How to claim a mileage deduction
Claiming the business mileage deduction takes five steps: confirm your driving qualifies as business, choose standard mileage or actual expenses, log your miles throughout the year, calculate your deduction, and report it on Schedule C, Line 9. Here's exactly how each step works.
← Back to Is mileage tax deductible?
On this page: Who can claim · Step 1: Confirm business driving · Step 2: Choose your method · Step 3: Log your miles · Step 4: Calculate the deduction · Step 5: Report on Schedule C · Common mistakes · Related lookups · FAQ
MileIQ — Automatically log every business drive throughout the year
MileIQ runs in the background, logs every trip, lets you swipe to classify business vs personal, and generates IRS-ready annual mileage reports. Eliminates manual logbook entry.
Who can claim the mileage deduction
- Self-employed individuals and sole proprietors filing Schedule C — the primary claimants
- Gig workers (rideshare, delivery, freelancers) filing Schedule C
- Partners and S corporation shareholders — claimed through the entity
W-2 employees cannot claim the mileage deduction. The TCJA suspended unreimbursed employee business expenses for 2018–2025. If your employer requires business driving without reimbursement, request a reimbursement arrangement.
Step 1: Confirm your driving qualifies as business mileage
Not all driving is business mileage. Only trips with a genuine business purpose count.
- Driving to a client's location for a meeting or project
- Driving to a job site, work location, or temporary workplace
- Business errands — picking up supplies, visiting a bank for the business, delivering a product
- Driving to a networking event, trade show, or business conference
- Driving from a home office to a client or temporary work location (if home is principal place of business)
- Commuting — driving from home to your regular workplace, every time
- Personal errands on the way to a business destination
- Personal appointments that happen to involve your business
Step 2: Choose your deduction method
You must choose one method per vehicle per year. The two options are mutually exclusive.
| Method | How it works | Records needed | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard mileage rate | Business miles × $0.70/mile (2026 rate) | Mileage log only | Simplicity, high-mileage drivers, older vehicles |
| Actual expense method | Total actual costs × business-use % | Mileage log + all expense receipts | New/high-value vehicles, high insurance or repair costs |
Once-per-vehicle decision: If you use the standard mileage rate in year 1, you can switch to actual in a later year. If you start with actual expenses in year 1, you generally cannot switch to standard mileage for that vehicle in later years.
Step 3: Log your miles throughout the year
The IRS requires contemporaneous records — made at or near the time of each trip. You cannot reconstruct a year's worth of mileage from memory at tax time.
What your mileage log must include (per trip)
- Date of the trip
- Destination (address or description — "client office, downtown" is acceptable)
- Business purpose (one sentence: who you visited or what you did)
- Miles driven — either odometer start/end or total distance
Annual records to keep
- Odometer reading on January 1 (or date you started using the vehicle for business)
- Odometer reading on December 31
- Total business miles for the year (sum of individual trip miles)
- Total miles driven for the year (from odometer readings)
A mileage tracking app (MileIQ, Everlance, Hurdlr) handles all of this automatically. The app logs every trip via GPS, you swipe to classify business or personal, and it generates an annual report with all the fields the IRS requires.
Step 4: Calculate your deduction
Standard mileage rate calculation
- Total business miles × $0.70 = deductible amount
- Example: 9,500 business miles × $0.70 = $6,650 deduction
Actual expense method calculation
- Business-use % = business miles ÷ total miles
- Sum all vehicle expenses (gas, insurance, maintenance, registration, depreciation)
- Deductible amount = total expenses × business-use %
- Example: $8,200 total expenses × 68% business use = $5,576 deduction
Step 5: Report on Schedule C
Enter your vehicle deduction on Schedule C, Line 9 (Car and Truck Expenses). You'll also answer the standard questions about the vehicle in Part IV of Schedule C (or Part V of the instructions), including:
- Date the vehicle was placed in service for business
- Total miles driven during the year
- Business miles driven during the year
- Whether you have written evidence (mileage log)
- Whether the evidence is contemporaneous
If you claim depreciation under the actual method, you'll also need Form 4562. Tax software handles this automatically when you enter your vehicle information.
Common mistakes that get mileage deductions disallowed
- Counting commuting miles as business miles — the most frequent error; home-to-workplace driving is never business mileage
- Reconstructing the mileage log at tax time — the IRS expects contemporaneous records, not annual estimates
- Claiming 100% business use on a vehicle with clear personal use — triggers scrutiny; most personal vehicles have some personal use
- Using both methods on the same vehicle in the same year — you must choose one method per vehicle per year
- No written evidence checked on Schedule C — checking "no" on the written evidence question significantly weakens the deduction
TurboTax Self-Employed — Claim your mileage deduction on Schedule C Line 9
TurboTax Self-Employed guides you through every Schedule C vehicle question, compares standard vs actual methods, and handles Form 4562 for depreciation claims.
FAQ
How do I claim a mileage deduction on my taxes?
Self-employed individuals claim mileage on Schedule C, Line 9. Use the standard mileage rate (business miles × $0.70 for 2026) or the actual expense method (total vehicle costs × business-use %). You need a mileage log with dates, destinations, business purposes, and miles for each trip.
Do I need a mileage log to claim the mileage deduction?
Yes. The IRS requires contemporaneous records documenting business miles — made at or near the time of each trip, not reconstructed later. A qualifying log includes the date, destination, business purpose, and miles for each trip. Mileage tracking apps create compliant logs automatically.
Can I claim mileage deduction without receipts?
Under the standard mileage rate, you don't need gas or maintenance receipts — only your mileage log. Under the actual expense method, you need both the mileage log (for business-use %) and receipts for each vehicle expense.
Can employees claim the mileage deduction?
No. The TCJA suspended the unreimbursed employee mileage deduction for 2018–2025. Only self-employed individuals and sole proprietors filing Schedule C can claim the business mileage deduction.
What counts as business mileage?
Driving to client locations, job sites, business errands, and business events counts as business mileage. Commuting — driving from home to your regular workplace — does not count. Driving from a home office to a client may count if home is your principal place of business.
← Back to Is mileage tax deductible?
Last reviewed: April 14, 2026