Collision & appearance
Books and taxes for mobile auto detailers.
Driveway and office parking lot jobs, a van full of water and product, cash tips, and days lost to rain. Gus sorts all of it, 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 $8,100. Three rained-out jobs got rescheduled instead of refunded, so I did not count those as lost income, just moved bookings.
- Booking app payoutScheduled jobs
- Customer, cash tipTips
- Adam's Polishes orderDetailing chemicals
- Gas, work vanVehicle and fuel
- Generator maintenanceVan equipment
Why your books are different
A mobile detailer's books go wrong in the same few places.
A generalist bookkeeper sees deposits and gas receipts. Your business runs out of one van, drives to every job, and gets paid a mix of app payouts, cash, and the occasional tip. When personal and business spending share one account, nobody can tell what the business actually made.
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1
Business and personal spending share one account
A solo operator without a separate business account ends up buying groceries and detailing chemicals from the same card. Sorting out what was actually for the business happens once a year, if at all, and it is rarely accurate.
What we doSorts every transaction into business or personal from your statement, so the business side is clean without you keeping two wallets. -
2
Mileage between driveways goes untracked
A mobile detailer driving to five or six locations a day racks up real business miles that are easy to forget by the time taxes come around, and that is often the single biggest deduction available.
What we doKeeps vehicle costs or mileage in their own line, so the deduction is there when the return gets filed. -
3
Cash tips get left out entirely
A customer hands over a cash tip on top of an app payout, and it never makes it into any record. Left out, income looks lower than it is, and it can create a mismatch if the business ever needs a real income picture for a loan or lease.
What we doAsks about cash income when a pattern of app payouts suggests tips are common, so the full picture is accurate, not understated. -
4
Van equipment gets bought like a supply run
A water tank, generator, or pressure washer built into the van can cost several thousand dollars. Filed as a small supply purchase, it can get missed when it is time to write it off.
What we doFlags larger van equipment purchases the day they show up, logs them as equipment, and gets the accountant's call on how to write them off.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a mobile detailer.
Set up once for how jobs get booked and what it costs to run the van. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Scheduled jobsBookings paid through an app, website form, or invoice.
- Walk-up or referral jobsWord-of-mouth work paid directly by card or cash.
- TipsCash or app-added tips, kept visible as their own line.
- Package or membership plansPrepaid recurring detail plans for regular customers.
Money out
- Detailing chemicalsSoap, polish, and interior product from Adam's Polishes or Chemical Guys.
- Vehicle and fuelGas, maintenance, and insurance for the work van.
- Van equipmentWater tanks, generators, and pressure washers, logged so they get written off right.
- Towels and consumablesMicrofiber towels, pads, and applicators replaced regularly.
- Booking app feesWhat a scheduling or payment app keeps before you get paid.
- MarketingSocial media ads, van signage, and referral incentives.
What we watch for you
- Job cost per detail
Product used against what a detail charges, so pricing keeps up with product costs.
- Miles per booking
How far you drive per job, useful when deciding which areas to keep taking bookings from.
- Rebooking rate
How often a customer comes back, tracked from repeat payments over time.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things mobile detailers 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 is not ideal, but it is fixable. Send me the statement and I will sort out which charges were for the business, so nothing gets missed.
Just keep a rough log or your phone's mileage app running. I book the deduction from that, and it is usually one of the biggest ones you get.
Usually it can. I logged it as equipment, not a supply, and flagged it so the accountant makes the call with your whole year in view.
The tax side
The tax side of a mobile detailing business.
Most of what goes wrong here is untracked mileage and mixed accounts. Both are easy to fix once the books separate business from personal and start logging the miles.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Mileage between jobsA mobile detailer driving between customer locations can usually deduct business mileage at 72.5 cents a mile from January through June 2026 and 76 cents a mile from July through December 2026.
- Van equipment write-offsA water tank, generator, or pressure washer built into the van can usually be written off the year it is bought. Bonus depreciation is back to 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025.
- Quarterly estimated taxesWithout payroll withholding, a self-employed detailer usually owes estimated tax four times a year, on April 15, June 15, September 15, and January 15.
- 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 clean and separate from personal spending.
Deductions mobile auto detailers miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Detailing chemicals and product
- Microfiber towels and pads
- Vehicle mileage or fuel
- Van equipment and repairs
- Booking app fees
- Liability insurance
- Phone for scheduling
- Uniforms and gloves
- Marketing and social ads
- Van signage
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 mobile detailer's year, kept every month.
Bookings depend on the weather. Your taxes do not. 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, mileage tracking is set up if it is not already, 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 the summer booking rush changed the number.
- October
Before winter slows down
Before cold weather cuts into bookings, Gus looks at van equipment worth buying and anything to do 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 mobile auto detailers. 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 mobile detailers ask first.
Can Gus separate business and personal spending if I only have one account?
Yes, for now, but it is worth opening a separate account when you can. Gus sorts your statement either way, but a dedicated business account makes it cleaner and faster every month.
Do I need special software to track mileage?
No. A phone mileage app or even a written log works. Gus turns whatever you track into the deduction on your return.
I get tipped in cash sometimes. Should I tell Gus about it?
Yes. Cash tips are still income, and leaving them out understates what the business makes. Tell Gus roughly what you take in and he keeps it as its own line.
Rain wrecked three weeks of bookings this summer. Does that mess up my numbers?
No. Gus tracks the year against itself, so a rained-out stretch reads as a slow month, not a sign something is wrong.
Do I write off my van itself, or just the equipment inside it?
That depends on how the van is used and whether it is dedicated to the business. Gus flags the purchase and the accountant sorts out the best way to handle it.
I am just starting out and have almost no records yet. Can Gus still help?
Yes. Send whatever bank and app payout history you have. Gus builds your categories from there, and it gets easier every month after the first.
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.
More in collision & appearance
We keep books for the business next door too.
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- Boat & RV detailing
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- Campervan & van conversion builders
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- Trailer dealers & repair
- Auto electrical specialists
- Car buying & auto brokers
- Classic & collector car dealers
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- Emissions & state inspection stations
- Engine rebuilders
- Hybrid & EV repair specialists
- Independent car rental & Turo hosts
- Junkyards & auto salvage yards
- Mobile tire service
- Motorcycle repair & custom shops
- Motorcycle training schools
- Off-road, 4x4 & lift kit shops
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