to see whether any one discipline is actually profitable to offer.
What we doTags coach pay by specialty so you can compare what each discipline earns against what it costs to staff. -
2
A fighter's purse gets mixed with gym income
When a gym helps arrange or collects part of a fighter's purse from an amateur or pro card, that money belongs to the fighter, not the business, and mixing it with gym revenue overstates what the gym actually earned.
What we doBooks fighter purses separately from gym income, so the business's real revenue and the fighter's earnings stay distinct. -
3
Fight camp costs blend into general gym expenses
Extra training sessions, weight-cut supervision, and travel for a fighter's camp are real costs tied to preparing for a specific bout, but folded into general expenses they hide what backing a fighter actually costs.
What we doKeeps fight camp costs in their own line so you can see what developing a competitive fighter runs. -
4
Cage and mat maintenance looks like a random repair bill
A cage, mats, and heavy bags take a beating across three disciplines and need regular upkeep, which can look like an unplanned expense instead of the routine cost it is.
What we doKeeps equipment maintenance in one steady category so a repair bill reads as the expected cost it is.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for an MMA gym.
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
- Membership duesMonthly EFT drafts through Zen Planner covering all disciplines.
- Private trainingOne-on-one coaching in any specialty, sold separately.
- Drop-insVisiting fighters and walk-ins paying for a single session.
- RetailGloves, shin guards, and apparel sold at the gym.
Money out
- Coach payTagged by specialty: striking, wrestling, and grappling.
- EquipmentCage, mats, and heavy bag maintenance and replacement.
- Rent and utilitiesThe building and the power it runs on.
- SoftwareZen Planner scheduling and payment fees.
- InsuranceGeneral liability, higher here given the range of contact.
- Fighter developmentFight camp costs kept apart from general gym expenses.
- MarketingLocal ads and referral incentives for new members.
What we watch for you
- Coach pay by specialty
What each discipline costs to staff against how many members train it.
- Active member count
The base the dues number rests on across all three disciplines.
- Fight camp costs
What backing a fighter through a camp actually runs, tracked apart from regular expenses.
- The set-aside
What you'll owe in taxes, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things MMA gym 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 fighter purses separate from gym revenue, since that money belongs to him, not the business, even if it passed through the gym's account.
Not for the books. I tag pay by specialty, so you can see what each discipline costs to staff, no matter how the arrangements differ.
If he's not on payroll and you pay him $2,000 or more this year, yes, by January 31. I keep that list running so it's ready.
The tax side
The tax side of running an MMA gym.
Most of what trips up an MMA gym is keeping three disciplines and their coaches straight, plus fighter money that isn't the gym's to claim.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Coach or contractorA specialty coach who teaches your class schedule with your equipment usually counts as an employee, not a contractor, no matter what the pay arrangement is called. Gus flags it before it becomes a habit.
- Contractor 1099sAny specialty coach not on payroll gets a 1099-NEC by January 31 if paid $2,000 or more in 2026. Gus keeps that list all year, tagged by discipline.
- Cage and mat equipmentA cage, mat system, or major equipment purchase can usually be written off the year it's bought. Bonus depreciation is back to 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025.
- The pass-through deductionMost owners can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when dues, coach pay, and fighter money are all tracked separately.
Deductions MMA gyms miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Cage and mat maintenance
- Heavy bags and gloves
- Zen Planner or class software
- Liability insurance
- Coach certifications
- Weight-cut supervision costs
- Business phone and booking line
- Cleaning service
- Marketing and referral incentives
- Website and booking widget
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
An MMA gym's year, kept every month.
Fight camps run on their own timeline. Your taxes come on a fixed 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, and you get a monthly set-aside so the January signup wave doesn't turn into an April surprise.
- 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'll owe, and whether this year's fight camps changed the number.
- October
Before year-end
Before the calendar closes, Gus looks at cage or mat upgrades worth making 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 MMA gyms. 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 MMA gym owners ask first.
Can Gus keep a fighter's purse separate from gym income?
Yes. Money from a fighter's bout is tracked apart from regular gym revenue, since it belongs to the fighter, not the business, even when it moves through the gym's account.
Our coaches are paid differently by discipline. Can Gus still track that?
Yes. Coach pay is tagged by specialty, whether it's a flat rate, per-class pay, or a commission split, so you can see what each discipline costs to run.
Do fight camp costs need their own category?
Yes. Extra sessions, weight-cut supervision, and travel tied to a specific fighter's camp get their own line, separate from everyday gym expenses.
We run three disciplines under one membership. Does that complicate the books?
Not for you. Members still pay one rate. Gus handles the complexity behind the scenes, tagging coach pay and costs by discipline so you can still see how each one performs.
Nobody's kept up the books since we opened. Is that a problem?
Not a problem. Whatever you have on hand is enough to start. Gus works backward through it, the accountant checks the result, and you'll know where the gym stands before long.
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