Creators, coaches & info products

Books and taxes for online fitness coaches.

Monthly coaching fees billed on different dates for different clients, a client who pauses for a few months, and a coaching software subscription to run check-ins. Your own bookkeeper sorts all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.

Book a call What we handle
  • From $197 a month
  • An accountant on every transaction
  • Cancel whenever
MarchExample month
$9,100
what you made

March came in at $9,100. Two clients paused their plans for a few months, so I flagged the drop in active clients instead of letting it look like a slow sales month.

  • Stripe payout, client billingCoaching fees
  • PayPal payout, client billingCoaching fees
  • Trainerize subscriptionCoaching software
  • Nutrition plan template licenseProgram materials
  • Certification renewal feeCertifications
Money in$11,500
Money out$2,400
Set aside for taxes$2,200
An example month. Yours will have your numbers.

Why your books are different

An online coach's books go wrong in a few specific spots.

A generalist sees a monthly deposit and calls it steady income. Yours is really 25 individual client subscriptions billing on 25 different dates, some pausing for a few months at a time, which makes month-to-month revenue look less predictable than the actual client relationships are.

  1. 1

    Client pauses look like lost sales

    A client who pauses for two months during a busy season at work is not gone, but if the drop in monthly billing is not tracked against active client count, it can look like the coaching business lost clients when it really just has fewer billing that month.

    What we doTracks active clients against paused ones, so a dip in billing reads as a pause pattern, not a sign the business is shrinking.
  2. 2

    Staggered billing dates make growth hard to see

    With clients billing on their own signup anniversary throughout the month, it is hard to tell at a glance whether the client base is actually growing or shrinking from the total deposit alone.

    What we doTracks new client starts against cancellations each month, so real growth is visible apart from which week bills happened to land.
  3. 3

    Program templates get treated as a new cost every time

    A nutrition plan or training template built once and reused for dozens of clients sometimes gets re-billed as if it were custom work for each one, overstating what it actually costs to onboard a new client.

    What we doKeeps template and program material costs in one line, separate from per-client billing, so the real cost of onboarding a new client stays clear.
  4. 4

    Certifications and continuing education get lost in general costs

    Renewing a personal training certification or paying for continuing education credits happens once a year or so, and it is easy to lose that cost in a catch-all category instead of seeing it as a real cost of staying qualified.

    What we doKeeps certification costs in their own line, so the real cost of staying credentialed is visible apart from day-to-day coaching software.

Your categories

The categories Gus keeps for an online coaching business.

Set up once for how you get paid and what you spend on. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.

Money in

  • Coaching feesMonthly client billing through Stripe or PayPal.
  • Program salesOne-time training or nutrition programs sold outside ongoing coaching.
  • Affiliate commissionsSupplement or gear links shared with clients and followers.
  • In-person session feesAny hybrid sessions billed separately from online coaching.

Money out

  • Coaching softwareTrainerize, TrueCoach, or similar client management tools.
  • Program materialsTemplates and licensed nutrition or training content.
  • CertificationsRenewal fees and continuing education credits.
  • MarketingAds and content costs to bring in new clients.
  • Business insuranceLiability coverage for coaching services.

What we watch for you

  • Active client count

    New clients against cancellations and pauses, since gross billing alone hides the real trend.

  • Pause rate

    How many clients are paused rather than canceled, since that revenue is likely to come back.

  • Cost per client

    What software and materials cost divided across the active client count.

  • The set-aside

    What you will owe, tracked every month, so a strong client month does not turn into a surprise bill.

Ask Gus

Things online coaches 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.

My income dropped this month but I don't think I actually lost clients. What happened?

Two clients paused their plans rather than canceling. I track that separately, so you can see this is a pause pattern, not a sign the business is shrinking.

My clients all bill on different days of the month. How do you make sense of that?

I track new starts against cancellations directly, so you can see real growth regardless of which week any particular payment landed.

Should I raise my rates for new clients now that I have a waitlist?

That is above my pay grade. I can show you what you are earning per active client right now, and you can decide where to go from there.

The tax side

The tax side of running an online coaching business.

Most of what trips people up here is staggered client billing that is easy to misread, not any one complicated rule.

What your return has to get right

Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.

  • Self-employment taxA coach not on payroll owes 15.3 percent in self-employment tax on top of income tax, up to the Social Security wage base of $184,500, the same as any other sole proprietor.
  • Form 1099-K from payment appsStripe and PayPal both send a 1099-K once total payments cross $20,000 and 200 transactions in a year. Coaching income is taxable whether or not either form arrives.
  • Quarterly estimated taxesTaxes are due as clients pay, not once a year. Estimated payments are due April 15, June 15, September 15, and January 15.
  • The pass-through deductionMost coaching businesses can take up to 20 percent of profit off their taxable income. Above $201,750 single or $403,500 joint, the accountant checks how your client mix affects how much applies.

Deductions online fitness coaches miss

Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.

  • Coaching software subscriptions
  • Certification renewal fees
  • Continuing education courses
  • Program templates and materials
  • Marketing and content costs
  • Business liability insurance
  • Business phone and internet
  • Home office share
  • Accounting and legal 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

An online coaching business's year, kept every month.

Clients start, pause, and cancel on their own schedule all year long. Your team keeps the books closed every month regardless. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.

  1. January

    Plan the client calendar

    Last year's return gets started, and a monthly set-aside is planned around the usual New Year rush of new clients.

  2. April

    Filed, clients still on track

    Filed and signed, with nothing owed as a surprise, since a share of every client's billing has been set aside since January.

  3. July

    Active client check

    Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether the usual spring client wave landed as expected.

  4. October

    Before New Year signups

    Many coaches see a wave of new interest heading into the New Year. Gus looks at what marketing is planned and anything worth doing before December.

What you get

Starts at$197a month

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 online fitness coaches. 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 online fitness coaches ask first.

Do I owe tax on a client's payment for the month they pause?

Only on what is actually collected. A paused client who is not billed that month simply is not counted as income for that period.

I offer both online coaching and in-person sessions. Can Gus keep those separate?

Yes. He tracks online coaching fees apart from in-person session income, so you can see how each side of the business performs.

My clients all bill on different days through Stripe. Is that hard to track?

No. Gus works from your bank and processor statements regardless of billing dates, so you get one clear monthly picture either way.

I built a nutrition template I reuse for every client. Does that need to be re-billed as a cost each time?

No. Gus keeps that as a one-time cost, separate from ongoing client billing, so it does not overstate what it costs to bring on a new client.

My client billing and cancellations have never been tracked in one place. Can Gus fix that?

Yes. Send the bank and processor statements you have. Gus sorts active clients from paused ones, the accountant checks it, and most coaches 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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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