Collision & appearance
Books and taxes for window tinting shops.
Ceramic and dyed film tiers priced differently, lifetime warranty jobs years after the sale, a summer rush that carries the year, and film bought by the roll. 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
July came in at $11,700. Ceramic film jobs outsold the dyed tier again this month, so I kept those two lines separate to show which one is carrying the shop.
- Customer, card paymentRetail tint jobs
- Dealer lot contract payoutDealer and fleet work
- 3M film orderFilm stock
- Installer commission, K. AdeCommission pay
- Warranty film replacementWarranty work
Why your books are different
A tint shop's books go wrong in the same few places.
A generalist bookkeeper sees deposits and film bills. Your business sells three or four film tiers at different margins, honors lifetime warranties years after the sale, and lives on a heavy summer season. When the books blur the tiers together, you cannot tell which one actually pays.
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1
A cheap dyed tint and a ceramic package look identical
A basic dyed film job and a premium ceramic film job on the same car can bring in very different money, but if every tint sale lands in one bucket, it is impossible to see which tier customers actually want or which one pays the bills.
What we doKeeps film tiers as separate income lines, so you can see which packages sell and which ones carry the shop. -
2
A warranty replacement years later shows up as a normal cost
A lifetime warranty claim on a job from three years ago comes back as bubbling or peeling film, and the replacement film and labor look like an ordinary expense with no sale attached to explain it.
What we doTags warranty replacement costs as their own line, so a warranty month does not read as an unexplained cost spike. -
3
A summer rush carries a slow winter that has not happened yet
A shop in a hot-summer market can do most of its year's volume in a few months, and it is tempting to spend like every month will look like July.
What we doShows the year against itself, not just month to month, so a strong summer and a quiet winter both make sense together. -
4
A film roll covers dozens of jobs before it runs out
A roll of tint film gets bought once and installed across weeks of jobs. Expensed all at once, the week it was bought looks bad and the weeks after look better than they are.
What we doKeeps film stock in one steady materials line and tells you when a big roll order is the reason a week looks thin.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a tint shop.
Set up once for how film tiers sell and what a job costs to run. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Retail tint jobsStandard walk-in and appointment jobs paid by card or cash.
- Ceramic film upgradesPremium film tier packages, tracked apart from dyed film jobs.
- Dealer and fleet workRecurring tint contracts with a car lot or a local business fleet.
- Warranty work billed outAny warranty labor billed to a film manufacturer, if applicable.
Money out
- Film stockDyed and ceramic tint rolls from 3M, Llumar, or Suntek.
- Commission payWhat installers are paid per job, apart from hourly wages.
- Warranty workFilm and labor for lifetime warranty replacements on old jobs.
- Install toolsHeat guns, squeegees, and blades replaced regularly.
- Shop rent and utilitiesBay space, lighting, and climate control for clean installs.
- MarketingLocal ads and before-after photos for social media.
What we watch for you
- Tier mix
How much of your sales come from ceramic versus dyed film, so upsell efforts target the right tier.
- Warranty cost rate
How much old jobs cost in replacement film, worth knowing before extending a warranty further.
- Seasonal swing
How much of the year lands in your busiest months, so slow months are planned for, not a surprise.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things tint shop 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 keep the two tiers as separate lines, so you can see which one actually brings in more relative to what it costs. Worth a look at the numbers before you decide.
No, I tagged it as warranty work, not a fresh sale gone wrong. It shows up as its own line so the month still makes sense.
No, I track your year against itself, not month to month. A quiet winter after a strong summer is normal for a tint shop and reads that way.
The tax side
The tax side of a tint shop.
Most of what goes wrong here is timing and mixing tiers together. A warranty job that looks like a random cost, film bought in bulk skewing a slow week, and an installer paid like a contractor who works like an employee.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- Shop equipment write-offsHeat lamps, cutting tables, and lifts for tint work 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 installer not on payroll who you paid $2,000 or more in 2026 gets a 1099-NEC by January 31. Gus keeps that list all year.
- Employee or contractorAn installer who works your schedule, uses your bay, and takes direction on every job usually looks like an employee, even if paid by commission.
- State tint law complianceLegal tint darkness limits vary a lot by state, and that is a licensing and legal question, not a bookkeeping one. Gus tracks the money either way.
Deductions window tinting shops miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Film and vinyl rolls
- Heat guns and squeegees
- Cutting blades and tables
- Warranty replacement film
- Bay lighting and climate control
- Card processing fees
- Uniforms and shop coats
- Trade certification courses
- Shop rent and utilities
- Marketing and before-after photos
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 tint shop's year, kept every month.
Summer heat drives the rush. Your taxes come on a schedule. 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, the 1099 list is ready, and you get a monthly set-aside so April is already handled.
- 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 the summer rush changed the number.
- October
Before the slow season
Before cooler weather cuts demand, Gus looks at film stock and equipment worth buying 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 window tinting shops. 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 tint shop owners ask first.
Can Gus keep my film tiers separate so I know which one sells best?
Yes. He keeps ceramic and dyed film sales as separate lines, so you can see which tier drives your revenue and which one your customers actually prefer.
How does a lifetime warranty claim show up in the books?
As warranty work, its own line, not a fresh sale or a random cost. That way a warranty job from years ago does not confuse a current month's numbers.
My installers get paid commission per job. Does that change the books?
It changes where the money goes, not what you do. Commission stays its own line, so you can see install labor against what each job brought in.
My business does almost nothing in the winter. Will that look bad on paper?
No. Gus tracks the year against itself, so a seasonal slowdown reads as normal, not as trouble.
Do I write off new cutting tables or lifts all 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.
Can Gus tell me if my state's tint law affects my taxes?
No, tint darkness rules are a licensing and legal question, not a tax one. Gus tracks the money side of your business regardless of which film legally qualifies where you work.
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