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Every mile you drive for gig work is a business expense — and the IRS lets you deduct those miles from your taxable income using the standard mileage rate. For 2026, that rate is $0.70 per mile. This single deduction is often worth thousands of dollars to delivery and rideshare drivers, and it's one of the most commonly missed or miscalculated deductions in the gig economy.
The math is simple: multiply your total business miles by $0.70, and that's the amount you deduct from your gross income before calculating what you owe in taxes. If you drove 15,000 miles for DoorDash, your deduction is $10,500 — reducing your taxable income by that amount.
Not every mile in your car qualifies. For gig workers, deductible miles include:
Personal miles — commuting to a second job, running errands, personal trips — are not deductible, even if they're in the same vehicle. This is why tracking accurately matters: you need to separate business from personal use.
You have two options for deducting vehicle costs. Most gig workers are better off with the standard mileage rate:
| Method | How it works | Best for | Record keeping |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard mileage rate ✓ | $0.70 × business miles | Most gig workers | Mileage log only |
| Actual expense method | % of all car costs (gas, insurance, depreciation, repairs) | High-expense vehicles, infrequent drivers | All receipts + mileage log |
The standard mileage rate wins for most gig workers because it's simpler, requires less documentation, and usually produces a larger deduction — especially for high-mileage drivers.
The IRS requires contemporaneous records for any mileage deduction — meaning you must track miles at the time they occur, not from memory at the end of the year. If you're ever audited, a mileage log is your proof. The log must include the date, starting and ending location, business purpose, and number of miles for each trip.
The easiest way to do this is with an automatic tracking app like Everlance or MileIQ. These apps run in the background, track every drive via GPS, and let you classify trips with one swipe. At tax time, they generate an IRS-compliant report you can hand directly to your accountant.
Generally, driving from your home to the area where you start accepting orders is considered commuting and is not deductible. Once you accept your first order, all miles from that point forward are deductible. Some tax professionals argue there's a gray area here — consult a tax professional for guidance specific to your situation.
DoorDash, Uber, and Lyft provide a summary of miles at the end of the year, but these numbers typically only capture "on-trip" miles — meaning miles recorded while you have an active order. They don't include deadhead miles between orders, which can be significant. A dedicated mileage tracking app will always give you a higher (and more accurate) total.
All business miles across all platforms are combined into a single total deduction on your Schedule C. You don't need to separate them by platform. Just track all gig-related miles in one place and report the total.
No — it's one or the other. If you use the standard mileage rate, you cannot separately deduct gas, insurance, repairs, or depreciation. The per-mile rate is designed to cover all of those costs. You can still deduct parking fees and tolls paid while working, even with the standard rate.
You may be able to reconstruct your mileage from app trip history, bank statements, Google Maps timeline, or calendar records. This is a last resort — the IRS prefers contemporaneous logs, and reconstructed logs are more likely to be questioned in an audit. Going forward, start tracking immediately with an app. If you need to estimate, be conservative.