Mileage deduction 2026: the split rate and how to calculate it

Updated October 30, 2026

What is the IRS mileage rate for 2026, and did it change mid-year?

Yes, it changed mid-year. The IRS first set the 2026 business rate at 72.5 cents a mile (Notice 2026-10), then raised it to 76 cents for expenses "paid or incurred on or after July 1, 2026" in Announcement 2026-11, citing fuel prices. That means any calculation that applies one rate to all of 2026 will be off.

The 2027 rate has not been announced yet; the IRS usually publishes it in December.

How do I calculate my 2026 mileage deduction with the split rate?

Add up your business miles for each half of the year separately, multiply each total by its rate, then add business parking and tolls.

1. Total the business miles you drove from January 1 to June 30, 2026, and multiply by $0.725.
2. Total the business miles from July 1 to December 31, 2026, and multiply by $0.76.
3. Add the two results.
4. Add business-related parking fees and tolls, which Publication 463 allows on top of the standard rate.

Example (fictional numbers): Sam, a freelance photographer, drove 3,400 business miles in the first half of 2026 and 4,100 in the second half, and paid $210 in parking and tolls at shoots.

That $5,791 is the figure Sam and his CPA would review for Schedule C, line 9. Had he applied 72.5¢ to all 7,500 miles, he would have understated the second half of the year.

Should I use the standard mileage rate or actual expenses?

It depends on your car and your costs; Publication 463 suggests that if you qualify for both methods, you figure the deduction both ways. The standard rate is simpler. Actual expenses can be larger for a costly car, but take more records.

Rules from Publication 463 that often decide it:

• First-year choice. For a car you own, you must choose the standard rate in the first year the car is available for use in your business. In later years you can choose either method. For a leased car, choosing the standard rate commits you for the entire lease.
• When the standard rate is not allowed. You can't use it if you operate five or more cars at the same time, or if you have claimed accelerated (non-straight-line) depreciation, a section 179 deduction or bonus depreciation on that car, or if you used actual expenses for a car you lease.
• Interest and taxes. If you're self-employed, Publication 463 says you can still deduct the business share of car loan interest on Schedule C. On the 2026 Schedule C that interest has its own line, 16b, "Vehicle loan."

If you are an employee rather than self-employed, unreimbursed car expenses generally can't be deducted at all; the One Big Beautiful Bill Act made that rule permanent (a few groups, such as Armed Forces reservists, are excepted).

Can I deduct mileage to and from work?

Generally no. Publication 463 says you can't deduct the cost of driving "between your home and your main or regular place of work," and that "you can't deduct commuting expenses no matter how far your home is from your regular place of work," even if you make business calls on the way.

The exceptions matter for freelancers:

• Your home is your principal place of business. Publication 463 says you can then deduct daily trips between home and another work location in the same business. Whether your home office qualifies is covered in the home office deduction guide.
• Temporary work locations. Trips from home to a temporary work site outside your metropolitan area are deductible, and so are trips to a temporary site in the same business if you also have a regular work location away from home.
• Between work locations. Driving from one client or work site to another during the day is generally deductible.

Overnight trips are travel rather than local transportation; see business travel tax deductions.

What does a mileage log need to show?

A mileage log needs the miles for each business use, the date, where you went and why, plus your total miles for the year. Those elements come from Publication 463, Table 5-1, which for car expenses lists the cost of the car and any improvements, the date you started using it for business, "the mileage for each business use, and the total miles for the year," along with the date, your business destination and the business purpose.

Two timing points from Publication 463: record trips "at or near the time," though a log kept weekly counts as timely; and "you can't deduct amounts that you approximate or estimate." For 2026, the date column does extra work, because it is how you split miles at July 1. Noting your odometer reading on January 1 and December 31 is a simple way to get total miles, and Schedule C Part IV asks for business, commuting and other miles separately.

Where does the mileage deduction go?

For sole proprietors and single-member LLC owners, car and truck expenses go on Schedule C, line 9, with vehicle details in Part IV (or on Form 4562 if you are claiming depreciation). The Schedule C expense categories guide shows how it fits with your other lines, and the self-employed tax deductions list covers everything else you may be able to claim.

Where Amy fits

Miles leave almost no trace on a bank statement. Amy finds the expenses that never show up as a charge in the records you already have, and asks you what only you know. The mileage log is still yours to keep, and you and your CPA make the call.