Skin, nails & body art

Books and taxes for teeth whitening studios.

Quick LED sessions, take-home whitening pens sold at checkout, multi-session packages, and gel that has to be tracked by tube. 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
DecemberExample month
$7,700
what you made

December came in at $7,700. Holiday party season drove single sessions up, and take-home pen sales at checkout carried more of the month than usual.

  • Clover payoutLED sessions
  • Take-home kit saleRetail sales
  • Whitening gel orderGel and supplies
  • Groupon voucher feeMarketing and lead fees
  • Whitening studio suite rentStudio rent
Money in$12,800
Money out$5,100
Set aside for taxes$1,900
An example month. Yours will have your numbers.

Why your books are different

Teeth whitening studio books go wrong in the same four places.

A generalist sees a session payment and a gel invoice. Your business is a quick appointment that costs very little to deliver, take-home pens sold at checkout that carry real margin, and gel that has to be tracked closely because it runs out fast. When the books do not know that, real per-session profit stays hidden.

  1. 1

    Take-home kit sales blur into session income

    A take-home whitening pen sold at checkout after a session gets rung into the same total as the session itself, so retail sales never show up as their own number worth watching.

    What we doSplits retail take-home kit sales from session income, so you can see what retail actually contributes.
  2. 2

    Mobile whitening add-on fees blend into the session price

    A studio that also runs in-home whitening events charges a travel add-on on top of the session price, but if that fee gets rung up as one lump sum with the whitening itself, you cannot tell whether mobile events are actually worth the extra driving.

    What we doKeeps mobile add-on fees in their own line, apart from the base session price, so you can see what mobile events really net you.
  3. 3

    Whitening gel gets bought in bulk and skews a month

    Whitening gel comes in small tubes that get used up fast, so a bulk order ahead of a busy season makes that month's costs look high and the following months look artificially low.

    What we doKeeps gel and supply spend in one steady line and flags when a bulk order is the reason a month's costs look high.
  4. 4

    First-visit discount codes get lost in the register total

    A new client redeems a half-price first session offer at checkout, but if the discount just rings up as a lower sale with no note of why, you cannot tell how many new clients a promotion actually brought in or whether they came back at full price.

    What we doFlags discounted first sessions separately, so you can see how many new clients a promotion brought in and whether they return.

Your categories

The categories Gus keeps for a teeth whitening 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

  • LED sessionsSingle whitening appointments paid through Clover.
  • Session packagesThree and five-session bundles, credited to income visit by visit.
  • Retail salesTake-home whitening pens and touch-up kits.
  • Mobile add-on feesTravel fees for studios that also offer in-home whitening.

Money out

  • Gel and suppliesWhitening gel, LED trays, and lip retractors.
  • Retail inventoryTake-home pens and kits bought to resell.
  • Marketing and lead feesGroupon-style vouchers and local social media ads.
  • Studio rentSuite or studio lease.
  • Booking softwareClover subscription and card processing fees.
  • Licensing and insuranceBusiness license and liability insurance.

What we watch for you

  • Package balance

    Sessions clients have paid for but not used yet, so you know what is already owed.

  • Retail attach rate

    How often a session sale includes a take-home kit, tracked from your own numbers.

  • Cost per session

    Gel and supply spend against sessions booked, so pricing holds up.

  • The set-aside

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

Ask Gus

Things teeth whitening 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.

I sell a lot of take-home pens after sessions. Does that count the same as the session itself?

No, I keep retail kit sales in their own category. That way you can see how much of your income is sessions versus take-home product.

I stocked up on whitening gel before the holidays. Why do my costs look so high this month?

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

I ran a half-price first session deal. Did it actually bring in new clients?

I flagged every discounted first visit separately from full-price sessions. Twelve new clients came in on the deal, and I can tell you if they rebooked once you want that number.

The tax side

The tax side of a teeth whitening studio.

Most of what goes wrong here is timing and labels. Package income counted too early, retail mixed with services, 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.

  • Inventory and cost of goods soldTake-home kits you sell are inventory, and their cost gets matched against the sale, which keeps your real retail margin accurate instead of guessed at.
  • Equipment write-offsLED whitening lights and studio chairs can usually be written off the year they are bought. Bonus depreciation is back to 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025.
  • Contractor 1099sAny fill-in technician or contractor paid $2,000 or more in 2026 gets a 1099-NEC by January 31.
  • Quarterly estimated taxesNothing withholds tax from session and retail income automatically, so most owners pay estimated taxes April 15, June 15, September 15, and January 15.

Deductions teeth whitening studios miss

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

  • Whitening gel and LED trays
  • Lip retractors and cheek protectors
  • Take-home kit inventory
  • LED whitening lights
  • Studio chairs and treatment lighting
  • Business license and liability insurance
  • Clover subscription
  • Deal-site and marketing fees
  • Retail display fixtures
  • Sanitizing supplies
  • Consultation intake forms
  • 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 teeth whitening studio year, kept every month.

Holiday parties and pre-summer plans drive most of the year's bookings. Your team keeps you ahead of both the rush 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 bookings changed the number.

  4. October

    Before the holidays

    Holiday party whitening season is close. Gus looks at gel stock-ups and equipment worth buying 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 teeth whitening 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 teeth whitening studio owners ask first.

Can Gus separate take-home kit sales from session income?

Yes. Retail kit sales get their own category, so you can see whether your income is driven more by sessions or by retail product.

I do in-home whitening events with a travel fee. Does that need its own category?

Yes. Mobile add-on fees get kept apart from the base session price, so you can see whether the extra charge actually covers your drive time and gas for those events.

Does a bulk gel order hurt my monthly numbers?

It shows up as a cost this month, but Gus flags a bulk buy so it does not read as a spike in your regular spending. That gel gets used across many future sessions.

I ran a half-price first-visit promotion. Can Gus tell me if it worked?

He flags discounted first sessions apart from full-price ones, so you can see how many new clients the offer brought in and, over time, whether they came back at full price.

My studio's books have been a mix of retail and service sales for years. Can that be untangled?

Yes. Send in the statements as they are. Gus separates session income from retail kit sales, the accountant reviews it, and most owners see a clear picture 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