Mileage Deduction Calculator
Calculate your mileage tax deduction using the IRS standard mileage rate. Business, medical, charity, and moving miles. 2025: 70¢/mile · 2026: 72.5¢/mile. Free, no sign-up.
IRS rates at a glance
| Year | Business | Med/Moving | Charity |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 67¢ | 21¢ | 14¢ |
| 2025 | 70¢ | 21¢ | 14¢ |
| 2026 | 72.5¢ | 20.5¢ | 14¢ |
Source: IRS Notice 2025-5 (IR-2024-312) for 2025 rates; IRS Notice 2026-10 for 2026 rates.
Business Mileage Deduction — 2026
$7,250.00
10,000 miles × 72.5¢/mile
IRS Rate
72.5¢
per mile
Business
72.5¢
Medical
20.5¢
Charity
14.0¢
Moving
20.5¢
How the IRS Standard Mileage Rate Works
Multiply qualifying miles × IRS rate. Simpler than tracking actual expenses.
Business
Client meetings, job sites, work errands. Does NOT include commuting from home to your regular workplace.
Medical
Trips to receive medical care. Deductible only to the extent total medical expenses exceed 7.5% of AGI.
Charity
Driving in service of a qualified charitable organization. Rate is set by statute, not adjusted annually.
Moving
Qualified active-duty military (permanent change of station) only. Civilian moving deduction suspended by TCJA and not restored for 2026.
Standard Mileage vs. Actual Expenses
Two methods — you choose based on which gives the larger deduction
Standard Mileage Rate
Multiply miles by the IRS rate. Simpler — no need to track gas, oil, repairs, insurance, or depreciation separately.
Best for: gig workers, small businesses, lower-cost vehicles.
Actual Expenses
Deduct actual costs: gas, oil, insurance, registration, depreciation, repairs — multiplied by the business-use percentage.
Best for: high-cost vehicles or heavy annual mileage.
Owned vehicle: Choose standard mileage in the first year of business use. You may switch to actual expenses in later years, but cannot switch back.
Leased vehicle: If you choose standard mileage, you must use it for the entire lease period.
Recordkeeping Requirements
IRS Publication 463 requires contemporaneous records
Date
Date of each trip
Purpose
Business reason or client name
Destination
Starting point and destination
Miles
Odometer readings or total miles per trip
Use a mileage log app or spreadsheet. Records must substantiate business use if audited. Combine with our 1099 Tax Calculator for full self-employment tax estimates.
Where the Deduction Goes on Your Return
Business miles
Schedule C (self-employed) or Form 2106 (employees)
Medical miles
Schedule A (itemized deductions)
Charity miles
Schedule A (charitable contributions)
Moving miles
Form 3903 (active-duty military only)
What the 72.5¢/mile rate actually covers — including 35¢ of depreciation
The IRS standard mileage rate bundles all vehicle costs into one number, but depreciation has separate accounting implications
The 72.5¢/mile business rate covers gas, oil, insurance, maintenance, repairs, tires, and registration — and depreciation, all in one flat rate. The convenience is real, but there's an accounting detail most drivers miss: 35¢ of the 72.5¢ is officially treated as depreciation, per IRS Notice 2026-10 Section 4. This matters because that 35¢/mile reduces your vehicle's cost basis — silently, every mile you drive.
| Tax year | Total rate | Depreciation component | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 58.5¢ / 62.5¢ | 26¢ | Notice 2022-03 / 2022-35 |
| 2023 | 65.5¢ | 28¢ | Notice 2023-03 |
| 2024 | 67¢ | 30¢ | Notice 2024-08 |
| 2025 | 70¢ | 33¢ | Notice 2025-5 |
| 2026 | 72.5¢ | 35¢ | Notice 2026-10 |
Why the depreciation component matters when you sell the car
If you drive 15,000 business miles per year for three years, you accumulate $15,750 of deemed depreciation (15,000 × $0.35 × 3) that reduces your vehicle's cost basis — even though you never calculated depreciation separately. When you sell the car, your taxable gain is the sale price minus this reduced basis. Basis reduction is required whether or not the deduction actually saved you money year-to-year. The IRS tracks it via Form 4797 for vehicle dispositions.
