The 6 Bookkeeping Mistakes I Saw Most in 2025

As I reviewed 2025 financial records, the same bookkeeping mistakes showed up again + again. Not because business owners were careless, but because the impact was never clearly explained. Below are some of the most costly issues I noticed 5 how to fix them moving forward.

The Oops: Personal meals, subscriptions, or travel were paid from the business account, making reports inaccurate and deductions harder to support.

The Fix: Keep separate personal and business bank accounts and credit cards. If something personal slips through, reclassify it correctly right away.

The Oops: Payroll was run using outdated tax rates or without accounting for new requirements, leading to underpayments and notices.

The Fix: Review payroll settings regularly and confirm tax rates and thresholds are updated, especially at the start of the year.

The Oops: Equipment or large software purchases were fully expensed instead of depreciated, causing distorted profit and future issues.

The Fix: Identify large purchases early and track them properly so depreciation is recorded over time.

The Oops: Sales tax collected from customers was recorded as an expense, reducing reported profit incorrectly.

The Fix: Record sales tax as a liability, not an expense and reconcile it before filing returns.

The Oops: Business loans or lines of credit were recorded as income, inflating revenue and tax exposure.

The Fix: Record loans as liabilities so reports reflect true operating income.

The Oops: Bank and credit card accounts were months behind, allowing errors to pile up unnoticed.

The Fix: Reconcile accounts monthly to catch mistakes early.

If you want 2026 to feel more organized, confident + profitable now is the perfect time to fix what did not work last year. Book a call to see how I can help you build better systems, get clear on your financials + stay on track to meet your goals.