IRS mileage rate 2026

The rate changed in the middle of the year. Trips taken before July 1, 2026 deduct at 72.5¢ per mile. Trips from July 1 onward deduct at 76¢ per mile.

If you are using one flat rate for all of 2026, your number is wrong.

The 2026 rates

The charitable rate is fixed by statute, so it does not move with fuel prices and did not change.

Why it changed

Fuel prices. The national average for regular gasoline was roughly $2.89 a gallon in December 2025, when the IRS set the original 72.5¢ rate. By mid-July 2026 it was around $3.87 — about 34% higher. The IRS raised the business, medical and moving rates for the remainder of the year in response.

This is the first midyear change since 2022, which is exactly why so much published guidance is still wrong. Most articles, spreadsheet templates and mileage trackers were written in January and apply 72.5¢ to the whole year.

What this means for your log

You need to split your mileage by date. One number for the whole year does not work in 2026.

1. Total your business miles from January 1 through June 30 and multiply by 0.725.
2. Total your business miles from July 1 through December 31 and multiply by 0.76.
3. Add the two together. That is your deduction.

A worked example

An agent who drove 12,000 business miles, split evenly across the year:

• 6,000 miles × 72.5¢ = $4,350
• 6,000 miles × 76¢ = $4,560
• Total deduction: $8,910

Applying 72.5¢ to all 12,000 miles would give $8,700 — leaving $210 on the table. Weight the second half more heavily, as most agents do in a busy autumn, and the gap grows.

Check your tracker

If you use an app, open it now and confirm it applied the new rate from July 1. Several popular trackers did not update immediately, and a log that silently used 72.5¢ all year will quietly understate your deduction. Exporting a CSV and checking a July trip against a June trip takes a minute.

Standard mileage or actual expenses — not both

The standard mileage rate is one of two methods. The other is actual expenses: petrol, insurance, repairs, depreciation, apportioned to business use. You pick one per vehicle.

A practical note: if you want the option to use standard mileage over the life of a car, you generally have to choose it in the first year you use that car for business. Switching later is restricted. If you are unsure which is better for you, that is a genuine question for your preparer, not a rule of thumb.

Things people forget

• Parking and tolls are deductible on top of standard mileage. They are not baked into the rate. Most agents miss these entirely.
• Commuting does not count. Home to a fixed office is personal. Home to a showing, between showings, to a closing, to an inspection, to a supply run — those are business miles.
• A contemporaneous log holds up; a reconstructed one does not. Date, purpose, miles. Written near the time, not in April.

What to keep

Date, destination, business purpose and miles for each trip. If you are audited, the log is the evidence — the deduction stands or falls on it. Photographing your odometer on January 1 and December 31 also helps establish total annual miles.

This is general information, not tax advice. Confirm anything important with your own tax professional before filing.