When standard mileage is permanently off the table: the Section 179 and bonus depreciation trap
Per IRS Topic 510, certain first-year depreciation elections permanently disqualify the standard mileage rate for that vehicle
The IRS allows you to choose the standard mileage rate or actual expenses — but the choice is not always free. If you claimed Section 179, bonus depreciation (special depreciation allowance), or MACRS on a vehicle in the first year you placed it in service, the standard mileage rate is permanently unavailable for that vehicle. You are locked into the actual expense method for its entire remaining life. This is one of the most common and costly election mistakes for small business owners.
Disqualifiers for standard mileage (IRS Topic 510)
- ✕Claimed Section 179 deduction on the vehicle
- ✕Claimed bonus depreciation (special depreciation allowance)
- ✕Used MACRS depreciation on the vehicle
- ✕Operated 5 or more cars simultaneously (fleet operation)
- ✕Claimed actual expenses on a leased vehicle after 1997
The year-1 election rule
- You must choose standard mileage in year one of business use to keep the flexibility to switch later
- Starting with standard mileage → can switch to actual expenses in later years (but must use straight-line depreciation)
- Starting with actual + accelerated depreciation → locked in for the vehicle's life
- When unsure: start with standard mileage — you preserve flexibility
2026 vehicle depreciation limits at a glance
- Passenger cars (<6,000 lbs GVWR): Subject to §280F luxury auto limits — first-year cap approximately $20,200 with bonus depreciation (IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-23)
- Heavy SUVs/trucks (6,001–14,000 lbs GVWR): Section 179 limit of $32,000 in 2026; remainder eligible for 100% bonus depreciation (restored by the One Big Beautiful Bill)
- Claiming these deductions permanently bars standard mileage for that vehicle — plan carefully before filing
Commuting vs. business miles: the exact IRS line — and the home office exception that changes everything
Rev. Rul. 99-7 and IRS Publication 463: when home-to-client trips become fully deductible
The IRS rule is absolute: commuting from home to your regular workplace is never deductible — regardless of distance, what you do during the commute, or how many locations you work at. This is one of the most frequently misunderstood rules in tax law. But there is a significant, specific exception that applies to millions of self-employed workers.
Not deductible — commuting (IRS Pub. 463)
- ✕Home → your regular office (even if far away)
- ✕Home → office, even if you work during the drive
- ✕First client stop if your home is not your principal place of business
- ✕Driving between home and a location where you work part-time regularly
Deductible business miles (IRS Pub. 463)
- Regular office → client site
- Between two business locations on the same day
- Home → temporary work location (expected <1 year)
- Home → any business location, if home is your principal place of business
The home office exception (Rev. Rul. 99-7 + IRS Pub. 587)
If your home office qualifies as your principal place of business under IRC §280A(c)(1)(A), all transportation from your home to any other business location in the same trade is deductible — not commuting. This means your first stop of every workday (home to client) and your last stop (client back home) are fully deductible business miles. IRS Publication 587 states this explicitly: "If your home office qualifies as your principal place of business, you can deduct your daily transportation costs between your home and another work location in the same trade or business."
Qualification requirements for home as principal place of business
- Used exclusively and regularly for administrative or management activities of the business
- No other fixed location where you conduct substantial administrative or management work
- Applies even if you meet clients elsewhere — the key is where administration happens
References & Official Sources
- IRS Publication 463 — Travel, Gift, and Car Expenses
Standard mileage rates, recordkeeping, and vehicle expense rules.
- IRS — Standard Mileage Rates for 2025 (Notice 2025-5, IR-2024-312)
Official 2025 rates: 70¢ business, 21¢ medical/moving, 14¢ charity.
