Freelance Money Tools
Deductions

Every business mile is worth real money. Count them.

The IRS pays you back for driving — if you track it. Enter your miles and see what the standard rate turns them into.

2026 IRS numbers
Stays on your device
No account

Tax data last updated: July 2026. Sources & methodology

Your miles

mi

Client visits, supply runs, driving between gigs. Commuting doesn't count.

mi

Trips to doctors, pharmacies, treatment. Only useful if you itemize.

mi

Driving done for a qualified charitable organization.

Your 2026 mileage deduction
$5,800

Business miles at 72.5¢ each do the heavy lifting.

Business (72.5¢/mi)
$5,800
Medical (20.5¢/mi)
$0
Charity (14¢/mi)
$0

The standard mileage rate replaces actual car costs (gas, insurance, depreciation) — you can't claim both for the same vehicle. Keep a log with dates, destinations, and purpose; the IRS asks for it more often than you'd think. Not tax advice.

How this is calculated

Simple multiplication with official rates: 72.5¢ per business mile for 2026 (set in IRS Notice 2026-10), lower rates for medical and charity driving. The business rate isn't arbitrary — it bundles gas, maintenance, insurance, and depreciation into one per-mile figure so you don't have to keep receipts for any of it.

The alternative is the actual-expense method: track every car cost and deduct the business percentage. It can win if you drive an expensive car few miles. For most freelancers doing normal client driving, the standard rate wins on both money and sanity.

Formula
Business miles × 72.5¢ = your deduction

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Common questions

Commuting never counts — even for freelancers. What counts: driving from your home office to a client, between clients, to pick up supplies, to a work event. If your home is your principal place of business, most work trips from home qualify.
A log with the date, destination, business purpose, and miles for each trip — kept at or near the time you drove, not reconstructed in April. A notes app or a mileage-tracking app both work. No log, no deduction if you're audited.
If you want the option to switch back and forth, use the standard rate in the first year you use the car for business. Start with actual expenses (with accelerated depreciation) and you're locked into it for that vehicle.
Only if you itemize deductions instead of taking the standard deduction — which most freelancers don't. Business miles are different: they come off your Schedule C and reduce both income tax and self-employment tax.