Current Mileage Reimbursement Rate and How to Calculate It

Picture the drive across town with printed proofs on the passenger seat, heading to a client who wants changes by Friday. Every one of those miles costs you money, and the standard mileage rate is the per-mile figure that puts a number on that cost.

Here’s the short version: the rate depends on what the trip is for, and it changed midyear in July.

We’ll cover the full 2026 rates by purpose, how to calculate and claim your miles, and how to charge clients travel fees and log client-trip miles for deductions.

Current Mileage Reimbursement Rate for 2026

How much can you deduct per mile? It depends on why you drove and when, since the business rate changed midyear.

What are the mileage rates for 2026?

According to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), each type of driving has its own standard mileage rate. Here’s the full 2026 list:

• Business: 76 cents per mile from July 1 through December 31, up from 72.5 cents for January through June.
• Medical: 23.5 cents per mile.
• Moving: 23.5 cents per mile, for military moves only.
• Charitable service: 14 cents per mile.

Why the rate rose partway through the year

Midyear changes like this are rare, so check the rate for each trip’s date. The Journal of Accountancy reported that the IRS cited higher fuel prices when it raised the rate.

The increase is 3.5 cents per mile, effective for travel after July 1, as Snodgrass noted.

Say a freelance photographer drives 90 miles round trip to a product shoot in August. At 76 cents, that trip adds $68.40 to her deduction. The same 90-mile drive in March, before the increase, would count as $65.25 at 72.5 cents.

The rate depends on when you drove, not just how far. Same drive, different rate.

Rate types and other names

The four rate types are:

• business
• medical
• moving
• charitable

The standard mileage rates are also called the safe harbor rate and the federal mileage rate, so you may see those names elsewhere.

Per diem isn’t a mileage rate at all. It’s a flat daily travel allowance, not a per-mile figure. Our sources don’t list 2026 per diem figures, so we won’t quote any here.

Check the IRS directly for current per diem numbers before you use them in a travel fee.

Who Qualifies to Use the Rates

Before you multiply a single mile, confirm you’re eligible. Your income source and how you use the vehicle decide who can claim the standard mileage rate.

Which businesses can use the rate

Self-employed people and small businesses can use the rate for business driving, and employers can reimburse employees at it. Most employees, though, can’t deduct unreimbursed driving. Reservists and performing artists are the exceptions.

Consider a freelance photographer who drives her own car to client shoots, and those miles count. If she also works a salaried job, the miles she drives to that office don’t. Same car, different answer.

Situations where you can’t use it

A few situations rule the rate out for a particular vehicle:

• Corporate vehicle expense: You can’t use the rate if the vehicle’s costs are already booked as a corporate expense.
• Vehicles for hire: A car used to carry paying passengers, like a taxi, doesn’t qualify.
• Fleets: A business with five or more vehicles in use at the same time can’t use the rate.
• Accelerated depreciation: Any method other than straight-line (spreading the cost evenly over the years) bars the rate.
• Section 179: Taking this first-year expensing deduction on the vehicle bars the rate.

Who qualifies for medical, moving, charity miles

Medical, moving, and charity driving each have their own limits:

• Medical: Driving for medical care falls under Section 213, which covers medical expenses.
• Moving: Only members of the military and intelligence community qualify.
• Charity: The driving must be for a qualified organization.
• Reimbursed miles: If someone already paid you back, you can’t claim those miles.

Why employees can no longer deduct mileage

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) suspended the deduction for unreimbursed employee expenses, mileage included. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) made that suspension permanent, according to the Tax Policy Center.

For employees, the question is less about whether you drove for work and more about who paid for it. Federal rules are the starting point, not the finish line.

Your state may set its own mileage rules that differ from the federal ones, so check those before you file.

How Do You Calculate Mileage Reimbursement?

Calculating mileage comes down to two methods, and the one you choose shapes what you track all year. Here’s how we break down each one.

Choosing the standard rate or actual costs

Most solo creatives start with the standard rate, and the math is simple: multiply your business miles by the 2026 rate from the top of this article.

For example, a photographer who drives 1,000 business miles a year to shoots and client meetings multiplies 1,000 by that rate.

The alternative is actual costs. You total what the vehicle really cost to run and deduct only the business share, not the total.

Actual variable costs, like gas and repairs, can beat the charity rate (a fixed amount set for volunteer driving), so run both numbers before you choose.

What the rate covers and leaves out

The standard rate is all-in for running the car. It covers gas, tires, and insurance, so you don’t track those costs one by one. The rate pays for the car, not the trip.

Parking and tolls are deductible separately, and so is interest on a business loan for the vehicle. Keep those parking receipts.

Keeping a mileage log for every trip

Whichever method you pick, you still need a mileage log, a dated record of each business trip. Each entry should include:

• Date and starting odometer reading
• Destination and client
• Purpose of the trip
• Miles driven

The log applies to every type of mileage, so track shoots, client meetings, and supply runs the same way. Take an illustrator who stops at a print shop for a client’s proofs. Logged that day, the trip is a clean entry instead of a guess at tax time.

When leasing and depreciation change the math

If you own your vehicle, depreciation lowers its basis, the amount you’ve invested in it for tax purposes. That lower basis matters when you sell, because the gain or loss depends on it.

Leases are usually a poor fit for this math. Say a web designer leases a car, takes the standard rate in year one, and then renews.

That choice has to carry through every renewal, so it’s a commitment, not just a tax choice. Run the numbers before you sign.

How the IRS Sets and Updates Rates

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) sets the standard mileage rate, and it’s built from what keeping a car on the road actually costs. Those are the same expenses that show up in your own car budget.

