Is my commute deductible?

No — travel between your home and your regular place of work is personal commuting, never deductible, even for self-employed filers. The exception: if your home is your principal place of business (qualifies under §280A for the home-office deduction), then trips from home to client sites become business mileage. Travel between two business locations is always deductible.

Standard mileage or actual expenses — which is better?

Standard is simpler and usually wins for higher-mileage drivers with cheap-to-operate vehicles. Actual wins for low-mileage drivers with expensive vehicles (high depreciation, high insurance, high gas). Run both calculations the first year. Once you elect actual for a vehicle, you cannot switch to standard for that vehicle in later years. Standard-elected first, you can usually switch to actual in later years.

Do I really need to log every single trip?

Yes for an audit-safe deduction. The IRS specifically rejects "estimated" or "average" mileage and requires the four elements (date, destination, purpose, miles) for each trip. A statistical sample (a representative period, e.g. 90 days, projected to the full year) can support the deduction in some circumstances under Rev. Proc. 2002-21, but the safest record is daily.

Can I deduct mileage if my employer reimburses me?

No double-dipping. Reimbursed mileage is not deductible. If your employer reimburses below the IRS rate (e.g. they pay 50¢/mi when the IRS rate is 70¢/mi), the difference is not currently deductible for W-2 employees through 2025 because TCJA suspended unreimbursed-employee expenses; it may return in 2026 depending on TCJA sunset. Self-employed filers always deduct directly on Schedule C.

How long should I keep my mileage log?

At least three years from the return due date (the IRS's normal audit window), six if you understate income by more than 25%. Most CPAs recommend seven years. Keep electronic backups; faded handwritten logs are less convincing than dated app exports.

Mileage Log Template (IRS-Compliant)

IRS-compliant business mileage log — date, destination, purpose, and miles for each trip.

Customise

Driver name

Business name (or "Self-employed")

Tax year

Vehicle (year / make / model)

VIN (last 6 digits)

Odometer on January 1 (start of year)

Odometer on December 31 (end of year)

Total business miles for the year

Total commuting miles (NOT deductible)

Total personal miles

Method

Sample trip log (date | destination | purpose | miles — one per line)

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MILEAGE LOG (IRS-COMPLIANT)

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Driver:           Jordan Alex Taylor
Business:         Self-employed
Tax year:         2026
Vehicle:          2021 Toyota RAV4
VIN (last 6):     XXXXXX938142

═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════

ODOMETER SUMMARY

Start of year (Jan 1):                           42,100
End of year (Dec 31):                            58,300
Total miles driven:                              16,200

  Business miles:                                8,400
  Commuting miles (NOT deductible):              1,500
  Personal miles:                                6,300
  Reconciliation difference:                     0

  Business-use percentage:                       51.85%

═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════

METHOD ELECTED

  ► Standard mileage rate (IRS published rate × miles)

  Note: The standard mileage rate is published by the IRS each year
  in IRS Notice issued in late autumn (recent rates: 67¢/mi for 2024,
  70¢/mi for 2025). Verify the rate for the year on irs.gov before
  computing your deduction. The first year you use a vehicle for
  business, you must elect either method; switching from actual to
  standard mid-life of the vehicle is restricted.

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DAILY TRIP LOG (excerpt — full log maintained separately)

Date          Destination                                       Purpose                                          Miles
────────────  ────────────────────────────────────────────────  ──────────────────────────────────────────────  ─────
2026-01-08 | 1234 Market St, Portland | Client meeting — Acme Corp | 24
2026-01-15 | Office Depot, Beaverton | Office supplies for client project | 18
2026-02-03 | Convention Center, Seattle | Industry conference (registered) | 360
2026-02-12 | 8821 NE Sandy Blvd | Property inspection — investment | 14
2026-03-04 | Coffee meeting — 555 SW Yamhill | Prospect intro (Riley Chen) | 8
2026-03-22 | Post office | Certified mail to client (contracts) | 6

═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════

REQUIRED ELEMENTS FOR EACH TRIP (per Treas. Reg. §1.274-5)

Each trip entry MUST capture:
  (1) The DATE of the trip.
  (2) The DESTINATION (specific enough to identify the location).
  (3) The BUSINESS PURPOSE (specific enough to establish the deduction).
  (4) The MILES driven for that business purpose.

A log written contemporaneously (the same day or shortly after) is
the gold standard. Reconstructed logs are the leading audit failure
point for the mileage deduction.

═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════

TRIPS THAT DO NOT QUALIFY

  ✗ Commute between home and a regular workplace (NOT deductible).
  ✗ Personal errands made during a business trip (excluded portion).
  ✗ "Side" stops for personal reasons.
  ✗ Mileage already reimbursed by an employer (not deductible again).

TRIPS THAT DO QUALIFY

  ✓ Travel between two business locations (e.g. office to client site).
  ✓ Visits to clients, customers, or suppliers.
  ✓ Travel from home to a TEMPORARY work location (≤ 1 year expected).
  ✓ Business errands: bank deposits, supply runs, post office.
  ✓ Travel to professional development / training.

═══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════

SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS — keep with this log

□ Calendar entries / appointment books for business trips
□ Client invoices or contracts establishing the business purpose
□ Conference registrations, training receipts
□ Repair / maintenance receipts (for actual-expense method, also for vehicle-history evidence)
□ Annual odometer-reading photos (Jan 1 and Dec 31)

Log compiled: May 4, 2026

About this template

A contemporaneous mileage log is the cornerstone of any vehicle-related tax deduction — and the most common point of failure in IRS audits of self-employed and small-business filers. Treasury Regulation §1.274-5 requires "adequate records" for the four elements of every business trip: date, destination, purpose, and miles. The phrase "adequate records" has been litigated repeatedly; the consistent IRS position is that records written at or near the time of the trip are presumptively adequate, and reconstructed logs are presumptively inadequate. Filers can elect either the standard mileage rate (IRS-published; multiply business miles × rate) or actual expenses (gas, maintenance, insurance, depreciation, all multiplied by business-use percentage); the standard rate is simpler and is what most self-employed filers use. The first year you place a vehicle in business service you must choose between methods; once you elect actual expenses for a vehicle, you cannot switch to standard mileage in later years for that vehicle. Commuting (home to regular workplace) is always non-deductible, even for self-employed filers — but travel from a home office to client sites IS deductible if the home office qualifies as your principal place of business. Apps like MileIQ and Everlance auto-detect trips via GPS and produce IRS-compliant logs; manual logs work as long as they meet the four-element rule.

When to use it

Self-employed filers claiming the vehicle deduction on Schedule C.
Owners of multiple vehicles tracking business-use percentage.
Small businesses reimbursing employees for business mileage.
Rideshare drivers (Uber, Lyft, DoorDash) tracking deductible miles.
Real estate investors tracking property-management trips.
Anyone facing an IRS audit of a vehicle deduction.

What to include

Driver and vehicle identification.
Start-of-year and end-of-year odometer readings.
Business, commuting, and personal mile totals.
Method elected (standard vs actual).
Daily entries with date, destination, purpose, miles.
Supporting documents (calendar, client records, repair receipts).

Frequently asked

The IRS publishes annual rates in late autumn for the following year. Recent rates: 65.5¢/mi for 2023, 67¢/mi for 2024, 70¢/mi for 2025 (business). The 2026 rate is published in IRS Notice issued in November or December 2025 — check irs.gov/standardmileage for the official current-year rate. The medical/moving rate and the charitable-driving rate are separate (lower).

⚠ Legal disclaimer. This template is provided for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for legal advice from a qualified attorney. Always consult a licensed professional before using this document for any binding agreement.