Skin, nails & body art

Books and taxes for spray tan studios and mobile tanning.

Booth appointments, mobile bookings for weddings and proms, a travel fee that covers your drive time, and tanning liquid bought by the gallon. Gus 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
AprilExample month
$5,400
what you made

April came in at $5,400. Prom season mobile bookings carried the month, so I kept your travel fees visible against the tans themselves.

  • Schedulicity payoutBooth appointments
  • Mobile event bookingMobile and event tans
  • Norvell tanning liquid orderTanning liquid
  • Gas station fill-upTravel and mileage
  • Tent and canopy rentalEvent equipment
Money in$8,600
Money out$3,200
Set aside for taxes$1,400
An example month. Yours will have your numbers.

Why your books are different

Spray tan and mobile tanning books go wrong in the same four places.

A generalist sees a deposit and a gas receipt. Your business is a booth appointment that costs almost nothing to deliver and a mobile wedding party that means an hour of driving before you spray a single client. When the books do not know that, you cannot tell which side of the business is actually worth your time.

  1. 1

    Travel fees get lumped into the tan price

    A mobile wedding party booking might include a $50 travel fee on top of the tans themselves, but if it all gets rung up as one number, you cannot see whether your travel fee actually covers your drive time and gas.

    What we doKeeps travel and event fees in their own line, apart from the tanning service itself, so you can see what travel really nets you.
  2. 2

    Tanning liquid gets bought in bulk and skews a month

    A gallon of Norvell or similar tanning liquid bought ahead of prom or wedding season makes that month's costs look high, while the following slower months look artificially cheap.

    What we doKeeps tanning liquid spend in one steady line and flags when a bulk buy is the reason a month's costs look high.
  3. 3

    Deposits for group event bookings go untracked

    A bride books a group tanning session for her whole wedding party weeks out and pays a deposit to hold the date. If that deposit is not tracked until the event happens, cancellations and no-shows fall through the cracks.

    What we doHolds event deposits as a balance until the appointment happens, then books the full job as one sale.
  4. 4

    Mileage between mobile clients never gets logged

    A mobile artist driving between a bride's house, a bridesmaid's apartment, and a prom group's home racks up real mileage that rarely gets tracked, and it is a legitimate cost of doing business.

    What we doTracks mileage from the bank and calendar data available, so travel costs actually count against income.

Your categories

The categories Gus keeps for a spray tan business.

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

  • Booth appointmentsStandard in-studio spray tans booked through Schedulicity.
  • Mobile and event tansWedding parties, prom groups, and other mobile bookings.
  • Travel and event feesFees collected for driving to a client's location.
  • Event depositsHeld until the event happens, then applied to the job.

Money out

  • Tanning liquidNorvell and similar spray tan liquid, bought by the gallon.
  • Travel and mileageFuel, tolls, and vehicle costs for mobile bookings.
  • Event equipmentTents, canopies, and portable tanning tents for outdoor events.
  • Booth and studio costsSpray booth maintenance and studio rent, for studios with a fixed location.
  • Booking softwareSchedulicity subscription and card processing fees.
  • Licensing and insuranceBusiness license and liability insurance.

What we watch for you

  • Travel fee coverage

    What travel fees bring in against fuel and mileage cost, so pricing can be judged fair.

  • Cost per tan

    Tanning liquid spend against tans booked, tracked from your own numbers.

  • Booth versus mobile split

    How much revenue comes from each side of the business, so you know where to focus.

  • The set-aside

    What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.

Ask Gus

Things spray tan 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.

I charge a $50 travel fee for mobile bookings. Is that even worth it?

I kept travel fees in their own line against your mileage. Right now they are covering gas but not much of your drive time, worth a look at raising it.

I stocked up on tanning liquid before prom season. Why do my costs look high this month?

That bulk order shows up this month, but it gets used over many appointments ahead. I flagged it as a stock-up, not a jump in your regular costs.

I want to bring on another artist to cover more mobile bookings. What should I know?

That depends on whether she uses her own equipment and sets her own schedule or works entirely under yours. That one is above my pay grade, so a real accountant is looking at it.

The tax side

The tax side of a spray tan business.

Most of what goes wrong here is untracked travel and timing. Mileage never logged, deposits counted early, and a set-aside nobody started until April.

What your return has to get right

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

  • Mileage deductionBusiness mileage for mobile bookings runs 72.5 cents a mile January through June 2026, and 76 cents a mile July through December 2026, tracked from your calendar and bank data.
  • Equipment write-offsA spray tan machine, portable booth, or tent setup can usually be written off the year you buy it. Bonus depreciation is back to 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025.
  • Contractor 1099sAny fill-in artist or helper paid $2,000 or more in 2026 gets a 1099-NEC by January 31.
  • Quarterly estimated taxesNothing withholds tax from tanning income automatically, so most owners pay estimated taxes April 15, June 15, September 15, and January 15.

Deductions spray tan studios and mobile tanning artists miss

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

  • Tanning liquid by the gallon
  • Spray tan machine and hoses
  • Portable tent or booth
  • Mileage for mobile bookings
  • Barrier cream and application mitts
  • Drop cloths and floor protectors
  • Business license and insurance
  • Schedulicity subscription
  • Marketing and social media ads
  • Disposable undergarments
  • Air filter replacements
  • Card processing 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

A spray tan year, kept every month.

Prom, wedding, and vacation season drive most of the year's bookings. Your team keeps you ahead of both the busy stretches and the tax deadlines. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.

  1. January

    Plan the year

    Last year's return gets started, and you get a monthly set-aside so April is already handled.

  2. April

    Filed. Done.

    Your return is filed and signed. No surprise bill, because the set-aside has been running since January.

  3. July

    Halfway check

    Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether summer vacation and wedding season changed the number.

  4. October

    Before the holidays

    Gus looks at equipment worth buying ahead of holiday party season and moves worth making 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 spray tan studios and mobile tanning artists. 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 spray tan and mobile tanning owners ask first.

Can Gus separate my booth income from mobile event bookings?

Yes. He keeps booth appointments and mobile or event tans in their own categories, so you can see which side of the business actually brings in more.

Do travel fees count as separate income from the tan itself?

Yes. Gus tracks travel and event fees on their own line, so you can see whether what you charge for driving actually covers your gas and time.

Can Gus track mileage for mobile bookings?

He tracks mileage from the calendar and bank data available, so your drives between clients count as a real deduction, not something that just gets forgotten.

A bride paid a deposit for her wedding party. When does that count as income?

Gus holds event deposits as a balance until the appointment happens, then books the full job as income that month, so it reflects work actually done.

My books have always just been a shoebox of receipts. Is that a problem?

No. Send what you have. Gus sorts it, the accountant checks it, 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 skin, nails & body art

We keep books for the business next door too.

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