Arts & music education
Books and taxes for voice coaches.
Zoom lesson payments, lesson packages, a wedding gig here and there, and a mic and interface that earn their keep. 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 $5,400 once gear and a conference fee were counted. I kept the jingle session you sang separate from your Zoom lesson income, so you can see what teaching brings in on its own.
- Stripe lesson invoicesLesson income
- PayPal lesson paymentsLesson income
- Focusrite interfaceRecording and lesson gear
- Zoom subscriptionSoftware subscriptions
- Teacher conference feeContinuing education
Why your books are different
Voice coach books go wrong in the same five places.
A generalist sees one deposit total. You teach over Zoom, sell blocks of lessons up front, and occasionally get paid to sing yourself. When teaching pay, gig pay, and a microphone purchase all land in one pile, you cannot tell what any part of the work is actually earning.
-
1
Teaching pay and gig pay share one deposit
A coach who also picks up a wedding gig or a session-singing job gets paid to the same PayPal or Venmo account as lesson income, and lumped together, you cannot tell whether teaching or performing is what pays the bills.
What we doKeeps performing and session income in its own line, separate from lesson income, so each side of the work shows what it actually earns. -
2
A ten-lesson package gets counted the day it's sold
A student who buys a block of ten lessons up front hands over money for sessions that stretch over the next two or three months. Counted all at once, that month looks padded and the ones after look thin.
What we doRecognizes package income across the lessons actually delivered, so the monthly number reflects the teaching that happened. -
3
Studio gear and personal health costs blur together
A humidifier for your lesson room or a new microphone is a business cost. A visit to your own doctor about your voice is a personal medical expense, and if nobody separates the two, they end up in the same pile.
What we doKeeps studio equipment in its business expense lines and keeps personal costs, including your own medical visits, out of the books entirely. -
4
Remote lesson tools get treated like optional extras
Zoom, a decent microphone, and an audio interface are not nice-to-haves for a coach who teaches over video. Filed like a personal purchase, or not tracked at all, they miss a deduction most coaches are owed.
What we doKeeps recording and lesson gear in its own line, so the tools you teach through are counted as the business expense they are. -
5
A workshop month looks like a fluke, not income
A masterclass or weekend workshop can bring in more in a single weekend than a month of regular lessons, and if it lands mixed in with weekly tuition, you cannot see whether workshops are worth running again.
What we doKeeps workshop and masterclass fees in their own line, separate from weekly lesson income.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a voice coach.
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
- Lesson paymentsWeekly Zoom or in-person lessons billed through Stripe or PayPal.
- Lesson packagesBlocks of prepaid lessons, recognized across the sessions delivered.
- Workshop and masterclass feesOne-off group sessions billed apart from regular weekly tuition.
- Performing and session incomeGigs, sessions, and jingle work, kept apart from teaching income.
Money out
- Recording and lesson gearMicrophones, audio interfaces, and cables used to teach over video.
- Software subscriptionsZoom, scheduling software, and recording apps.
- Studio room suppliesA humidifier or acoustic panels for the room you teach from.
- Continuing educationVoice teacher conferences and vocal pedagogy workshops.
- MarketingWebsite hosting and business cards for referrals.
- Payment processing feesWhat Stripe or PayPal keeps before a lesson payment lands.
What we watch for you
- Active student count
The base your weekly income rests on. A steady roster matters more than one strong month.
- Teaching vs gig split
How much comes from lessons versus performing, so you know which side of the work is actually paying you.
- Package liability
The value of prepaid lessons not yet taught. It is money already collected but not yet earned.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so tax time is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things voice 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.
It is still taxable income, but I keep it in its own line so you can see what performing brings in separate from teaching.
No. I spread that income across the lessons as you actually teach them, so the month it was paid does not look bigger than it was.
Usually, yes, since it is a tool you teach through. I keep it in your equipment line and flag it so the accountant confirms how to write it off.
The tax side
The tax side of a voice coach.
With teaching, gigs, and packages all landing in different ways, most of what goes wrong here is timing and mixing income that should stay separate.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Self-employment taxProfit from teaching and performing owes self-employment tax of 15.3 percent on top of regular income tax, up to the Social Security wage base of $184,500.
- Form 1099-K from payment appsCoaches who take lesson payments through Stripe, PayPal, or Venmo can expect a 1099-K once payments cross $20,000 and 200 transactions in a year. All lesson income is taxable whether or not that form arrives.
- Quarterly estimated taxesEstimated payments fall on April 15, June 15, September 15, and January 15. With teaching and gig income both arriving with nothing withheld, Gus keeps a running set-aside so none of those dates catches you short.
- The pass-through deductionMost independent coaches can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when the books are right all year.
Deductions voice coaches miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Microphone and audio interface
- Zoom subscription
- Scheduling software
- Acoustic panels or humidifier
- Voice teacher conference fees
- Liability insurance
- Website hosting
- Payment processing fees
- Business cards
- Demo recording costs
- Portion of phone and internet used for lessons
- Promotional photos for your teaching bio
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 voice coach's year, kept every month.
Audition season and New Year resolution students both land in the first months of the year. Your taxes come on a schedule either way. 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
Plan the year
Last year's return gets started, and the audition-season wave of new students gets folded into your monthly set-aside.
- 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 a summer workshop or a quiet season changed the number.
- October
Before fall auditions
Before the fall audition season picks back up, Gus looks at any 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 voice 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 voice coaches ask first.
Does gig or session income count the same as teaching income for taxes?
Yes, both are taxable business income. Gus keeps them in separate lines so you can see what teaching earns apart from what performing earns, even though both count toward what you owe.
A student paid for a block of ten lessons up front. How is that counted?
Gus spreads that income across the lessons as you actually teach them, rather than counting it all the day it was paid, so no single month looks artificially padded.
Can I write off a microphone I only use for Zoom lessons?
Usually, yes, since it is a tool you teach through rather than a personal purchase. Gus keeps it in your equipment line and the accountant confirms how to write it off.
Is a visit to my own doctor about my voice a business expense?
No. That is a personal medical cost, separate from business expenses like studio equipment or lesson software, and Gus keeps the two apart on the books.
I get paid through Stripe, PayPal, and Venmo. Can Gus combine them?
Yes. Gus adds every payment method into one honest monthly total, so it does not matter which app a student happened to use.
My workshop brought in more than a month of regular lessons. Is that a problem?
No, but it should not get lost inside your regular tuition line. Gus keeps workshop income separate so you can see whether it is worth running again.
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