Is laptop a fixed asset? Can u depreciate it for tax purposes?

So I'm trying to set up my business accounts and I'm confused about my new MacBook Pro. Is laptop considered a fixed asset? Can u depreciate it over time? Also where does the depreciation amount per year actually go? Does it go in company expenses in Profit and Loss section? I've been filing my taxes using TurboTax but I'm setting up QuickBooks for my side business this year and want to make sure I'm categorizing everything correctly before I mess up my taxes.

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20 comments

Yara Haddad

•8M

Yes, a laptop is definitely considered a fixed asset for business purposes! It's tangible property with a useful life of more than one year, which is what makes it a fixed asset rather than a regular expense. For depreciation, you have a few options. Most small businesses use Section 179 to deduct the full cost of the laptop in the year you purchase it (up to certain limits). Alternatively, you can depreciate it over 5 years using MACRS (Modified Accelerated Cost Recovery System). As for where the depreciation goes, yes, it's counted as a business expense on your Profit and Loss statement, which reduces your taxable income. In QuickBooks, there's a specific category for depreciation expenses where you'd record the annual amount.

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Yara Haddad

•8M

That's a great question! Some businesses might choose to depreciate over 5 years instead of taking the Section 179 deduction if they don't have enough profit in the current year to benefit from the full deduction. If you're just starting out and operating at a loss or with minimal profit, spreading the deduction over future years when you might be more profitable could make more sense tax-wise. Another reason is that some businesses prefer to match the expense with the useful life of the asset for more accurate financial reporting, especially if they're looking for loans or investors. But for most small businesses with profitable operations, taking the full Section 179 deduction in year one is typically the more advantageous option.

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Paolo Conti

•8M

After struggling with this exact issue last year, I found this really helpful tool called taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) that totally saved me when dealing with my business assets and depreciation. I uploaded my receipts for my business laptop and office equipment, and it automatically categorized everything and showed me exactly how to handle the depreciation vs. Section 179 options based on my specific situation. It even generated the right depreciation schedule for my tax filing and showed me how to enter everything into QuickBooks. Seriously made the whole process so much clearer than the hours I spent googling IRS publications.

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Paolo Conti

•8M

Yes, it absolutely works with rental property assets! It can handle all kinds of fixed assets including appliances, furniture, and even larger items like rental property improvements. It categorizes them by the correct depreciation class (5-year, 7-year, etc.) according to IRS rules. I understand the skepticism about hidden fees - I've been burned by that too. They have different plan options depending on your needs, but what I like is that everything is upfront before you commit. You can actually try a basic analysis first to see if it's helpful for your situation before deciding. I found the cost was worth it just for the time saved figuring out all the depreciation rules.

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GalaxyGazer

•8M

Just wanted to follow up about that taxr.ai site someone mentioned. I was skeptical (still am about most tax stuff online tbh) but I gave it a shot with my business equipment. It actually identified that my $2,800 laptop purchase qualified for Section 179 and showed me exactly where to report it on my Schedule C. The depreciation calculator even showed me different scenarios for taking the full deduction vs. depreciating it over time. Ended up saving me about $980 in taxes this year by taking the full deduction instead of the first-year depreciation that I was planning to do. Now I get why people were recommending it.

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Oliver Wagner

•8M

If you're getting stuck with IRS questions about asset depreciation like I was, try Claimyr (https://claimyr.com). After waiting on hold with the IRS for literally 3+ hours over multiple days trying to get clarity on some depreciation questions for my business assets, I gave up and tried this service. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c They got me connected to a real IRS agent in about 15 minutes who explained exactly how to handle my laptop depreciation and which forms I needed. Saved me so much frustration!

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Oliver Wagner

•8M

It uses an automated system that navigates the IRS phone tree and waits on hold for you. When they reach a real person, you get a call connecting you directly to the agent. It's not about "cutting the line" - they're just waiting on hold so you don't have to. The reason it works is that they have technology that keeps the line open and navigates all the automated prompts, which is the part most people give up on. I was skeptical too until I tried it. I had been trying for 3 days to get through on my own with no luck, then got connected in about 15 minutes after using their service. The IRS agent I spoke with answered all my questions about depreciating my business assets.

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Javier Mendoza

•8M

Well I'm eating my words. After seeing the comments here I tried that Claimyr service for getting through to the IRS about my asset depreciation questions. Was absolutely certain it wouldn't work but got connected to an actual human at the IRS in about 20 minutes. The agent walked me through exactly how to handle my laptop and other office equipment on my Schedule C. Turns out I'd been doing it wrong for 2 years and could have been taking advantage of bonus depreciation. Going to file amended returns now and should get about $1,200 back. That's what I get for being skeptical I guess.

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Emma Thompson

•8M

There's no specific limit to the number of items you can deduct using the de minimis safe harbor, but each individual item needs to be under the $2,500 threshold. So yes, you could potentially deduct 5 laptops for employees as long as each one costs less than $2,500. The important thing is that you need to have an accounting policy in place at the beginning of the year that specifies you're using this election, and you apply it consistently. Also keep in mind that this is separate from Section 179, which has much higher limits but different rules.

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Khalil Urso

•5M

I went through this exact same confusion when I started my consulting business! One thing that really helped me was understanding the difference between business use percentage - if you use the laptop for both personal and business purposes, you can only depreciate the business portion. So if it's 80% business use, you'd only depreciate 80% of the cost. Also, don't forget to keep good records of when you started using it for business (that's your "placed in service" date for depreciation purposes). And if you're just starting out, definitely talk to a tax professional about whether Section 179 or regular depreciation makes more sense for your specific situation - it can really depend on your expected income levels. The QuickBooks setup isn't too bad once you get the hang of it, but like others mentioned, you might want to track the depreciation calculations separately and just enter the annual amounts as journal entries.

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Ana Erdoğan

•4M

This is really helpful advice about the business use percentage! I didn't even think about that - I probably use my laptop about 70% for business and 30% personal stuff. Does that mean I need to track my usage somehow to prove the percentage to the IRS if they ask? Or is it more of an estimate based on typical use patterns? Also, when you mention the "placed in service" date - is that when I first bought the laptop, or when I first started using it for business? I bought mine in January but didn't start my side business until March.

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