Business mileage deduction calculator
The IRS raised the mileage rate mid-way through 2026, so miles driven after 1 July are worth more than miles driven before it. Most calculators still use a single rate and get this wrong.
Deduction you can claim
Not enough detail yet
Log your business miles for each half of 2026 — the rate changed on 1 July, so the split matters.
- Total miles
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- Standard rate
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- Actual expenses
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- Tax saved
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How this is worked out
The IRS set the 2026 business rate at 72.5 cents a mile, then raised it to 76 cents for miles driven from 1 July. The calculator applies each rate only to the miles driven in its half of the year, so 4,000 miles from January to June and 5,000 miles from July to December come to $2,900 plus $3,800, a $6,700 deduction. Using a single 72.5-cent rate for the whole year would understate that by $175.
The actual expense method takes your total vehicle running costs (fuel, insurance, repairs, registration, lease payments or depreciation) and multiplies them by your business-use percentage. The calculator compares the two and shows whichever is larger.
The tax saving is the deduction multiplied by a combined rate: about 14.1% for self-employment tax, plus your income tax bracket applied to roughly 74% of the deduction. Only about 74%, because a lower profit also shrinks the deduction for half of your self-employment tax and, if you get it, the 20% QBI deduction. At the 22% bracket that is about 30.5%, so the $6,700 deduction above saves about $2,043.
The order you choose methods in matters. If you use the standard mileage rate in the first year the car is used for business, you can switch to actual expenses in a later year. If you start with actual expenses and claim accelerated depreciation, you generally cannot switch that car to the standard rate afterwards. When in doubt, start with the standard rate.
Business parking fees and tolls are deductible on top of the standard rate. Commuting from home to a regular place of work is never deductible. Whichever method you use, keep a log showing the date, the miles, where you went and the business purpose of each trip.
Sources
Common questions
What is the IRS mileage rate for 2026?
There are two. Business miles driven from 1 January to 30 June 2026 are claimed at 72.5 cents per mile, and miles driven from 1 July to 31 December 2026 at 76 cents per mile.
Should I use the standard mileage rate or actual expenses?
Whichever is larger, but the order matters. Use the standard rate in the first year the car is used for business and you can switch to actual expenses later. Start with actual expenses and accelerated depreciation and you generally cannot switch that car to the standard rate afterwards.
Does the mileage deduction save self-employment tax too?
Yes. A business deduction reduces the profit that self-employment tax is charged on, so for a self-employed person it saves roughly 14% in SE tax as well as income tax. The income tax part is a little less than your bracket rate, because a lower profit also shrinks the half-of-SE-tax and QBI deductions: at the 22% bracket the combined saving is about 30%.
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Estimates based on published federal rules for tax year 2026. State and local tax is not included. This is general information, not advice about your situation.