Costs that shape the rate

Five cost categories shape the number:

• Fuel prices. Gas prices feed directly into the rate.
• Maintenance and repairs. Oil changes, new tires, and the surprise brake job all count.
• Insurance costs. What you pay to keep the car covered.
• Vehicle purchase costs. What you paid to buy the car in the first place.
• Depreciation. The steady loss in value as the car ages.

Think of an illustrator who drives a used hatchback to a client’s office for a kickoff meeting. Her gas, insurance, and wear on the car all go into that trip’s cost, and the rate is built to cover them.

Knowing that helps when a client asks about the mileage line on your invoice.

When the rate usually changes

The rate usually changes once a year, and it’s based on prior-year data, so each new figure reflects costs that have already come and gone.

Occasionally, though, the rate changes midyear, so the number you saw earlier might not hold. Check before you log a trip.

Fixed and variable costs in each rate

Here’s how we split it up. Every cost in the rate falls into one of two buckets. Fixed costs come due whether or not you drive, like insurance and depreciation. Variable costs rise with every mile, like fuel and maintenance.

The business rate covers both kinds of cost, while the medical and moving rate covers only variable ones. That’s why the medical and moving rate comes in lower: it leaves the fixed costs out. Less to cover, lower rate.

What Employers Should Know About Reimbursing

If someone drives for your business, the per-mile rate you pay decides what they receive and how the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) treats it.

When employer payments become taxable

Federal tax rules don’t require the IRS rate. Payments at or below the IRS rate (the standard mileage rate the IRS sets each year) stay tax-free when the driver substantiates, or documents, their business miles.

Pay above that rate and the extra becomes taxable wages, and so does any allowance the driver can’t substantiate.

Picture an illustrator with a part-time assistant who drives to the print shop for proofs. Reimburse those trips at or below the IRS rate with a simple mileage log, and the money stays tax-free.

Pay above the IRS rate to be generous, and the extra lands on the assistant’s paycheck. Generous isn’t always tax-free.

Using the IRS rate is up to employers

Using the IRS rate is optional. You can set a different rate and treat the IRS figure as a guideline or cap rather than a requirement. Is 50 cents a mile good? It depends on the year and the trip.

Check the number against the IRS rate for that year and against what the driving really costs. At or below the IRS rate, the payment stays tax-free; above it, the excess is taxable.

The same logic applies when you bill a client for driving. A reasonable per-mile travel fee tracks what the trip really costs you, with the IRS rate as your reference point.

Put it on the quote as its own line so the client sees exactly what the driving costs.

Other pay options and their downsides

A flat rate isn’t the only route, and each alternative has a catch:

• Unfair to some drivers. One rate treats every driver the same, even when their costs differ.
• Location cost differences. Driving costs vary by region, so one rate can cover one driver and shortchange another.
• FAVR plans. A fixed and variable rate (FAVR) plan pays a fixed monthly amount plus a per-mile piece tied to local costs. It’s more precise, but it takes more setup and tracking.
• Car allowances and company vehicles. A flat car allowance pays the same no matter how much a driver drives, while a company vehicle puts upkeep on your books.

Review your policy before rates change

Set a review date before January so the new year doesn’t catch you off guard. Then:

1. Look up the IRS rate for the coming year.
2. Compare it with the rate in your current policy.
3. Update the policy and tell drivers before the change takes effect.

Avoid over-reimbursing. A rate that sits above the IRS rate, or one nobody revisits, can quietly turn part of each payment into taxable wages.

Paying mileage through health accounts

Medical mileage, the driving someone does to get care, can sometimes be paid through a flexible spending account (FSA), a health reimbursement arrangement (HRA), or a health savings account (HSA).

Use the rate in effect when the miles were driven, not when the claim is filed. Some plans exclude transportation, so check the plan documents before you promise anyone a reimbursement.

Past Mileage Rates over the Years

The standard mileage rate is the per-mile figure the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) sets for business driving, and it doesn’t hold still. Here’s why it matters when you log client trips.

Rate tables for each past year

Each year gets its own table with business, charity, and medical columns, so you can compare one category across years. Midyear changes are shown separately, so they don’t get lost inside the annual figure.

The set also includes tables from 2002, 2010, and 2011 for older comparisons.

How rates shifted from year to year

Looking back, we can see inflation and supply chain pressures move the rate. It tracks what running a car costs, not how often you drive. Lower fuel prices cut the 2020 rate, and the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic pulled the 2021 rate down.

According to the IRS’s announcement of the 2021 rates, the business rate was 56 cents per mile, down 1.5 cents from 2020.

Think of a freelance illustrator who made the same drive to a client’s studio in 2020 and again in 2021. Every mile they logged was worth 1.5 cents less the second time.

Rates then rose twice in 2022, so the figure can move in both directions within one year.

How much of the rate was depreciation

The per-mile rate includes a set number of cents for depreciation, the gradual loss in your vehicle’s value as it ages. In 2026, 35 cents of the rate is depreciation.

That slice is used for basis adjustments, which lower your vehicle’s tax basis over time. It’s a portion, not a bonus.

Knowing the rate is only half the job. The other half is keeping a simple log of every client trip, so your records back up the deduction and your travel fees reflect what each drive really costs you.

Whether you bill those miles to a client or claim them at tax time, the habit is the same: track them as you go instead of trying to rebuild them later. An untracked mile is one you’ve given away. A logged mile is one you can actually claim.

References

1. Standard mileage rates — irs.gov (2026)
2. IRS issues standard mileage rates for 2021 — goiam.org
3. IRS raises standard mileage rates for remainder of 2026 — journalofaccountancy.com (2026)
4. IRS Announces Revised 2026 Standard Mileage Rates — srsnodgrass.com (2026)
5. How did the TCJA and OBBBA change the standard … — taxpolicycenter.org (2025)