Knowledge base
Guides to categorizing US small-business expenses — written to be practical, not exhaustive. Each guide maps to the account you'd use in GitAccounting.
Day-to-day expenses
Meals and entertainment: what's 50%, 100%, and nondeductible
How to categorize business meals, client dinners, office snacks, and entertainment — and which portion is actually deductible.
Travel expenses: transportation, lodging, and per diem basics
What counts as deductible business travel — flights, hotels, rideshares, per diems — and how to handle trips that mix business with pleasure.
Vehicle and mileage: standard rate vs actual costs
How to deduct business driving — the standard mileage rate versus actual vehicle costs, what counts as a business mile, and the log the IRS expects you to keep.
Utilities and phone: getting the business-use percentage right
How to deduct electricity, internet, and phone costs — fully for business premises, by percentage for mixed personal use, and what to do about cell phones.
Supplies vs equipment: expensing, depreciation, and the de minimis safe harbor
When a purchase is a supply you expense now versus equipment you depreciate — and how the de minimis safe harbor lets most small purchases be expensed immediately.
Services, software & coverage
Software and subscriptions: SaaS, licenses, and when to capitalize
How to categorize SaaS subscriptions, software licenses, cloud hosting, and app purchases — and the rare cases where software should be capitalized instead of expensed.
Professional services: legal, accounting, and consulting fees
How to categorize fees paid to lawyers, accountants, bookkeepers, and consultants — and which professional fees can't be deducted as current expenses.
Contractors and 1099s: classification and reporting basics
How to tell a contractor from an employee, when you must issue Form 1099-NEC, and how to keep contractor payments clean in your books.
Insurance premiums: which policies are deductible
Which insurance premiums count as business expenses — liability, E&O, property, workers' comp — and why health and life insurance follow different rules.
Structure & bigger decisions
The home office deduction: simplified vs actual method
Who qualifies for the home office deduction, how the exclusive-use test works, and how to choose between the simplified $5-per-square-foot method and actual expenses.
Startup costs: the $5,000 first-year deduction and amortization
How pre-launch spending is deducted — the $5,000 first-year allowances for startup and organizational costs, the $50,000 phase-out, and 15-year amortization for the rest.
COGS vs operating expenses: inventory basics for retail
Why product costs belong in cost of goods sold rather than expenses, how inventory turns into COGS when items sell, and what small retailers need to track.