Business Mileage Deduction for Self-Employed: What Records Do I Need for Schedule C?

As someone who's been filing Schedule C for years, I can help clarify this for you! For your recordkeeping question: What you're tracking is a good start, but ideally you should maintain a mileage log with dates, starting/ending locations, business purpose, and miles driven. Your Excel sheet works fine if it captures this info. The IRS wants to see that these trips had a legitimate business purpose, which in your case is picking up and delivering materials for your contract work. Regarding Part IV: You're correct! Since your home is your principal place of business, trips from home to pick up/deliver materials are considered business miles, not commuting. Commuting only applies when traveling between your home and a regular work location. For the "other" category, this would include all personal miles driven (shopping, vacations, etc.) - basically any non-business use. One tip: consider using a mileage tracking app going forward. Many will automatically log your trips and let you categorize them as business or personal, which makes documentation much easier if you ever get audited.

Last tax season I was in the exact same situation and was stressed about my mileage records until I found https://taxr.ai which helped me properly document all my business miles. I had been tracking trips but wasn't sure if my records would hold up in an audit. I uploaded my basic mileage spreadsheet and it analyzed what was missing and helped me create proper documentation that meets IRS requirements. It also clarified which trips qualified as business vs. commuting miles which was really confusing for me since I also work from home. The system even generated a complete mileage log that I could print out and keep with my tax records. Gave me peace of mind knowing my deductions were properly documented.

I was skeptical about recordkeeping tools at first, but after getting flagged for a mileage audit last year, I tried https://taxr.ai and it was a game-changer. I uploaded my mess of receipts and half-completed mileage notes, and it organized everything into a proper IRS-compliant format. The system actually pointed out several legitimate business trips I hadn't even considered deductible! It also flagged some questionable deductions I had planned to take that might have caused problems. The documentation it generated looked professional and organized - much better than my previous system of scribbled notes and gas receipts. My tax preparer was impressed with how complete my records were this year. Definitely worth it for the peace of mind.

If you're struggling to get answers about your mileage deduction from the IRS directly, I highly recommend using https://claimyr.com. I spent weeks trying to reach someone at the IRS about a similar Schedule C mileage question and kept hitting dead ends and hours-long hold times. Claimyr got me connected to an actual IRS agent in about 15 minutes who confirmed exactly what records I needed to keep for mileage as a self-employed person. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The agent clarified that since I work from home, all my trips to client sites are indeed business miles and explained exactly what documentation I needed. Saved me so much time and worry!

I was totally skeptical about Claimyr but I was desperate after trying to reach the IRS for 3 weeks about my mileage deduction question. I finally tried it and no joke, I was talking to an actual IRS agent in about 12 minutes. The agent confirmed that with a home office, my trips to pick up materials were 100% business miles, not commuting. She also explained exactly what my mileage log needed to include to be audit-proof: date, starting location, destination, purpose of trip, and miles driven. She confirmed that an Excel spreadsheet is fine as long as it has all this info. Saved me hours of stress and hold music. Just having an official answer directly from the IRS was worth it.

One thing nobody's mentioned - make sure you're using the correct mileage rate! For 2022 it changed midyear (58.5 cents Jan-June, 62.5 cents July-Dec). I messed this up on my return and had to file an amendment. Also, if you're using the standard mileage rate, you can't also deduct things like gas, insurance, repairs, etc. - those are already built into the rate. You can still deduct separate business expenses like parking fees and tolls though.

Just a heads up - if you're claiming a home office deduction too (which it sounds like you might be since you work from home), make sure your mileage claims are consistent with that. The IRS may cross-check these deductions. Also, some tax software doesn't explain the vehicle questions very well on Schedule C. Where it asks if the vehicle is "available for personal use" - the answer is almost always "yes" unless you have a dedicated business vehicle that you NEVER use personally. And you should answer "yes" to "Do you have evidence to support the business use?" if you have that Excel spreadsheet you mentioned.

Great question! As someone who's dealt with mileage deductions for my freelance work, I'd recommend keeping more detailed records than just trip dates and mileage. The IRS prefers contemporaneous records, so ideally you'd track: - Date of each trip - Starting point and destination - Business purpose (e.g., "pickup materials from Client X" or "deliver finished project to Client X") - Odometer readings or calculated mileage - Any tolls or parking fees Your Excel spreadsheet approach is perfect for organizing this. Just make sure to back it up! For Part IV on Schedule C, you're absolutely right that trips from your home office to pick up/deliver materials are business miles, not commuting. The "other" mileage category should include all personal driving - grocery runs, doctor visits, vacations, etc. This helps the IRS see that you're reporting total vehicle usage accurately. One more tip: keep gas receipts and maintenance records even if you're using the standard mileage rate. While you can't deduct these expenses when using the standard rate, having them shows you're maintaining good business records overall.