Calculators22
- 01Self-Employment Tax Calculator
- 02Quarterly Tax Calculator
- 031099 vs W-2 Calculator
- 04Mileage Deduction Calculator
- 05Home Office Deduction Calculator
- 06SEP IRA Contribution Calculator
- 07Tax Set-Aside Calculator
- 08Maryland Local Tax Calculator
- 09Indiana County Tax Calculator
- 10New York State Tax Calculator
- 11QBI Deduction Calculator
- 12S-Corp vs LLC Tax Calculator
- 13Health Insurance Deduction Calculator
- 141099 Withholding Calculator
- 15Solo 401(k) Calculator
- 16SEP vs Solo 401(k) Calculator
- 17SIMPLE IRA Calculator
- 18Retirement Plan Comparison
- 19Defined Benefit Calculator
- 21Underpayment Penalty
- 22Premium Tax Credit
- 20Annualized Income Installment
Mileage Deduction Calculator
Standard mileage for business, medical and charity driving — including delivery and rideshare work, where the miles are easy to miss and add up to the largest deduction most drivers have. Or a reimbursement at the rate your employer sets.
Prepared for the 2026 tax year.
The rules for the 2026 tax year are published during 2025 and 2026 — the adjusted figures first, the explaining publications as the year goes on — and the return they govern is filed in 2027.
Your result
How this is worked out
One multiplication, but three things vary: the rate depends on why you drove, a reimbursement is not a deduction, and using the standard rate quietly reduces what your vehicle is worth for tax later.
The formulas are shown as the authority defines them, in its own terms — the arithmetic is not copyrightable and the rates are public-domain US government material. What these lines cannot tell you is where your figures came from; that is what the table above is for.
What comes next? A deduction only matters through the tax it removes. This page gives you the deduction; the next one turns it into the money you keep. The Self-Employment Tax Calculator shows that your deduction lowers the profit the 15.3% is charged on, so the saving is larger than the deduction times your bracket.
Where these figures come from
- Business rate
- 72.5¢ Jan–Jun · 76¢ Jul–Dec
- Medical rate
- 20.5¢ Jan–Jun · 23.5¢ Jul–Dec
- Charity rate
- 14 cents · IRC §170(i)
- Depreciation
- 35 cents per mile ·
unchanged by the July increase - Employee rule
- OBBBA §70110 · IRC §67(g)
- Verified
- 2 October 2026
Frequently asked questions
What is the standard mileage rate for 2026?
72.5 cents per mile for business, 20.5 cents for medical, and 14 cents for charity. The business rate rose 2.5 cents from 2025; the medical rate fell half a cent. The business rate applies to electric and hybrid vehicles too.
Can I deduct mileage if I am a W-2 employee?
Generally no. Unreimbursed employee travel expenses are no longer deductible as an itemized deduction — the One Big Beautiful Bill made that disallowance permanent. Narrow exceptions exist for reservists, local officials paid on a fee basis, certain performing artists, and eligible educators. If you are an employee, the usual route is a reimbursement from your employer rather than a deduction on your return.
Should I use the standard rate or actual expenses?
Compare them; the answer is not automatic. The standard rate is simpler and often wins on a newer, cheaper or high-mileage vehicle because it already includes depreciation. Actual expenses can win on an older, expensive vehicle with heavy fuel, insurance or repair costs. One constraint decides it for you in some cases: to keep the choice open later, you must use the standard rate in the first year the vehicle is used for business. For a leased vehicle the choice must stay consistent for the whole lease.
Does the mileage deduction reduce self-employment tax?
Yes, indirectly. The deduction lowers net profit on Schedule C, and self-employment tax is charged on net profit — so a larger deduction reduces both income tax and SECA tax. That is why the effective saving is often larger than the rate alone suggests.
What records do I need?
Contemporaneous records: date, destination, business purpose and miles for each trip. The IRS wants written evidence made at or near the time of the trip. A log reconstructed months later is what fails on audit — the regulation is specific about timing, not just about having the numbers.
I drive for a delivery or rideshare app — can I deduct those miles?
Yes, and it is usually the biggest deduction you have. If you are an independent contractor for the platform, you are self-employed for tax purposes: every mile driven while the app is on and you are available for work is a business mile, claimed at the standard rate like any other. The catch is records. The platform reports what it paid you, not what you drove, so if you did not keep a log the deduction is your word against nothing. A trip log kept in the moment — date, miles, purpose — is what holds up. Waiting until January to reconstruct the year is the mistake that costs drivers the most.
What about miles driven to volunteer?
The rate is 14 cents a mile, the same as charity — and it is fixed by statute rather than indexed, which is why it has not moved since 1998 while the business rate has roughly doubled. Unlike business mileage it is claimed as a charitable deduction on Schedule A, so it only helps if you itemize, and the standard deduction is high enough that most people do not.