Tattoo artist bookkeeping: card deposits against booth rent, supplies and licences
A tattoo artist's income lands as Square or similar deposits; the costs are booth rent, needles and ink, gloves, sharps disposal, booking software, a health-department licence and ads. The bank statement holds both, so the month's profit starts there.
Worked example: one October
The tool ships a synthetic statement for a booth-renting artist (fixtures/tattoo-checking.csv): two Square deposits and eleven costs. Every line gets a suggested account with no rules taught; check each one.
| October 2026 | Amount |
|---|---|
| Square deposits | $3,365.00 |
| Money in | $3,365.00 |
| Needles, ink, stencils, gloves, sharps pickup (supplies) | −$388.35 |
| Booth rent | −$650.00 |
| Booksy and Procreate (software) | −$42.98 |
| Pathogens course (education and dues) | −$35.00 |
| Health-department artist licence (taxes and licenses) | −$150.00 |
| Instagram ads (advertising) | −$60.00 |
| Costs | −$1,326.33 |
| Profit | $2,038.67 |
The $400.00 Venmo cash-out is suggested as an owner draw (equity), not a cost, so it does not reduce profit. Tips, card fees netted from deposits and booth-rent arrangements vary: ask an accountant.
Questions
Where do booth rent, needles and ink go?
Booth or chair rent is rent; needles, ink, stencils, gloves and sharps pickup are supplies and materials, and the tool suggests each from the payee. Check each line: a supply store can also sell things for personal use.
Where do the health-department licence and the pathogens course go?
The artist licence goes under taxes and licenses and the bloodborne-pathogens course under education and dues. Requirements differ by county and state, so check yours.
Open AI Bookkeeper and import your bank statement. Rules are written from company names; no real artist's statement has been tried.