- IRS — Standard Mileage Rates for 2026 (Notice 2026-10)
Official 2026 rates: 72.5¢ business, 20.5¢ medical/moving, 14¢ charity.
- Schedule C (Form 1040) — Profit or Loss From Business
Self-employed business vehicle expenses (Line 9).
The deduction shown above is a straight multiplication of the miles you enter by the IRS standard mileage rate for your selected purpose and tax year. We do not estimate your tax savings from that deduction—only the deductible dollar amount before AGI floors, itemizing, or business profit limits. Below are the formulas, the rates we use for 2025 and 2026, and a worked example you can verify by hand.
Formulas
| Line | Formula |
|---|---|
| Standard mileage deduction | Deduction = Miles driven × IRS rate for purpose and tax year |
| Business miles | Miles × business rate (70¢ in 2025, 72.5¢ in 2026) |
| Medical miles | Miles × medical rate (21¢ in 2025, 20.5¢ in 2026) — deductible only above 7.5% of AGI when itemizing |
| Charitable miles | Miles × 14¢/mile (fixed by statute for both years) |
| Moving miles | Miles × moving rate (21¢ in 2025, 20.5¢ in 2026) — active-duty military PCS only |
Order of operations
Select the tax year
Use 2025 or 2026 IRS notice rates
The IRS publishes standard mileage rates each year, usually in late December for the following calendar year. We apply the rate table for the year you select in the calculator.
Select the trip purpose
Business, medical, charitable, or moving (military)
Each purpose has its own IRS rate. Business covers client visits and job sites—not commuting to a regular workplace. Medical and charitable miles use Schedule A rules. Moving applies only to qualified active-duty military relocations.
Look up the IRS standard rate
Rate per mile = IRS published cents for that purpose and year
We use the official rates from IRS Notice 2025-5 (2025) and IRS Notice 2026-10 (2026). Charity stays at 14¢ because it is set by statute, not inflation-adjusted like business and medical rates.
Multiply miles by the rate
Total deduction = Miles × Rate per mile
This is the deductible amount under the standard mileage method before other tax rules apply. Medical miles still face the 7.5% AGI floor. Business miles reduce Schedule C profit for self-employed filers.
Worked example
10,000 business miles, 2026 tax year
Deduction = 10,000 miles × 72.5¢/mile = $7,250
For comparison: 1,000 charitable miles at 14.0¢/mile = $140 (charity rate is the same in 2025 and 2026).
| Line item | Value |
|---|---|
| Miles entered | 10,000 |
| Purpose | Business |
| Tax year | 2026 |
| IRS rate | 72.5¢/mile |
| Mileage deduction | $7,250 |
10,000 miles × 72.5¢/mile = $7,250
The same 10,000 business miles would be $7,000 in 2025 (70¢/mile) vs $7,250 in 2026 (72.5¢/mile)—a $250 difference from the 2.5¢ rate increase.
IRS standard mileage rates we use
| Business rate | 72.5¢ per mile |
| Medical rate | 20.5¢ per mile |
| Charitable rate | 14.0¢ per mile |
| Moving (active-duty military) rate | 20.5¢ per mile |
IRS Notice 2026-10
| Business rate | 70¢ per mile |
| Medical rate | 21¢ per mile |
| Charitable rate | 14.0¢ per mile |
| Moving (active-duty military) rate | 21¢ per mile |
IRS Notice 2025-5
What we do not model on this page
We do not model the actual expense method, commuting miles, whether you qualify to use standard mileage, the 7.5% AGI floor for medical expenses, charitable substantiation rules, or profit limits on Schedule C. Mixed-purpose driving must be split into separate calculations—enter business, medical, and charity miles separately. The business rate includes depreciation; we do not track basis reduction on vehicle disposition.
Disclaimer: This calculator is for planning only. IRS mileage rates and rules can change. Consult IRS Publication 463 or a tax professional for your specific situation. We do not provide tax advice.