Music, art & performing arts businesses
Books and taxes for recording studios.
Block-time deposits, mixing jobs booked separate from full sessions, an engineer paid by the session, and gear that costs more than a car. Your bookkeeper 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
February came in at $7,400. The Miller Sisters paid their block-time package up front, so I held most of it back until the sessions actually happen.
- HoneyBook depositBlock-time bookings
- Square, mixing jobMixing and mastering
- Sweetwater invoiceStudio gear
- Engineer pay, J. ReyesEngineer contractor pay
- Con EdisonStudio utilities
Why your books are different
Recording studio books go wrong in the same few places.
A generalist sees deposits and equipment bills. Recording studios sell block time, day rates, and flat mixing jobs out of the same room, with a contract engineer paid differently on each. When the books do not separate those, you cannot tell which kind of session actually pays.
-
1
Block time gets counted before it is used
A band pays $2,400 up front for eight hours of tracking spread across three months. Booked as income the day it clears, January looks strong and the sessions that actually happen in March show nothing.
What we doHolds block-time payments as a liability until each session is used, then moves the right piece to income that month. -
2
The engineer's cut hides inside gear costs
A studio pays a contract engineer $150 a session out of the same account that buys mic cables and patch bay parts. Lumped together, you cannot see what engineering actually costs against what a session brings in.
What we doKeeps engineer pay in its own line, separate from gear, so labor cost is visible against session revenue. -
3
A vintage mic looks like a supply order
A used Neumann or a new preamp can run several thousand dollars. Filed as a supply purchase, it flattens a good month and hides an asset the return should catch.
What we doFlags any equipment purchase over a few hundred dollars, logs it as equipment, and gets the accountant's call on how it gets written off. -
4
Mastering jobs blur into tracking days
A flat $300 mastering job and a $600 full-day tracking session both show up as one payout from Square. Combined, you cannot tell which service is actually worth the room time.
What we doSplits mixing and mastering income from tracking and rehearsal income, so you see which one is carrying the month.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a recording studio.
Set up once for how the room gets booked and what keeps it running. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Block-time bookingsPrepaid packages of studio hours, held back until the sessions are used.
- Day-rate sessionsSingle tracking days booked and paid through Square or HoneyBook.
- Mixing and masteringFlat-fee jobs kept apart from full sessions in the room.
- Rentals and lockout timeA band renting the live room by the month when it is not booked for sessions.
Money out
- Engineer contractor payPer-session pay to anyone tracking or mixing who is not on payroll.
- Studio gearMics, preamps, monitors, and cabling from Sweetwater or a local shop.
- Acoustic treatment and build-outFoam, bass traps, and isolation work on the room itself.
- Software licensesPro Tools, plugins, and sample libraries billed monthly or yearly.
- Studio utilitiesPower and climate control, often higher than a normal office.
- InsuranceCoverage on gear, especially vintage mics and outboard equipment.
What we watch for you
- Room utilization
Hours booked against hours available shows if rates or marketing need a look.
- Engineer pay share
What contract engineers take against session revenue, to see what the room actually keeps.
- Block time owed
Prepaid hours not yet used, so you know what is booked but not yet earned.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so tax season is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things recording studio 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'm holding it as owed-but-not-earned until they actually book time. Only the hours they use this month count as income.
Usually it can. I logged it as equipment, not supplies, and flagged it so the accountant makes the call with your whole year in view.
Cash is fine as long as it is recorded. If you pay him $2,000 or more this year, he needs a 1099. I keep that running total either way.
The tax side
The tax side of a recording studio.
Most of what goes wrong here is timing and labels. Prepaid block time counted too early, gear filed as supplies, and a contract engineer nobody tracked for the 1099 list.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Studio gear and Section 179Mics, preamps, consoles, and monitors can usually be written off the year you buy them. Bonus depreciation is back to 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025.
- Contractor 1099sAn engineer or session player not on payroll gets a 1099-NEC if you paid them $2,000 or more in 2026, due January 31.
- The pass-through deductionMost studio owners can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when the books are right all year.
- Self-employment taxProfit from a sole proprietor or partner studio owes 15.3 percent self-employment tax on top of income tax.
Deductions recording studios miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Mic cables and stands
- Acoustic foam and bass traps
- Pro Tools and plugin licenses
- Engineer contractor pay
- Studio insurance
- Climate control for gear rooms
- Sample libraries and sound packs
- Website and booking software
- Business cards and studio signage
- Continuing audio engineering classes
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 recording studio year, kept every month.
Sessions book in bursts, not on a calendar. Your taxes still come on a schedule, and 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
The room's year begins
Last year's return gets started, the engineer 1099 list is ready, and you get a monthly set-aside so April is already handled.
- April
Filed, no drama
Your return is filed and signed. No scramble in April, since the set-aside has been building from the first session booked in January.
- July
Midyear session check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether summer block-time bookings changed the number.
- October
Before the holiday jingle rush
Ad and jingle work often picks up before the holidays. Gus looks at gear worth buying and anything worth doing 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 recording studios. 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 recording studio owners ask first.
How do you handle a block-time package that gets used across three months?
The full payment is held as owed-but-not-earned when it lands. Each month, only the hours actually used move over to income, so no single month looks better or worse than it was.
My engineer works other studios too. Does that change anything?
No. As long as he is not on your payroll, he is a contractor here. You track what you pay him, and he gets a 1099 if it crosses the yearly threshold.
Do I need to separate mixing income from tracking income?
It helps. Keeping them apart shows which side of the business is actually earning its keep, and it makes pricing decisions easier down the road.
I run everything through one Square account. Is that a problem?
No. Gus reads your bank and payment statements and sorts deposits into the right category. You do not need separate accounts for each service.
Can Gus tell me if a new mic is worth buying?
He is not a gear reviewer, but he can tell you what the studio can afford that month and flag the purchase so the accountant weighs in on how it gets written off.
My books are a mess from last year. Can you still take this over?
Yes. Send the bank and payment statements you have. Gus sorts them, the accountant checks them, and most owners 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.
More in music, art & performing arts businesses
We keep books for the business next door too.
- Art galleries
- Audiobook narrators
- Casting agencies
- Cover bands & entertainment agencies
- Custom framing shops
- Independent film production companies
- Independent fine artists
- Instrument repair shops
- Muralists
- Piano tuners & technicians
- Rehearsal spaces
- Small press book publishers
- Talent & modeling agencies
- Family history & legacy videographers
- Pet & equine portrait photographers
- School & volume photography companies
- Community & city magazines
- Local event guides & directories
- Local newspapers & hyperlocal news sites
- Local podcast networks
- Local radio stations
- Niche trade publications
- Boudoir photographers
- Event photographers
- Family & portrait photographers
- Headshot studios
- High school senior photographers
- Newborn & maternity photographers
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