By Income Tax Service Editorial — Reviewed by Diyan Yap, EA (IRS Enrolled Agent) — Updated July 20, 2026
Quick answer: The 2026 IRS standard mileage rate for business driving is 72.5 cents per mile, up 2.5 cents from 70 cents in 2025. The medical rate is 20.5 cents, the moving rate (active-duty military only) is 20.5 cents, and the charitable rate stays at 14 cents. The rates took effect January 1, 2026, and you can use actual vehicle expenses instead.
Key facts:
- Business use: 72.5 cents per mile for 2026 (up 2.5 cents from 70 cents in 2025).
- Medical use: 20.5 cents per mile.
- Moving (active-duty military only): 20.5 cents per mile.
- Charitable use: 14 cents per mile (set by statute, unchanged).
- Rates are effective January 1, 2026; you may use actual expenses instead, but must choose consistently per vehicle.
If you drive for work — whether you’re a gig driver, a self-employed contractor, or a small-business owner — the standard mileage rate is usually the simplest way to turn miles into a tax deduction. Instead of tracking every gas receipt and oil change, you multiply your business miles by one number.
What is the 2026 standard mileage rate?
The 2026 standard mileage rate for business use is 72.5 cents per mile, a 2.5-cent increase from the 2025 rate of 70 cents. The IRS set it in Notice 2026-10, and it applies to miles driven on or after January 1, 2026.
The rate is the IRS’s estimate of the full cost of operating a vehicle for business — gas, maintenance, repairs, insurance, and depreciation all bundled into a single per-mile figure. That’s why you don’t separately deduct those costs when you use the standard rate; the 72.5 cents already covers them.
Using it is deliberately simple: track your business miles, multiply by 72.5 cents, and that’s your deduction. The recordkeeping is a mileage log rather than a shoebox of receipts.
What are the business, medical, and charitable rates?
There isn’t one mileage rate — there are four, each for a different kind of driving, and only the business rate changed for 2026. Here’s the full 2026 set:
| Use | 2026 rate per mile |
|---|---|
| Business | 72.5 cents |
| Medical | 20.5 cents |
| Moving (active-duty military only) | 20.5 cents |
| Charitable | 14 cents |
A few notes on the non-business rates. The medical rate applies to driving for qualifying medical care. The moving rate is now limited to active-duty military members moving under orders — for everyone else, moving miles aren’t deductible. The charitable rate of 14 cents is fixed by law, not adjusted for inflation, which is why it hasn’t moved in years while the business rate climbs.
Standard mileage rate vs actual expenses — which is better?
The standard mileage rate is usually simpler; actual expenses can produce a larger deduction if your vehicle is expensive to operate. You’re allowed to use whichever method gives the better result for your situation — but the choice comes with rules.
The standard rate wins on simplicity and works well for fuel-efficient vehicles and high-mileage drivers. You just need a reliable mileage log.
Actual expenses means totaling your real costs — gas, insurance, repairs, depreciation, lease payments — and deducting the business-use percentage. It can beat the standard rate for costly vehicles, but it demands far more recordkeeping.
The important constraint: you generally must choose consistently per vehicle. If you want the option to use the standard rate for a car, you typically must use it in the first year the vehicle is in service; switching methods later is restricted. Because that first-year choice locks in future options, it’s worth deciding deliberately, not by accident.
How much can a gig driver deduct on mileage?
A gig driver’s mileage deduction is simply business miles multiplied by 72.5 cents — and for a high-mileage driver, that adds up fast. Here’s a worked example.
Priya drives for rideshare and delivery and logs 18,000 business miles in 2026:
- Business miles: 18,000
- Rate: 72.5 cents = $0.725 per mile
- Deduction: 18,000 × $0.725 = $13,050
That $13,050 comes off her Schedule C profit. At a 22% marginal income-tax rate, the deduction is worth about $2,871 in reduced income tax (13,050 × 0.22), and because it lowers her net profit it also shrinks her self-employment tax base.
Say Priya also drove 500 miles for a qualifying charity during the year. At the 14-cent charitable rate, that’s an additional 500 × $0.14 = $70 deduction. The two rates are tracked and claimed separately — you can’t apply the business rate to charitable miles or vice versa. For the bigger picture on how this fits a gig driver’s return, see our gig worker taxes guide.
What records do you need?
To deduct mileage, you need a log that shows the business purpose of your driving — the deduction is only as good as the records behind it. The IRS expects you to be able to substantiate the miles you claim, and a clean log is your proof.
At a minimum, track for each business trip:
- The date of the trip.
- The miles driven (or start and end odometer readings).
- The business purpose — the client, delivery, or job.
Record it as you go, not from memory in April. A notebook works, but a mileage app that logs trips automatically is easier to keep consistent — and consistency is exactly what survives scrutiny. Keep your total annual mileage too, since the business-use percentage matters if you ever compare against actual expenses.
What should you do now?
The mileage deduction is one of the easiest to claim and one of the easiest to lose — the difference is entirely in the tracking.
- Start logging miles now if you aren’t already; retroactive logs are weak and stressful to build.
- Use 72.5 cents for business miles driven in 2026, and keep the medical and charitable miles in their own tallies.
- Decide your method deliberately in a vehicle’s first business year, since that choice limits your future options.
- Business owners and S-corp owners — coordinate mileage reimbursement with your entity; see our S-corp vs LLC guide for how the structure affects vehicle deductions.
A credentialed tax professional — like an IRS Enrolled Agent — can tell you whether the standard rate or actual expenses wins for your vehicle and make sure your log holds up.
FAQ
Does the 72.5-cent rate already include gas and repairs? Yes. The standard mileage rate bundles gas, maintenance, repairs, insurance, and depreciation into one per-mile figure. When you use it, you don’t separately deduct those operating costs — the 72.5 cents already accounts for them.
Can I switch between the standard rate and actual expenses? Only within limits. You generally must use the standard mileage rate in a vehicle’s first year of business use to keep the option open later, and switching methods afterward is restricted. Choose consistently per vehicle rather than flipping year to year.
I moved for a new job — can I use the 20.5-cent moving rate? Almost certainly not. The moving mileage rate is limited to active-duty military members moving under orders. For everyone else, moving-related mileage isn’t deductible under current rules.
What records do I need to claim mileage? A mileage log showing the date, miles driven, and business purpose of each trip. Record it contemporaneously — as you drive — because reconstructed logs are the first thing questioned if your deduction is ever reviewed.
Did the charitable mileage rate change for 2026? No. The charitable rate stays at 14 cents per mile because it’s fixed by statute, not adjusted for inflation. Only the business rate changed for 2026, rising to 72.5 cents.
Sources
This article is for educational purposes only and is not tax, legal, or financial advice. Tax rules change and individual situations vary — consult a qualified tax professional about your specific circumstances.