Wellness & recovery services
Books and taxes for red light therapy studios.
Short panel sessions sold as memberships, take-home devices sold at the front desk, and LED panels that eventually need new bulbs. 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
February came in at $7,400. Take-home device sales were up, so I split that out from session income like you wanted.
- Vagaro payoutPanel sessions
- Take-home device saleDevice retail
- Monthly membership feesMemberships
- LED panel bulb replacementEquipment maintenance
- Device wholesale orderRetail inventory
Why your books are different
A red light studio sells two different businesses under one roof.
Half the revenue is short in-studio sessions on a membership, and the other half can be a full retail operation selling take-home panels people use at home. Blend those two together and neither one tells you what it is actually worth.
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1
A take-home device sale is not session income
A client buys a $400 personal red light panel to use at home, and if that sale lands in the same bucket as membership sessions, it inflates the session side of the business and hides how much of your revenue is really retail.
What we doKeeps device sales in their own retail line, separate from panel sessions, so each side of the business shows its real numbers. -
2
Bulb and panel replacement gets mistaken for a supply cost
LED panels lose intensity over years of daily use and need whole units or bulb arrays replaced, sometimes costing more than a routine supply order, which can look like an odd spike in a month it happens.
What we doKeeps panel and bulb replacement in its own equipment line so a normal upkeep cost does not read as a problem. -
3
Memberships hide how many beds are actually full
A member pays a flat monthly fee whether they come in twice a week or not at all, so a studio can look financially healthy on membership revenue while bed usage quietly drops.
What we doTracks session counts from booking data alongside membership fees, so usage and revenue tell the same story. -
4
Wholesale device inventory sits differently than session supplies
Ordering take-home panels wholesale to resell means carrying inventory and cost of goods, which works differently on the books than the towels and cleaning supplies a session-only studio buys.
What we doTracks device inventory and its cost separately, so retail margin on devices is visible on its own.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a red light therapy studio.
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
- Panel sessionsSingle in-studio sessions, paid through Vagaro or a similar app.
- MembershipsMonthly unlimited or set-session plans, kept apart from single sessions.
- Session packagesPrepaid multi-session packs, tracked as owed sessions until used.
- Device retailTake-home red light panels and masks sold at the front desk.
Money out
- Panel and LED maintenanceBulb arrays and panel unit replacement.
- Device inventoryWholesale take-home devices bought for resale.
- Booking softwareVagaro or a similar scheduling tool.
- Cleaning suppliesSanitizer and linens for beds and panels.
- Marketing and lead feesSocial ads and local search listings.
What we watch for you
- Session count
Sessions run against membership fees collected, so bed usage matches what is being paid for.
- Device margin
What take-home devices cost against what they sell for, tracked apart from session revenue.
- Retail share of revenue
How much of total income comes from device sales versus sessions, so the mix is clear.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things red light 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 kept it in its own retail line. That way you can see how much of the month came from devices versus in-studio sessions.
I logged it as equipment maintenance, kept apart from routine costs, so it will not throw off this month's number.
Fees collected are steady, but session count from your booking app is down from last month. Might be worth a look at scheduling.
The tax side
The tax side of a red light therapy studio.
Most of what trips up a red light studio is treating retail devices like session supplies, and equipment write-offs that are easy to miss.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Inventory and cost of goodsTake-home devices bought wholesale for resale are inventory, and their cost is deducted as they sell, not all at once when you buy them.
- Equipment write-offsIn-studio panel beds and units can usually be written off the year they are bought. Bonus depreciation is 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025.
- 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.
- Sales tax on retailTake-home devices and skincare products sold at the desk are usually subject to sales tax, which varies by state. Sessions themselves are often treated differently.
Deductions red light therapy studios miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Panel bulb replacement
- Front desk wages
- Booking software
- Cleaning and sanitizing supplies
- Liability insurance
- Marketing and lead fees
- Device shipping costs
- Retail display fixtures
- License and permit fees
- Linens and bed covers
- Utilities
- Web hosting for online device sales
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 red light studio's year, kept every month.
Membership sign-ups and device sales both move with the seasons in their own way. Your team keeps you ahead of the tax calendar through the shifts. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Plan the year
New Year membership sign-ups and device sales get counted right, last year's return gets started, and a monthly set-aside gets planned.
- 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 device sales or session count shifted the number.
- October
Before the gift season
Take-home devices sell well as gifts before the holidays. Gus looks at inventory levels and whether new beds are worth adding 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 red light therapy 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 red light studio owners ask first.
How does Gus separate device sales from session income?
He keeps take-home device sales in their own retail line, apart from panel sessions, so you can see how much of your revenue is retail versus in-studio work.
Do I need to track inventory for the devices I resell?
Yes, and Gus tracks it from your purchase and sales records, so device margin is visible on its own, separate from session pricing.
We use Vagaro for booking sessions. Does that change anything?
No. Keep booking sessions the way you do. Gus works from your bank statement, and when a deposit is unclear he asks you once and remembers the answer.
Can I write off a full bed replacement at once?
Often you can. Equipment bought for the business can usually be deducted in the year you buy it, and sometimes spreading it out is the better call. Gus flags the purchase and the accountant decides.
Do I charge sales tax on the devices I sell?
Usually, though the rate and rules depend on your state. Gus tracks retail sales separately so the accountant can make sure sales tax is handled correctly.
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