Mileage deduction for the self-employed: how to track it the right way

Self-employed people can deduct business driving using the 2026 IRS standard mileage rate of 72.5 cents per mile, or by tracking actual vehicle costs. Either way you need a contemporaneous log of each trip's date, miles, and business purpose. The IRS does not accept estimates or logs reconstructed at tax time.

That is the whole rule in four sentences. Here is how to actually capture the deduction so it holds up, including the mistake that quietly erases it every year.

The two ways to deduct your driving

There are two methods, and you pick one.

The standard mileage rate is the simpler option and the one most independent workers use. You multiply your business miles by the IRS rate, which is 72.5 cents per mile for 2026. Drive 4,000 business miles this year and that is a 2,900 dollar deduction, with no need to track fuel, oil changes, or insurance separately. The rate is designed to cover all of those costs for you.

The actual expense method adds up what you really spent operating the vehicle for business: gas, maintenance, insurance, registration, depreciation, and so on, then deducts the business-use percentage. It can produce a larger deduction if you drive an expensive vehicle a lot, but it requires keeping every receipt all year.

One rule worth knowing early: if you want the freedom to switch between methods in later years, use the standard mileage rate in the first year the car is in service. Lead with actual expenses and you can lock yourself out of the simpler method for that vehicle.

What counts as a business mile, and what does not

This is where deductions get lost. Not every mile you drive for work is deductible.

Deductible business miles generally include driving from your office or home base to a client site, traveling between two work locations, trips to pick up business supplies or equipment, driving to a business meeting or networking event, and runs to the bank or post office for the business.

Not deductible is your commute. Driving from home to a regular, fixed place of work is personal mileage in the eyes of the IRS, even though it feels like work. The exception many independent workers qualify for: if your home is your principal place of business, trips from your home office to client sites can count, because you are not commuting to a separate workplace. That distinction is worth confirming for your specific setup, since it can change a meaningful number of miles from personal to deductible.

The log is the deduction

Here is the part that costs people money. The deduction is not the miles you drove. It is the miles you can prove you drove.

The IRS requires a contemporaneous log, meaning a record kept at or near the time of each trip, not assembled the night before you file. A compliant entry has four things:

• The date of the trip
• Where you went
• The number of business miles
• The business purpose

A guess like "I probably drove about 5,000 miles for work" does not survive an audit. A clean log of 4,200 documented miles does. This is exactly why reconstructing a year of driving from memory is both miserable and risky, and why capturing each trip as it happens is the only approach that actually protects the deduction.

The practical move: use a dedicated mileage tracking app that logs trips automatically in the background, or keep a running spreadsheet or logbook and update it the day you drive. Either works. What does not work is intending to remember.

How Sumly fits in

Mileage is one deduction among many, and the real problem for most independent workers is not any single one. It is that your deductions live in a dozen scattered places and never add up into one picture.

Sumly brings the money side of your independent work into one place. Your expenses get organized and categorized as they happen, so your real profit and your deduction picture stay current instead of getting rebuilt in a panic each spring. Your logged mileage deduction sits alongside your software, home office, and everything else, as part of one running total rather than a number you scramble to find.

And because Sumly is backed by in-house licensed tax professionals, the structure you work inside reflects real tax rules, not a generic formula. When a genuine question comes up, like whether your home office makes those client trips deductible, there are actual licensed professionals behind the product rather than a help article. To be clear about what the tool does: it organizes and categorizes your finances so they stay clean and current. It does not invent deductions or replace your records. It makes sure the ones you earn are captured and ready when you file.

Frequently asked questions

What is the 2026 IRS mileage rate for self-employed people? 72.5 cents per mile for business use, effective January 1, 2026. That is up from 70 cents in 2025.

Can I deduct mileage if I take the standard deduction? Yes. The self-employed mileage deduction is a business expense on Schedule C, which is separate from the standard deduction on your personal return. You can claim both.

Do I need receipts if I use the standard mileage rate? You do not need fuel and maintenance receipts under the standard mileage method, but you do need a mileage log. The log is the documentation the IRS requires.

Is my commute deductible? No. Driving from home to a regular workplace is a personal commute. Trips from a qualifying home office to client sites can be deductible, which is one reason a home office can be valuable for independent workers.

Capture every deduction you earn

A documented mileage habit is worth real money at 72.5 cents a mile, but only if the record exists.

Start free with Sumly and keep your deductions, mileage included, organized in one place all year, so the number you claim is one you can stand behind.