Your complete gamer creator tax playbook

Gaming content has exploded into a major income stream. Whether you stream on YouTube Gaming, Kick, Facebook Gaming, or TikTok Live, your skills aren’t just entertainment—they can generate real money.

From donos, in‑stream gifts, tips, memberships, and sponsorships, when your gaming has officially become a business, it’s time to think about taxes. Read on for all the details you need to get a handle on your taxes.

Check out our Creator tax guide and Creator tax cheat sheet and checklist for more valuable tips.

Gaming + income = self‑employment (from the IRS’s perspective)

As soon as you begin earning money from streaming or gaming content, you may be considered self‑employed.

That means:

• You must cover the 15.3% self‑employment tax (for Social Security and Medicare). You’ll pay the employee and employer halves of this tax. Don’t worry, you can deduct half as a deduction.

• You must make quarterly estimated tax payments (since there’s no employer withholding taxes and paying your tax obligations as you go).
• You’ll report income and deductions using Schedule C.

Gifted items vs. Gear expenses

One of the more complex tax concepts for of creator work is understanding what counts as income and what’s a deduction. Here’s the deal – the details matter when it comes to taxes.  

• If you purchase an item yourself to create content, it may qualify as a deduction.
• If a brand sends you an item in exchange for content, the item’s fair market value becomes taxable income.
• If the item is gifted with no expectation to post, it may not be taxable, but if there is any deliverable implied, the IRS sees it as income.

Streaming income vs. tips (and why it matters)

Not all income types are taxed the same. With new tax rules, it’s important to understand the difference:

• Donations, gifted items in exchange for a post, and in‑platform currency redemptions are taxable as business income.
• Tips may be deducted under the new no tax on tips federal law, which means they can be eligible for this deduction if they fit the definition of a qualified tip rather than platform‑generated monetization.

Understanding how your platform classifies contributions is a must—your payout dashboards usually break it down. When it’s time to report your creator income, you’ll want to indicate any tips you’ve received.

Deductions for gamers

There are a lot of common deductions out there for creators. We’ve listed a few here, but you can also jump over to our write-offs for creators post for an extended list. 

• Legal services: Incorporation fees, contracts with brands, trademark filings, etc.
• Trade events/seminars: Tickets and travel.
• Self‑employed health insurance premiums:
• Marketing: Website hosting, ads, and promotional material

Gaming creators: Leveling up your knowledge on tax breaks

For most gaming content creators, it’s all about the games and the gear. Bringing viewers into your world requires a lot of specialized tech IRL that come with hefty price tags. The silver lining is that many of your purchases can turn into money‑saving deductions on your taxes.

Potential deductions for gaming content creation

Here are some items that might apply to your gaming content and turn into a deduction on your taxes.

• Computers: Gaming PCs, streaming PCs, laptops, tablets
• Computer‑related: Headsets, microphones, webcams, high‑end monitors and speakers, mechanical keyboards, gaming mice, specialty controllers
• Gaming chair: If part of your streaming setup
• Gaming systems: Xbox, PlayStation, PC rigs
• In‑game purchases: Skins, DLC, loot boxes, or currency can be deductible if they are used to generate content
• Internet costs: High‑speed plans for streaming
• Streaming software and related tools
• Memberships: YouTube, Patreon
• Subscriptions: Xbox Game Pass, Twitch Turbo
• Travel: Conventions or tournaments
• Video games: Titles purchased for streaming

Watchouts for gaming content expenses

Gaming might be a situation where it’s fun to take your work home with you, but for taxes split between personal and business is important. If you’re using items for both, you’ll have to break out the percentage use and only claim the business portion on your taxes (for example, if you use a gaming system for content creation and for your own play).

Keep documentation showing how items connect to your content—for example, featuring a new game for a series of videos.

Getting a handle on tax time: Forms and tips

At tax time, you’ll likely receive a few tax forms from the platforms you’re working with. They may include:

• 1099‑NEC for sponsor or partner payments (if over $600)
• 1099‑K for platform payouts (if you have more than $20,000 in payments and 200 transactions)

You’ll report all income on Schedule C and file that along with your Form 1040.

Tips to stay organized

• Dedicated banking: Consider opening a separate bank account for your creator work if you haven’t already.
• Expense tracking: Keep receipts for gear, software, in‑game purchases, work travel, etc.

Earn like a creator. File like a pro.

Navigating taxes as a creator can get complex. From reporting ad revenue to deducting video editing software, Block is here to make the complex easy so you can get a handle on your creator taxes.  

Get started today! File on your own or File with a tax pro.