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This is probably a simple question in the financial world, but I haven't been able to get a straight answer to it yet.

I work from home in an entirely different state from the company I work for. I started out working in their office and was there for two years before moving away but getting to keep my job. I'm a web developer and graphic designer, so I need the Adobe suite of programs. If I were in the office, I would have access to them paid for by the company. Instead, I pay for the monthly subscription cost myself. Both my wife and I use the software, though I use it much more frequently (as in, daily) than she does, and we are filing jointly this year.

Is the subscription cost something I can deduct from my taxes as a business expense? It really is a required part of my job, so the expense is legitimate. Is this something I need to try to expense through my company first before deducting from my taxes?

While we're on the subject, I purchased my laptop for my job right before moving out of state. I bought it because I needed a modern laptop for my job, but I also use it equally for personal use. Is this deductible at all as well?

Thanks in advance for any insight.

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    Both you and your wife are using it .... for work?
    – littleadv
    Commented Jan 7, 2016 at 22:30

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Yes, this is a miscellaneous itemized deduction.

https://www.irs.gov/publications/p529/ar02.html

For this to impact your taxes, you have to be itemizing deductions (have total deductions greater than standard deduction), and the total of all miscellaneous deductions needs to exceed the "2% floor" described in the IRS link above.

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  • I suspect you would get scrutinized closely if you do this. Lots of people try to claim their home computer as a work computer, and you may be asked to provide evidence that you actually need these programs.
    – DJClayworth
    Commented Jan 8, 2016 at 19:50
  • This IRS document says that you can depreciated your computer. That's not quite the same as deducting it outright.
    – user32479
    Commented Jan 9, 2016 at 15:43

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