IRS Personal Services (TTOC)

Do personal shoppers qualify for the No Tax on Tips deduction?

Personal shoppers are on the IRS Treasury Tipped Occupation Code list — and the role now spans two very different worlds. Gig-app grocery shoppers (Instacart, Shipt) see in-app tips on most orders; that is the volume end. Private personal shoppers and department-store stylists see fewer, larger tips from wealthy clients, alongside commissions that do NOT qualify. Both worlds are TTOC-eligible; the record-keeping differs.

Short answer

Yes. Personal shoppers are on the IRS TTOC list. Voluntary tips — in-app tips on Instacart/Shipt orders, cash or gift tips from private clients (cash-equivalent only), holiday tips — qualify for the federal No Tax on Tips deduction, up to $25,000 per year. Batch pay, service fees, styling fees, and sales commissions are business income, not tips.

How much could you save?

Typical tip income for personal shoppers.

Full-time gig-app shoppers typically report $4,000-$12,000 in annual in-app tips — tips are often 30-50% of total earnings on grocery platforms. Department-store personal stylists see $1,000-$5,000 in true tips (most compensation is salary + commission). Private personal shoppers with wealthy clientele vary widely, $2,000-$10,000.

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For personal shoppers specifically

What counts as a qualified tip — and what doesn't.

✓ Qualifies

In-app tips on Instacart, Shipt, and similar platforms
Cash tips from private shopping clients
Holiday tips from regular clients
Voluntary tips at delivery/handoff on top of the order

✗ Does not qualify

Batch pay, order pay, or platform incentives (platform compensation)
Styling fees or hourly rates you charge private clients
Sales commissions at department stores (wages)
Service fees the platform charges customers
Mileage or expense reimbursements

A worked example

Dana, a real-world personal shopper.

Dana is a full-time Instacart shopper in a suburban market, 1099, single filer, MAGI $33,000. For the tax year, she logged $10,200 in qualified in-app tips (tips run ~40% of her platform earnings). She sits in the 12% federal marginal bracket.

Deduction allowed: Full $10,200 deduction (net SE income supports it)
Estimated savings: About $1,224 off federal income tax (SE tax still applies)

This is an illustrative example, not a guarantee. Your actual savings depend on your filing status, total income, state, and other deductions.

Questions specific to personal shoppers

What other personal shoppers ask.

Customers sometimes reduce the tip after delivery ("tip baiting"). What do I log?

Log what you actually received after any adjustment window closes. The platform earnings statement shows the final tip per order — reconcile weekly rather than at order time to avoid logging tips that got clawed back.

Instacart batch pay includes a "heavy order" bump. Tip?

No — platform pay adjustments are compensation from the platform. Only the customer-tip line qualifies. The app separates them clearly; your log should too.

A private client pays my $200 styling fee and adds $50. Which qualifies?

The $50. Your styling fee is business income; the voluntary extra is a tip. Same split as every service trade.

Department-store stylist: my commission is 6% of what clients buy. Tips?

Commission is wages from your employer, not customer tips — it never qualifies. A client who slips you $40 for a great styling session created a qualified tip. The two must be logged separately.

Related occupations

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The deduction is real money — if you can prove your tips.

Qualified Tips logs each shift the moment it ends — timestamped, exportable, IRS-aligned.

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Read the full eligibility guide