Stop Estimating. Track Every Mile Automatically.
Fast Pay Books's iOS app runs background GPS so every business trip is logged, classified, and audit-ready. Average user finds 2,000+ untracked miles a year.
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Free calculator for the 2026 IRS business rate, which the IRS raised mid-year: 72.5¢/mile through June 30 and 76¢/mile from July 1. Works for self-employed filers, 1099 contractors, rideshare and delivery drivers, and landlords driving between rental properties.
Estimates only. Not tax advice. State income tax not included. Self-employment tax savings are reduced by the 50% deduction.
The IRS standard mileage rate is a single per-mile figure that bundles every cost of operating a vehicle for business: fuel, oil, maintenance, repairs, tires, depreciation, registration, and insurance. You take the deduction by multiplying your business miles by the rate — no receipts for individual gas fill-ups, no separate depreciation schedule, no proration of insurance.
For the 2026 tax year there are two business rates, because the IRS revised them effective July 1: 72.5 cents per mile through June 30 and 76 cents per mile from July 1. You apply each rate to the miles you actually drove in that part of the year. The rate covers any vehicle you own or lease as long as you use the standard rate in the first year you place the vehicle in service for business. Two other categories have their own rates:
| Use | Jan 1 – Jun 30 | Jul 1 – Dec 31 | Reported on |
|---|---|---|---|
| Business (self-employed, landlord, 1099) | 72.5¢ / mile | 76¢ / mile | Schedule C line 9 or Schedule E line 6 |
| Medical or moving (active-duty military only) | 20.5¢ / mile | 23.5¢ / mile | Schedule A or Form 3903 |
| Charitable | 14¢ / mile (set by statute) | 14¢ / mile (set by statute) | Schedule A |
The deduction is meaningful. A 12,000-mile year split evenly across the two rate periods is an $8,910 deduction. At a 22% federal bracket plus 15.3% self-employment tax, that's roughly $3,200 less owed at tax time — for the same driving you'd be doing anyway.
Eligibility is narrower than people think since the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. As of the 2026 tax year, only these filers can deduct unreimbursed business mileage:
Most W-2 employees cannot deduct mileage for tax years 2018 through 2025 under TCJA. If your employer reimburses mileage at less than the IRS rate, the gap is not deductible — push for full reimbursement instead.
The IRS gives you a choice: the standard rate above, or "actual expenses" — sum up your fuel, oil, maintenance, repairs, insurance, registration, lease payments, and depreciation, then multiply by your business-use percentage. Three rules decide which one wins:
Default recommendation: start with the standard rate. Switch to actual expenses only if a tax pro runs the numbers and tells you the gap is real for your specific vehicle.
Audits of mileage deductions are common because the IRS knows most people don't keep contemporaneous records. To survive an audit, your log needs four columns for every business trip:
A spreadsheet works. A paper notebook works. What does not work is reconstructing the log six months later from memory and credit-card statements — auditors routinely disallow logs that don't show contemporaneous entry.
An automatic mileage tracking app (the kind that runs in the background on your phone, logs every trip via GPS, and lets you swipe-classify each one as business or personal) produces a defensible log without manual entry. Fast Pay Books's iOS app ships this for self-employed users and landlords — every trip is timestamped, mapped, and exportable as an IRS-formatted PDF at year-end.
16,000 business miles between job sites and supply runs, split evenly across the two 2026 rate periods: an $11,880 deduction. At 22% + SE tax: ~$4,200 tax saved.
4,000 miles between properties, hardware stores, bank: a $2,970 deduction if split evenly across the two 2026 rate periods. Often missed entirely on Schedule E.
30,000 platform miles: a $22,275 deduction if split evenly across the two 2026 rate periods. Usually exceeds gross 1099 income from the platform, often producing a Schedule C loss.
6,000 client-meeting and travel miles, split evenly across the two 2026 rate periods: a $4,455 deduction. At 24% + SE tax: ~$1,700 tax saved.
The questions we get most often about the mileage deduction.
The IRS revised it mid-year, so there are two. Business use is 72.5 cents per mile for miles driven January 1 through June 30, 2026, and 76 cents per mile from July 1 through December 31. Medical and moving is 20.5 cents, rising to 23.5 cents on July 1. The charitable rate stays at 14 cents per mile (set by statute and unchanged since the 1990s).
No. Commuting from home to your regular place of work is never deductible — full stop. Only business travel beyond your regular commute qualifies: driving from your office to a client site, between client sites, between rental properties, or for business errands during the workday.
The standard mileage rate is simpler and usually higher unless your vehicle is expensive to operate (luxury lease payments, premium fuel, frequent shop visits). If you start with actual expenses on a vehicle, you must continue with actual expenses for that vehicle. Starting with the standard rate keeps both options open in future years, which is why it's the safer default for most self-employed filers and landlords.
Yes. The IRS requires contemporaneous records showing date, destination, business purpose, and miles driven. A reconstructed log created during an audit will likely be disallowed. An automatic mileage tracking app records every trip with GPS and lets you classify it as business or personal in seconds — that produces a defensible log with no manual entry.
Yes. Travel between rental properties, to and from the bank for rental purposes, to hardware stores for rental supplies, and to meet contractors at the property are all deductible on Schedule E line 6 at the standard mileage rate. This is one of the most commonly missed deductions for small landlords.
Generally no. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act suspended unreimbursed employee business expense deductions for tax years 2018 through 2025. Armed Forces reservists, qualified performing artists, and fee-basis state and local officials remain eligible and file Form 2106. Everyone else should push for full mileage reimbursement from their employer instead.
Yes. Rideshare and delivery drivers are self-employed and use the same 2026 business rates on Schedule C: 72.5¢/mi through June 30 and 76¢/mi from July 1. Track every mile from when you go online for the platform until you go offline, plus reasonable miles between gigs. For most full-time rideshare drivers, the mileage deduction exceeds gross platform income and produces a Schedule C loss.
No. This calculator estimates federal income tax + self-employment tax savings only. State income tax savings are additional. If you're in a high-tax state (California, New York, Oregon), add another 4–13% to the savings estimate. If you're in a no-income-tax state (Texas, Florida, Nevada, Washington, Tennessee), the federal estimate is the complete picture.
Fast Pay Books's iOS app runs background GPS tracking automatically. Every trip is logged with date, start/end addresses, and miles. You swipe each trip business or personal in the morning, and at year-end you export an IRS-formatted PDF mileage log that drops straight into your Schedule C or Schedule E. See pricing or start a 14-day free trial.
Fast Pay Books's iOS app runs background GPS so every business trip is logged, classified, and audit-ready. Average user finds 2,000+ untracked miles a year.
📱 Get the iOS app