Should my music performance and piano repair work be filed as separate businesses or one?

I've been running what I consider a single business for years now, combining my work as a pianist/vocalist (performing at weddings, private events, clubs) with my technical piano tuning and repair services. The income is pretty evenly split between these two aspects, maybe 55% performance and 45% repair work. There are definitely overlapping expenses - like when I drive to tune a piano and end up getting booked for a gig at the same venue, or use the same vehicle for both activities. I've always filed just one Schedule C, listing both activities under a single business. My tax software never flagged this as an issue, and I've never been audited or questioned about it. But recently I was talking to another musician who does instrument repairs, and she files two separate Schedule Cs for her performance and repair work. Now I'm wondering if I've been doing this wrong all along. Does the IRS actually require me to separate these activities into two distinct businesses for tax purposes? They feel completely related to me - it's all piano-centric work - but I don't want to get in trouble if there's some rule I'm unaware of. Any insight would be appreciated!

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18 comments

Lauren Wood

•8M

Based on what you've described, you're probably fine filing as one business. The IRS looks at several factors to determine if activities constitute one or multiple businesses, including: interdependence of the activities, similarities in types of business, extent of common control and ownership, and whether the activities are conducted at the same location. In your case, both activities center around pianos, which creates a natural connection. The fact that you sometimes combine services (tuning and then performing) shows interdependence. You have common control as the sole proprietor of both activities, and they likely share some business assets and expenses. That said, there can be advantages to separating businesses in some situations. For example, if one activity consistently operates at a loss, the IRS might scrutinize whether it's a genuine business or a hobby. Separate businesses can also help with liability protection in some cases, though that's more of a legal than tax consideration.

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Lauren Wood

•8M

Having different business cards or names doesn't automatically make them separate businesses for tax purposes. The IRS is more concerned with the economic reality of how your business functions rather than marketing materials. Many businesses operate with multiple trade names or "doing business as" (DBA) designations while still being a single entity for tax purposes. If you're using the same bank account, tracking expenses together, and managing them as one integrated operation, that supports treating them as a single business. The key is consistency in how you represent and operate the business in all aspects, not just on paper.

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Chad Winthrope

•8M

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Chad Winthrope

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Kylo Ren

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Nina Fitzgerald

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Liam Cortez

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I'm a piano teacher who also does performances, and I file everything under one business. My accountant said it's totally fine because they're related activities in the same industry. One thing she recommended though was keeping good records that clearly identify which income and expenses belong to which activity. This has been super helpful on the rare occasions when I've had specific questions about allocating certain expenses. Also helps me track which part of my business is more profitable!

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Liam Cortez

•8M

I use QuickBooks Self-Employed and set up different categories for the income streams. So all income gets tagged as either "Performance Revenue" or "Teaching Revenue" when it comes in. For expenses, I either assign them fully to one activity or split them by percentage if they benefit both parts of the business. It's fairly simple once you set it up. The important thing is consistency throughout the year. I used to try tracking everything in spreadsheets, but it became too time-consuming. Having a system that can generate reports showing the profitability of each activity separately while still maintaining one overall business has been incredibly helpful for both tax purposes and business decisions.

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