For drivers, agents, trades and anyone who visits clients, the vehicle is the biggest deduction on the return. Get the method and the log right.
2026 standard mileage rate
72.5 cents per business mile from January 1 to June 30, 2026, and 76 cents from July 1 to December 31. Parking and tolls are deductible on top. Commuting to a regular workplace is never deductible.
Actual expenses
Fuel, insurance, repairs, registration, lease payments or depreciation, multiplied by the business-use percentage from your log. Wins for expensive or inefficient vehicles driven moderately. Once you use actual expenses with accelerated depreciation, you cannot switch back to standard mileage for that vehicle.
The log
Date, miles, destination, purpose. An app (Everlance, MileIQ, Driversnote) or a spreadsheet. The IRS disallows vehicle deductions without a log more than almost any other item.
Recording it
Standard mileage is a year-end figure from the log; upload the summary and it is recorded. Under actual expenses, categorize fuel, repairs and insurance as vehicle expenses during the year and apply the percentage at year end.