How to Keep a Side Hustle Mileage Log That Holds Up With the IRS, With Worked Examples

Driving to clients, pickups and supply runs can add up to one of the biggest deductions a side hustler has, but the deduction is only as good as the records behind it.

What does a mileage log need to prove?

A mileage log needs to show which miles were driven for your business and why. The IRS says you must back up car expenses "by adequate records or by sufficient evidence to support your own statement," and its travel and car expense guide tells taxpayers to keep records that prove the time, place and business purpose of their travel.

That is the whole game. If you are ever asked about your deduction, a vague estimate like "I drove about 4,000 miles for work" is hard to defend. A log that lists the date, where you went, why you went and how far you drove is much easier to stand behind. The IRS is flexible about the format. Publication 463 says "you can use a log, diary, notebook, or any other written record to keep track of your expenses," so a paper notebook in the glove box, a spreadsheet or a mileage app can all work.

This guide is for anyone who drives as part of a side business: a weekend house cleaner, a dog walker, a photographer driving to shoots, a reseller hitting estate sales or a handyman driving to jobs. It explains which trips count, how the two deduction methods work, and a routine that takes about two minutes a day.

Which side hustle trips count as business miles?

The first rule to know is the commuting rule, and it trips up a lot of people. According to IRS Publication 463, "You can't deduct the costs of taking a bus, trolley, subway, or taxi, or of driving a car between your home and your main or regular place of work." The IRS adds that this is true "no matter how far your home is from your regular place of work."

So if your side hustle is a regular weekend shift at the same shop, the drive there and back is generally a commute, not a business trip. Trips you make during your workday from one business stop to another are a different story. Driving from one client's house to another client's house, from a job site to the hardware store for supplies, or to the post office to ship orders are the kinds of trips people usually log as business miles.

Two exceptions matter for side hustlers:

• A home office that is your principal place of business. Publication 463 says, "If you have an office in your home that qualifies as a principal place of business, you can deduct your daily transportation costs between your home and another work location in the same trade or business." A home office has to meet its own strict tests, so check those before you rely on this.
• Temporary work locations. The IRS says you can deduct daily trips "between your residence and a temporary work station outside the metropolitan area where you live." It treats work at a location as temporary if it is realistically expected to last, and does last, one year or less.

Personal errands don't count, even if you squeeze them into a work trip. If you stop at a client's house and then drive across town to see a friend, only the business part of the route goes in your log. If your situation is unusual, for example you have no regular place of work, a tax professional can tell you how the rules apply to you.

Standard mileage rate or actual expenses: how the two methods work

Self-employed people can deduct car costs one of two ways, and the method you choose affects what your log needs to track.

The standard mileage rate. You multiply your business miles by a cents-per-mile rate the IRS sets. The rate changes, and it can even change partway through a year. For 2026, the IRS set two rates: 72.5 cents per mile from Jan. 1 through June 30 and 76 cents per mile from July 1 through Dec. 31. For 2025 it was 70 cents. Always check the current rate on irs.gov before you file. On top of the rate, you can add business parking and tolls. The IRS says these "are separately deductible, whether you use the standard mileage rate or actual expenses."

Actual expenses. You add up what it really cost to run the car, such as gas, oil, repairs, insurance and license fees, plus depreciation, then deduct the business share. Publication 463 explains that share with an example: a contractor who drives 20,000 miles in a year, 12,000 for business and 8,000 personal, "can claim only 60% (12,000 ÷ 20,000) of the cost of operating your car as a business expense." This method needs your total miles for the year as well as your business miles, plus receipts for every cost.

Timing rules lock in your choice, so it is worth thinking about early. According to IRS Topic 510, to use the standard rate on a car you own, "you must choose to use it in the first year the car is available for use in your business." After that you can switch between methods in later years. For a leased car, if you choose the standard rate, you must use it "for the entire lease period (including renewals)."

