On July 1, 2026 the IRS raised the business standard mileage rate from 72.5¢ to 76¢ a mile. Both rates are correct. Which one applies depends on when you drove — so a full year of driving needs two sums rather than one.
This catches people out because it is not how the IRS usually works. A rate is normally set in the autumn and left alone for the whole of the following year. It moved mid-2026 because fuel got more expensive, and the last time that happened was 2022. Most articles about the 2026 rate were written in January, say 72.5¢, and have not been touched since. They are right for the first half of the year and wrong for the second.
One tax year, two rates
The rate follows the date of the trip, not the date you file.
Doing a full year: split it in half
Total your business miles for January to June and multiply by 0.725. Total your miles for July to December and multiply by 0.76. Add the two. That is the deduction.
A worked year: 9,400 business miles
4,100 miles January to June, 5,300 July to December.
Standard mileage or actual expenses — pick one
The standard rate is one of two methods. The other is actual expenses: track fuel, insurance, repairs, depreciation and registration, then deduct the business-use share of the total. The standard rate bundles all of that into a single number per mile.
Which wins depends on the vehicle. An older, cheaper, efficient car usually does better on the standard rate. An expensive vehicle, or one doing high mileage with real repair bills, often does better on actual expenses. There are also rules about switching between the methods, particularly once you have claimed depreciation — that is the point where an accountant earns their fee rather than a web page.
What actually counts as a business mile
The distinction that matters is commuting versus traveling.
- Not deductible: home to a regular place of work, and back. This surprises people, because being self-employed feels like it ought to change the answer. It does not.
- Generally deductible: travel between job sites, to a client, to a supplier, to collect materials, to the bank or post office on business, or to a temporary work location outside your usual area.
If you have a home office that genuinely qualifies as your principal place of business, the arithmetic shifts in your favor: trips from there to a work site are usually business miles rather than commuting. The qualifying part is doing real work in that sentence.
The log is the deduction
Mileage is among the most commonly questioned deductions, and it is questioned because it is among the easiest to invent. What is wanted is a contemporaneous record — written down at the time, not reconstructed in April from calendar entries and optimism.
Per trip: date, miles, business purpose. “Client” is thinner than “site visit, Ruiz kitchen remodel”. Keep the vehicle’s total annual mileage too, since the business-use percentage depends on it.
This year adds one requirement: your log has to make clear which side of July 1 each trip falls on. A log that only carries an annual total cannot be split afterwards without going back through every entry.
What to do this week
- Find your mileage records and check they are dated, not just totalled.
- Run the two sums, so you know what the deduction is worth before the next quarterly payment.
- If the log is thin, start a real one today. A good log for the rest of the year still beats no log, and starting is the hard part.
Questions, answered
What is the 2026 IRS mileage rate?
There are two. The business standard mileage rate is 72.5 cents per mile for miles driven from January 1 to June 30, 2026, and 76 cents per mile from July 1 to December 31, 2026. The IRS raised it mid-year, citing the cost of fuel.
Why did the IRS change the mileage rate in the middle of 2026?
The IRS cited an increase in the cost of fuel. Mid-year adjustments are uncommon, the previous one having been in 2022, which is why many guides published in January 2026 still show only the 72.5 cent rate and are wrong for the second half of the year.
How do I calculate mileage for a full year in 2026?
Split the year. Total your business miles from January to June and multiply by 0.725, then total your miles from July to December and multiply by 0.76, and add the two together. One calculation across the whole year will be wrong whichever rate you pick.
Does commuting count as business mileage?
No. Driving between your home and a regular place of work is commuting and is not deductible, even when you are self-employed. Travel between job sites, to clients, to suppliers or to the bank for business reasons generally does count.
Sources
- IRS sets 2026 business standard mileage rate at 72.5 cents per mile — IRS. The rate announced for January 1, 2026.
- Standard mileage rates — IRS. The current table, including the 76¢ rate effective July 1.
- Internal Revenue Bulletin 2026-29 — IRS. The bulletin announcing the mid-year increase.
- Recordkeeping — IRS. What a contemporaneous log has to contain.
Looking for more?
Related guides
- How much to set aside for taxes when self-employedThe deduction lowers the profit this is calculated on.
- How to budget on an irregular incomePercentages instead of a fixed monthly plan.
- QuickBooks Self-Employed alternativeIf the tool tracking your trips is going away.
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General information, not tax advice. The rates here are the federal business standard mileage rates for the 2026 tax year and were checked against the IRS on September 4, 2026; rates change, sometimes mid-year, as this article exists to point out. Which method suits your vehicle, and whether you are eligible to switch between methods, depends on your own circumstances — ask an accountant.