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100+ Work-From-Home Tax Deductions Every Freelancer Needs to Know

The world is changing, and so is how and where we work.

With more and more of us shifting to working from home, it’s important to know the financial benefits that come along with it.

Many business owners are surprised to learn that taxes are one of their biggest costs as an entrepreneur. Soul crushing, right? That’s why it’s so important to be aware of as many deductions and credits as possible to keep more of your money in your pocket!

Check out this list of 105 possible tax deductions and credits for business owners who work from home. 

  1. Accounting fees 

  2. Advertising and marketing 

  3. Auto expenses (see Auto Expenses Deep Dive below)

  4. Adobe Creative Suite

  5. Advertising 

  6. Banking fees 

  7. Blue light filter glasses

  8. Building repairs and maintenance 

  9. Business association membership dues 

  10. Business cards

  11. Business trips 

  12. Charitable deductions made for a business purpose 

  13. Child Tax Credit 

  14. City Taxes

  15. Cleaning/janitorial services 

  16. Cameras 

  17. Collection expenses 

  18. Commissions to affiliates 

  19. Computer and tech supplies

  20. Computer insurance 

  21. Consulting fees 

  22. Continuing education for yourself to maintain licensing and improve skills 

  23. Conventions and trade shows 

  24. Cost of goods sold 

  25. Coworking memberships 

  26. Credit card merchant service feeds

  27. Depreciation 

  28. Desk

  29. Display Ads

  30. Drones 

  31. Earned Income Tax Credit 

  32. Education and training for employees 

  33. Equipment 

  34. Exhibits for publicity 

  35. Facebook Ads

  36. Franchise fees 

  37. Freight and shipping costs 

  38. Furniture and fixtures (limits apply)

  39. Google Ads

  40. Gifts for customers (limits apply) 

  41. Health insurance premiums 

  42. Equipment repairs 

  43. Hard drives & digital storage

  44. Headphones

  45. Health savings account

  46. Home office (see Home Office Deep Dive below)

  47. Office chair

  48. Instagram Ads

  49. Interest paid 

  50. Internet (portion used for business)

  51. Investment advice and fees 

  52. IRA contributions (limits apply) 

  53. Legal fees 

  54. Leased vehicle or equipment 

  55. Liability Insurance

  56. License fees 

  57. LinkedIn Subscription

  58. Losses due to theft 

  59. Marketing

  60. Materials 

  61. Maintenance and repairs 

  62. Meals (see Meals Deep Dive below)

  63. Microphones

  64. Monitors

  65. Mortgage interest on business property 

  66. Moving expenses 

  67. Newspapers and magazines 

  68. Office supplies and expenses 

  69. Payroll taxes for employees (including Social Security, Medicare, and unemployment taxes) 

  70. Parking and tolls 

  71. Pension plans 

  72. Phone (cell or home) (portion used for business)

  73. Phone service

  74. Phone applications

  75. Postage 

  76. Print Ads

  77. Printer & paper

  78. Prizes for contests 

  79. Professional Coaching

  80. Project Management Software

  81. Rebates on sales 

  82. Research and development 

  83. Retirement plans 

  84. Royalties 

  85. Safe-deposit box 

  86. Sales Tax

  87. Scanner

  88. Security programs

  89. Social media advertising 

  90. Software and online services 

  91. Storage Equipment

  92. Storage rental 

  93. Subcontractors 

  94. Telephone (business use portion)

  95. Transportation

  96. Video equipment 

  97.  Virtual workshops & seminars

  98. YouTube channel 

  99. Wages and salaries paid to employees 

  100. Wethos back office services

  101. Website design 

  102. Website hosting services

  103. Wifi mobile hotspot 

  104. Workers' compensation insurance

  105. Zoom and other telecommunication software 

Auto Expenses Deep Dive

Driving to and from client meetings, conferences, and vendor locations are all considered business mileage. Commuting to and from your office or co-working space is NOT considered mileage. To deduct your auto expenses, the first thing you have to do is track your mileage. You are required to have a log of all business mileage throughout the year, as well as the total personal miles driven. 


Actual Expense Method 

The deduction is based on the portion of mileage used for business. You take your business use percentage (business miles divided by total miles) and multiply that by your total vehicle expenses for the year, and then that’s your deduction. 


Simplified Method

Not interested in keeping track of every time you get gas?  No worries. With the standard mileage deduction, you simply take the standard mileage rate and multiply it by your total business miles driven for the year.

Home Office Deep Dive

If you use a portion of your home exclusively and on a regular basis for business use, then you are allowed to deduct a portion of your home expenses, including:

  • Real estate taxes

  • Mortgage interest 

  • Rent

  • Utilities 

  • Insurance 

  • Repairs & Maintenance


Regular Method

To use this method, you take your home office square footage and divide it by your total home square footage. You then multiply that percentage times your total home expenses to find your deduction.

Example: Molly has a home office that is 100 square feet that she exclusively uses for her marketing business. She rents her home, which is 1,200 square feet. Her total annual rent, renters insurance, and utilities cost $15,000. Her business use percentage is 8.3% (100 divided by 1,200), so her home office deduction is $1,250 ($15,000 times 8.3%).

Simplified Method

Not really up to keeping track of all of your home expenses throughout the year? Problem solved. Just multiply your home office square footage by the set rate of $5 to find your deduction. The maximum deduction allowed is based on 300 square feet.

Example: If Molly used the simplified method, she would take her office square footage (100) and multiply it by $5, so her deduction would be $500.

Meals Deep Dive 

You can deduct 50% of your meals as long as you meet these requirements:

  • Meet with a business contact 

  • Discuss business

  • Pay for your and their meal (it cannot be lavish or extravagant)


Exceptions

  • When traveling for business, ALL of your meals (even meals by yourself) are deductible. 

  • Your meals with employees are only deductible if it is used to improve productivity. 

  • If you offer an open house or office party, your meals are 100% deductible.

But just remember, while meals are deductible, entertainment expenses are NOT. These entertainment expenses include country club membership fees, golf tee fees, yoga classes, sporting events, etc.

Example: Kiara takes a client to a baseball game where she buys hot dogs and beers for herself and her client. The cost of the game is not deductible. However, she can deduct 50% of the cost of the food and drinks as long as they were purchased separately from the tickets.


It’s important to note that while this list is just a start when it comes to the potential tax deductions and credits available to freelancers and small business owners, not every one of these items is always an applicable deduction depending on your situation.

Want to know which of these 109 items are applicable for you? Schedule a free consultation with me to review your business expenses and s