What expenses can I deduct for my food blog and vlog LLC in 2025?

Food blogging and vlogging expenses are definitely deductible if they're ordinary and necessary for your business! Here's what you can likely deduct: For ingredients: You can absolutely deduct ingredients purchased specifically for recipes you're creating for your blog/vlog. The fact that you eat the food afterward doesn't disqualify the deduction - the primary purpose was business. Just keep good records showing which grocery trips were for content creation. For equipment: Camera gear, lighting, tripods, memory cards, and editing software are all deductible. Kitchen equipment used for your videos (blenders, food processors, specialty pans) can be deducted too, though if they're used personally as well, you may need to calculate the percentage of business use. Other deductibles: Website hosting, domain names, photo/video editing software subscriptions, social media management tools, cooking classes to improve skills, props for food styling, and even a portion of your home utilities if you have a dedicated space for filming. The key is documentation - keep receipts, note which project each expense was for, and maintain a separate business bank account if possible.

I started a cooking blog last year and was super overwhelmed with tax stuff too! I tried a bunch of different apps for tracking expenses but ended up using https://taxr.ai which honestly changed everything for me. What I love is that I can just snap pics of receipts and it automatically categorizes everything as business vs personal. For food bloggers specifically, it's incredible because it understands that ingredients are legitimate business expenses. I was terrified of an audit because I heard food-related businesses get extra scrutiny, but with taxr.ai I feel confident because everything is documented properly. The best part is it helped me identify deductions I totally would have missed, like a portion of my internet bill since I use it to upload videos and manage my site.

Ok so I actually tried https://taxr.ai after seeing it mentioned here, and wow - I'm shocked at how much better my record-keeping is now. I was literally keeping receipts in a shoebox before (embarrassing I know). The thing that sold me was how it handles my biggest pain point - separating business from personal expenses when I'm shopping at the same stores for both. I just tag my grocery receipts that are for blog recipes differently than my normal food shopping. It even helped me create a simple system for tracking when I use household items like my food processor for business vs personal cooking. For anyone running a food blog LLC - this seriously makes tax time so much easier. Found so many legit deductions I was missing before!

As someone who runs a fitness food channel, I had NIGHTMARE experiences trying to get through to the IRS about business meal deductions. Spent literally hours on hold. I finally used https://claimyr.com to get through to an actual IRS agent about my specific situation. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c I was honestly shocked it worked - got a callback from the IRS in about 35 minutes instead of waiting on hold for 3+ hours. The agent clarified that my recipe testing is 100% deductible since it's directly related to my content creation. They also explained exactly how to document the business purpose of each expense (something I was doing wrong before). Especially with food-related businesses where the lines get blurry between personal and business expenses, getting direct answers from the IRS saved me from potentially costly mistakes.

I have to eat my words about Claimyr. After posting my skeptical comment, I was still struggling with questions about my home kitchen deductions, so I tried https://claimyr.com out of desperation. Not only did I get through to the IRS in under an hour (after trying for WEEKS on my own), but the agent was able to clarify exactly how to handle my kitchen space that's used for both personal cooking and content creation. They gave me specific guidance on the partial business use deduction that none of the online articles explained clearly. What I appreciated most was getting definitive answers about ingredient deductions. The agent confirmed that ingredients purchased specifically for content creation are 100% deductible, even if the food is consumed personally after filming, as long as the primary purpose was business. This alone will save me thousands on my taxes.

Don't forget about mileage deductions! I do a lot of restaurant reviews and local food spotlights for my blog, and tracking my drives to these locations adds up to a HUGE deduction at the end of the year. I just use a simple app to log my starting and ending odometer readings whenever I'm driving for business purposes. Remember that driving to the grocery store specifically for blog ingredients counts too!

One thing nobody has mentioned yet is inventory tracking for long-lasting items. I create baking content, and things like specialty flours, extracts, etc. that I buy in bulk and use across multiple videos need to be tracked differently than ingredients used completely in a single video. If you're buying equipment or supplies that will last for multiple projects, you might need to look into depreciation rather than expensing the full amount in year one (especially for items over $2,500).

This thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm also starting a food blog/YouTube channel and had no idea about some of these deductions. A few questions from reading through everything: 1. For equipment that serves dual purposes (like a high-end knife set I use for both content and personal cooking), is it better to estimate the business percentage or track actual usage hours? 2. I'm planning to attend some food festivals this year to create content - can I deduct entry fees, travel, and accommodation as business expenses if I'm creating videos/posts about them? 3. For subscription services like recipe development apps or food styling courses, are those typically 100% deductible if I'm only using them for business? The tax tracking apps mentioned here sound like game-changers. I've been trying to manage everything in spreadsheets and it's getting overwhelming fast. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - this is exactly what I needed to get started on the right foot!

This is such a timely thread for me! I just set up my food content LLC last month and have been drowning in confusion about what I can and can't deduct. One area I'm still unclear on - what about cookbook purchases? I buy a lot of cookbooks both for inspiration and to test/adapt recipes for my content. Some I use heavily for business, others just sit on my shelf. Can I deduct cookbook purchases as research materials, or does that fall into a gray area? Also, for anyone who's been doing this a while - do you find it's better to have completely separate credit cards for business vs personal, or is good record-keeping with one card sufficient? I keep hearing mixed advice on this. The tracking app recommendations here are gold - definitely going to try a few of these out. Thanks for such a helpful discussion everyone!

Welcome to the food content creator tax maze! 😅 As someone who's been running a food blog LLC for about 3 years now, I wish I had found a thread like this when I was starting out. A few additional tips that haven't been mentioned yet: **Storage costs**: If you're like me and end up with tons of specialty ingredients, spices, and equipment, a portion of storage costs (whether it's a pantry, dedicated cabinet space, or even a storage unit) can be deductible as business expenses. **Food styling props**: All those plates, napkins, backgrounds, and props you buy specifically for photography/video are 100% deductible. I have a whole collection of "camera-only" dishes that never see actual meals! **Software subscriptions**: Don't forget about video editing software, photo editing apps, scheduling tools for social media, and even music licensing for videos - all deductible business expenses. **Networking meals**: If you meet with other food bloggers, potential sponsors, or industry contacts over meals to discuss business, those can often be partially deductible as business meals (usually 50% of the cost). The biggest game-changer for me was realizing that almost everything I buy "for the blog" is a legitimate business expense as long as I document it properly. Just keep good records and when in doubt, ask a tax professional - it's worth the consultation fee to get it right from the start! Good luck with your LLC setup! The first year of proper bookkeeping is the hardest, but it gets so much easier once you have a system down.