Some people can't use the standard rate at all. Topic 510 says you can't use it if you operate five or more cars at the same time, as in a fleet, or if you have already claimed certain depreciation on the car, such as accelerated (MACRS) depreciation, a Section 179 deduction or the special depreciation allowance.

Worked examples: what a good log is worth

These examples use made-up drivers and the 2025 rate of 70 cents a mile so the math is easy to follow. Your own numbers will depend on the rate for the year you file.

Example 1: The weekend house cleaner. Maya cleans homes on Saturdays and Sundays. She has a qualifying home office where she books clients and keeps supplies, so trips from home to each client count. Her log shows 60 business miles a weekend for 50 weekends, or 3,000 miles. At 70 cents a mile, that is a $2,100 deduction. She also paid $90 in business parking, which she adds on top, for $2,190 in total car expenses on her return.

Example 2: The reseller without a log. Jordan flips furniture and drives to estate sales, a storage unit and buyers' homes. He thinks he drove "around 2,500 business miles" but kept no record. At 70 cents, that would be $1,750, but he has nothing written down to support it. If he logged the same trips as he made them, the deduction would be the same size and much easier to back up.

Example 3: Comparing the two methods. Using the IRS contractor example of 20,000 total miles with 12,000 for business, the standard rate at 70 cents would give 12,000 × $0.70 = $8,400. Under actual expenses, the driver would deduct 60% of the car's real costs. If gas, insurance, repairs and depreciation came to $12,000 for the year, 60% would be $7,200, so the standard rate would come out ahead. If the car's costs were $15,000, 60% would be $9,000 and actual expenses would win. The only way to know is to track both your miles and your costs in the first year.

Why it matters: car expenses lower your business profit on Schedule C. The IRS says your net earnings from self-employment are generally subject to self-employment tax, which is 15.3% (12.4% for Social Security and 2.9% for Medicare), on top of regular income tax. A smaller profit means a smaller base for both. Our guide to side hustle taxes explains how that profit is taxed and how to set money aside.

A simple mileage log routine in 5 steps

The best log is the one you actually keep. This routine is built to take a couple of minutes a day.

1. Write down your odometer on day one. Record the reading on Jan. 1, or on the day you start using the car for your business, and again on Dec. 31. That gives you total miles for the year, which you need to figure your business-use percentage under the actual-expense method.
2. Log each business trip the same day. For each trip, note the date, where you started and ended, the business purpose ("deliver order to buyer," "clean client home," "buy supplies at hardware store") and the miles. Your trip meter, like the one in the photo above, makes this easy: reset it when you leave and read it when you arrive.
3. Keep parking and toll receipts with the log. These are deductible on top of the standard rate, and they are easy to lose. A zip bag in the glove box or a photo on your phone works.
4. Total it up every month. Add your business miles at the end of each month while the trips are still fresh. Gaps are much easier to fix in October than in April.
5. Store it with your tax records. IRS Topic 305 says the time the IRS has to assess more tax is "generally 3 years from the date you filed the return," and 6 years if you leave out income that is more than 25% of the gross income on your return. Keeping your log, receipts and return together for at least that long covers that general window.

If you use an app that tracks trips with your phone's GPS, review and label the trips regularly. An app can record that you drove 14 miles, but only you know whether the drive was for a client or for groceries.

Where your mileage goes on your tax return

If you report your side hustle on Schedule C, car expenses go on line 9. The Schedule C instructions say you "can deduct the actual expenses of operating your car or truck or take the standard mileage rate," and if you use the standard rate, you multiply business miles by the rate and then "add to this amount your parking fees and tolls."

Most people using the standard rate answer the vehicle questions in Part IV of Schedule C. The instructions say to complete Part IV if you are claiming the standard mileage rate, you lease your vehicle or it is fully depreciated, and you are not required to file Form 4562 for another reason. If you are claiming depreciation on the vehicle, you use Form 4562 instead. Either way, the mileage numbers you report come straight from your log.

If you aren't sure your side hustle counts as a business for tax purposes, read our explainer on how the IRS decides between a hobby and a business first, since that affects whether you can deduct expenses at all.