Every pledge goes on your Patreon taxes, and Patreon’s 1099-K counts each one before fees and refunds.
The 1099-K comes from Patreon itself, for creators in the US and US citizens living abroad. On Schedule C, refunds, Patreon’s fees and your other costs come off your gross earnings. You pay tax on what remains.
Updated · Sources
Patreon’s tax forms, for 2025 earnings
- $20,000
- of earnings brings a 1099-K in most states. Patreon’s table sets lower thresholds for some states and DC.
- $600
- of earnings in a year is when Patreon requires your W-9.
- One
- 1099-K goes to each creator page, even when two pages share one W-9.
Who gets a Patreon tax form?
The Patreon 1099 is a Form 1099-K, not a 1099-NEC or 1099-MISC. Patreon needs your W-9 before it can issue a 1099-K. It checks your taxpayer ID against IRS records as you submit the W-9.
A US creator
US citizens and resident aliens give Patreon a W-9. A non-US creator living outside the US generally gives a W-8BEN instead, and gets no 1099-K.
Earnings past $20,000
Patreon’s 2025 table sets the federal threshold, or line, for a 1099-K at $20,000 of earnings in a calendar year. By law, a platform must file a 1099-K only when the year also has more than 200 transactions.
A lower line in your state
Some places get lower lines in Patreon’s 2025 table: $2,500 in Arkansas, $1,000 in Illinois and $600 in DC. In Oregon, any earnings bring a form.
Patreon’s table covers 2025 earnings. Neither federal figure rises with inflation, so the same federal test holds for 2026.
How much Patreon income do you report when three 1099-Ks arrive?
Some creators get a second 1099-K from a payment processor for the same payouts, though Patreon asks processors not to file one. Patreon’s help center says to report that income once.
Every form added up
$68,000
The processor’s form counts the same member money a second time.
Both Patreon forms
$36,000
The gross from your two pages, which is where your Schedule C begins.
The larger page only
$30,000
The second page’s $6,000 goes missing, though it is taxable income too.
Add the $30,000 and $6,000 to get the $36,000 gross, and leave out the processor’s $32,000. Ask the processor for a corrected 1099-K showing zero, and keep it with your records. File on time, even if the correction has not come. Each row is income reported, not tax, so no tax rate applies. The dollar amounts are invented round numbers.
What trips up Patreon creators when they file?
Starting from your bank deposits
Payouts reach you after Patreon’s fees and any refunds, so your deposits usually add up to less than the 1099-K. Report the form’s gross as income, so your return matches what Patreon reported.
Calling pledges donations
Patrons may think of a pledge as support, but a payment tied to your content is income. Under the Supreme Court’s test in Commissioner v. Duberstein, a gift comes from “detached and disinterested generosity”: the giver expects nothing back. A patron who expects posts or perks in return is paying for them.
Assuming a move abroad ends US tax
A US citizen who moves abroad is still a US person, so Patreon still asks for a W-9. Your Patreon income stays on your US return, wherever you live.
Forgetting what member rewards cost
Prints, stickers and other rewards you mail to members are costs of running your page, and so is the postage. Deduct them on Schedule C, and keep the receipts.
We count your Patreon income once, and a licensed CPA signs the return.
Patreon creators can hand Valim’s CPAs every 1099-K and payout report, and we prepare and sign their federal and state returns.
- We total the 1099-Ks from all your Patreon pages, and never count a processor’s form for the same payouts twice.
- We bring Patreon’s gross down to your taxable profit, using your bookkeeper’s ledger or your own records.
- We size each Form 1040-ES payment to what your pages earn.
- We check if electing S corp status would lower the tax on your membership income, and from which year.
- We handle any IRS or state notice on a return we prepared, within your fee, even one about a duplicate 1099-K.
- Individual return
- from $195
- Business return
- from $495
We quote a flat fee before work starts. We do not bill hourly.
Patreon tax questions.
Do I have to pay taxes on Patreon income?
Yes. What members pay you through Patreon is income, and you report it even when no 1099-K arrives. In most states, Patreon sends no form below $20,000 of 2025 earnings. A page you keep up regularly to earn money counts as a business, so its income goes on Schedule C. Once its profit passes a small yearly floor, you also owe self-employment tax on it, alongside income tax.
Does Patreon send a 1099-K?
Yes, Patreon sends a Form 1099-K to US creators, including US citizens abroad, whose year’s earnings pass its line. For 2025 earnings, that line was $20,000 in most states. Patreon’s table lists lower lines for some states and DC, down to any earnings in Oregon. Under federal law, a platform must file one only if a year’s payments top $20,000 and number more than 200. If you also earn on YouTube, that income comes on a different form, a 1099-MISC from Google.
How does Patreon report creator income to the IRS?
Patreon reports creator income to the IRS on Form 1099-K, as the third-party settlement organization that pays you. Once you earn $600 in a year, it requires your W-9 and checks your taxpayer ID against IRS records. The form shows members’ gross payments, with nothing taken off for refunds or fees. A payment processor may also send a 1099-K for the same payouts, so report that income only once.
How do I download my Patreon 1099-K?
Open the Documents tab of your Patreon Payouts section. Its Income tax area has a Download button for each year. Patreon generates the forms between January and February, and you can switch to paperless delivery in your payout settings. If you run more than one page, each page has its own form to download.
Does Patreon take out taxes?
Patreon’s US tax pages describe no income tax withheld from US creators’ earnings. Patreon does withhold income tax in some other countries, such as Mexico. Backup withholding, a flat 24% held back by the payer, applies if your W-9 is missing or gives a wrong taxpayer ID. On Patreon payouts, it can start once a year’s payments pass $20,000 and 200 transactions. If last year’s payments passed both, it can start with the first payment. With nothing held back, many US creators pay estimated tax four times a year.
Sources
- Patreon Help Center, Will I receive a 1099-K form?
- Patreon Help Center, US Creator: Frequently Asked Tax Questions
- Patreon Help Center, Submitting a W-9
- Patreon Help Center, Preparing for US Tax Season
- 26 U.S.C. § 6050W, Returns relating to payments made in settlement of payment card and third party network transactions
- IRS, Instructions for Form 1099-K (Rev. December 2026)
- IRS, Understanding your Form 1099-K
- IRS, What to do with Form 1099-K
- 26 U.S.C. § 3406, Backup withholding
- 26 U.S.C. § 61, Gross income defined
- 26 U.S.C. § 102, Gifts and inheritances
- Commissioner v. Duberstein, 363 U.S. 278 (1960)
- IRS, 2025 Instructions for Schedule C (Form 1040)
- 26 U.S.C. § 1402, Definitions (net earnings from self-employment)
- IRS, Form 1040-ES (2026), Estimated Tax for Individuals
Reviewed and updated September 2026. General information, not advice for your situation.