Log your business trips, let the odometer readings do the math, and download a finished mileage log as Excel, PDF or CSV — with the 2026 IRS rate change handled for you. Prefer paper? Grab a blank printable template.
| Date | From | To | Business purpose | Odometer start | Odometer end | Miles | Parking & tolls | Deduction | Actions |
|---|
Trips are saved automatically in this browser only, so you can come back and keep logging. Nothing is uploaded.
A blank log with your details at the top. The Excel version already contains the formulas: type the odometer readings and the miles and deduction fill in.
This is what a finished log looks like for a small IT consultant in 2026. Notice the two rates: trips through June 30 use 72.5¢ a mile, trips from July 1 use 76¢. Press Load example log above to open it in the generator.
| Date | From | To | Business purpose | Miles (mi) | Deduction | Parking & tolls |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 03/02/2026 | Home office | Acme Dental, Round Rock | Quarterly IT maintenance for Acme Dental | 28.4 | $20.59 | |
| 03/02/2026 | Acme Dental, Round Rock | Home office | Return from Acme Dental visit | 28.4 | $20.59 | |
| 04/15/2026 | Home office | Office Depot, Austin | Printer supplies for the Lakeside project | 7.5 | $5.44 | |
| 07/08/2026 | Home office | Riverside Bank, San Marcos | Proposal meeting with Riverside Bank | 35.2 | $26.75 | $12.00 |
| 07/08/2026 | Riverside Bank, San Marcos | Home office | Return from Riverside Bank meeting | 35.4 | $26.90 | |
| 09/21/2026 | Home office | Austin Convention Center | Booth setup, Small Business Expo | 14.2 | $10.79 | $25.00 |
| Total | 149.1 | $111.07 | $37.00 | |||
Result: 149.1 business miles, a $111.07 mileage deduction, plus $37.00 of business parking and tolls, which are deductible on top of the standard rate — $148.07 in total.
IRS Publication 463 asks for “adequate records” of each business use of your car. In plain English, every trip needs:
For the year you also need your total miles, which is why the generator asks for the odometer on January 1 and December 31: business miles divided by total miles is your business-use percentage. Records should be made at or near the time of the trip; a log rebuilt from memory in April carries much less weight. Keep the log with your return for at least three years.
A few rules decide whether the standard rate applies at all: you must choose it in the first year the car is used for business, you can’t use it for five or more cars at the same time, and commuting between home and a regular workplace is never business mileage. Business parking and tolls are deductible in addition to the rate.
Excel is the working copy: miles, rate and totals are live formulas, so you can keep adding trips. PDF is the clean record to file with your taxes or send to an accountant. CSV imports into Google Sheets, Numbers or bookkeeping software. The blank templates are the same layout for people who keep a log in the glovebox.
Want the whole thing automatic? The ReceGuard iPhone app records trips and keeps them next to your receipts — see what an IRS-ready mileage log needs.
Yes. The generator, the Excel, PDF and CSV downloads and the blank templates are free, with no account and no watermark.
Yes. The IRS business rate is 72.5 cents per mile from January 1 to June 30, 2026 and 76 cents from July 1, 2026. Each trip uses the rate for its date, and the totals show both periods.
Yes. Miles are calculated from the odometer columns, the rate follows the trip date, and the deduction and totals are SUM formulas, so the file keeps working in Excel, Google Sheets and Numbers as you add trips.
For each business trip: the date, the destination, the business purpose and the miles driven. For the year: your total miles, so the business-use share can be worked out. Records should be kept at or near the time of the trip.
Yes. Choose a custom rate and enter your employer’s or client’s rate per mile; the log then shows the reimbursement for each trip and in total.
Your trips are saved in this browser on this device so you can come back and continue. They are never uploaded. Use “Clear log” to delete them.
Add the outbound trip, then press the ↩ button on that row. It adds the return trip with the start and destination swapped and the odometer carried over.
Yes. “Blank printable PDF” gives you a ready-to-print log with columns for date, route, purpose, odometer readings, miles and parking and tolls.
Keep one log per vehicle. Generate and download a log for one car, then clear it and start the next — the IRS expects mileage per vehicle.
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