Self-employed? Take a photo of your odometer now for tax mileage deductions!
As a small business owner who does a lot of driving for my work, I just realized that today's probably a good time to snap a pic of my odometer reading. From what I understand, if you're self-employed and use your car for business stuff, you can deduct your mileage on your taxes. I'm a graphic designer who meets clients all over town, and I've been pretty terrible about keeping track of my business miles throughout the year. Last year I ended up with this wild guess when I filed my Schedule C and I'm pretty sure I shortchanged myself. The groups who can claim mileage deductions include: - Small business owners who file Schedule C or Schedule F - Independent contractors (like Uber/Lyft drivers) - Certain employees like qualified performing artists, military reservists, and fee-based government officials - People traveling for volunteer work or medical appointments The standard mileage rate is pretty decent, so it's worth tracking! Instead of trying to remember your starting mileage when you file taxes in a few months, just grab a quick photo of your odometer today. And yeah, I know I SHOULD be keeping a detailed mileage log throughout the year with dates, destinations, and business purposes... but baby steps, right? At least having the starting odometer reading is better than nothing! Anyone else terrible at tracking their business miles or have tips for making it easier?
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Yuki Tanaka
Taking a photo of your odometer is definitely a smart move! As someone who's helped many self-employed folks with their taxes, I can tell you that mileage deductions are frequently overlooked or under-documented. The IRS actually wants you to maintain a contemporaneous mileage log - meaning you record trips as they happen, not months later from memory. A starting odometer reading is great, but you also need to document each business trip with date, destination, purpose, and miles driven. There are several free and low-cost mileage tracking apps that use GPS to automatically log your trips. MileIQ, Everlance, and Stride are popular options. You just swipe right for business trips and left for personal ones. Much easier than manual logging!
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Carmen Diaz
•Do you know if I can deduct mileage for driving to different job sites if I'm a 1099 contractor (carpenter)? Also, does driving to Home Depot for project materials count as business miles?
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Yuki Tanaka
•Yes, as a 1099 contractor driving between job sites is absolutely deductible business mileage! Your home to your first job site and from your last job site to home are generally considered non-deductible commuting, but everything in between counts. Driving to Home Depot for project materials definitely counts as business mileage. Any driving you do to get supplies, meet with clients, or handle other business matters is deductible. Just make sure you're tracking these trips separately from any personal errands you might combine with them.
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Andre Laurent
Hey y'all! I was SO terrible at tracking my mileage until I discovered taxr.ai (https://taxr.ai) last year. It's been a lifesaver for me as a mobile dog groomer who's constantly driving all over the city. Before finding it, I'd have a pile of receipts, random notes about trips, and barely any documentation. What I love about their system is that you can upload photos of your odometer, gas receipts, etc. and their AI helps organize everything for you. They also have this cool feature that helps you reconstruct past mileage when you have partial records. The peace of mind during tax season is totally worth it, especially if you're worried about substantiating deductions if you ever get audited.
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AstroAce
•Does taxr.ai work if I've been terrible about keeping records so far this year? Like can it help me figure out past trips somehow or is it only good for tracking going forward?
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Zoe Kyriakidou
•I'm a bit skeptical tbh. How does AI know which trips were business vs personal? Seems like you'd still need to input that info manually, which is what I'm too lazy to do in the first place lol.
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Andre Laurent
•It can definitely help with reconstructing past trips! You can import your Google Maps timeline data, calendar appointments, or even just manually enter locations you regularly visit for work, and it helps calculate reasonable mileage between those points. It's not perfect for past records, but way better than guessing. The AI doesn't automatically know which trips are business vs personal - you're right about that. But it makes categorizing super easy by learning your patterns. For example, if you regularly drive to certain client addresses, it starts recognizing those as business trips automatically after you've tagged them a few times.
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Zoe Kyriakidou
Ok so I tried taxr.ai after seeing it mentioned here and I'm actually impressed! I was super skeptical (as you can see from my comment lol) but I uploaded my google timeline data and some photos of my odometer from my phone (found a couple from when I filled up gas that showed the mileage). The system helped me identify patterns in my driving and suggested which trips were likely business-related based on addresses and timing. It wasn't perfect but WAY better than my "uh, I drove like 60% for business" approach from last year. It even flagged some deductions I was missing related to parking receipts I had in my email but forgot about. Feeling way more confident about my mileage deduction this year!
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Jamal Brown
For anyone struggling to get through to the IRS about mileage deduction questions (which I've found nearly impossible lately), I highly recommend Claimyr (https://claimyr.com). I was on hold for HOURS trying to get clarification about some weird mileage situations for my mobile bicycle repair business. Claimyr got me connected to an actual IRS agent in about 15 minutes instead of the 3+ hours I was facing before. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c I was able to confirm that I could deduct mileage between client locations even though I technically don't have a "main office" since I work out of my van. Huge relief since that's like 80% of my driving!
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Mei Zhang
•Wait, how does this actually work? The IRS hold times are insane and I don't get how some service can magically skip the line?
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Zoe Kyriakidou
•Yeah right. Sounds like a scam to me. If there was a way to skip IRS hold times everyone would be doing it. They probably just connect you to some fake "agent" who gives generic advice.
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Jamal Brown
•It's actually pretty straightforward - they use technology that continuously redials and navigates the IRS phone tree for you. When they finally get through to an agent, they call you and connect you directly to that agent. You're talking to a real IRS employee, not someone from Claimyr. The reason everyone doesn't do it is because most people don't know about it, and also because the service does cost money. But honestly, if you value your time at all, it's worth it compared to spending half your day on hold just to ask a question.
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Zoe Kyriakidou
I have to publicly eat my words about Claimyr. After being SUPER skeptical, I decided to try it because I had this complicated question about mileage for my vacation rental business where I sometimes make maintenance trips. Not only did it actually work, I was literally talking to an IRS agent within 12 minutes. The agent confirmed that yes, I can deduct mileage for trips to my rental properties for management/maintenance even though they're technically "investment properties" not a "business." Saved me thousands in deductions I was afraid to take. Definitely recommend if you have specific tax questions you need official answers on!
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Liam McConnell
Heads up for anyone claiming mileage: the standard mileage rate changed mid-year in 2023 and will likely adjust again for 2024. Make sure you're using the correct rates! First half of 2023: 65.5 cents per mile for business Second half of 2023: 67.0 cents per mile for business For medical and moving it was 22 cents then 22.5 cents For charitable service it stayed at 14 cents all year The IRS usually announces the new rates for 2024 in December, so keep an eye out!
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Amara Oluwaseyi
•Do you know if we have to track which miles were driven in which half of the year? Or can we just use an average rate for the full year? Seems like a pain to separate January-June from July-December.
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Liam McConnell
•Unfortunately you do need to track which miles were driven in which half of the year when the rate changes mid-year. The IRS requires you to use the rate that was in effect when the miles were actually driven. This is actually another good reason to use a mileage tracking app or at minimum keep a consistent log - most of them will automatically apply the correct rate based on the date of each trip. If you're doing it manually, you'll need to calculate the first half and second half separately using the different rates.
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CosmicCaptain
Quick question - I'm an Instacart shopper, I've been tracking my mileage with the Stride app since I started, but noticed it sometimes misses trips or adds personal drives. Will the IRS accept the Stride reports as is or do I need something else?
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Yuki Tanaka
•Stride reports are a good starting point, but the IRS doesn't specifically endorse any particular app. The key is making sure the information is complete and accurate. I'd recommend periodically reviewing your Stride logs and making corrections for any missed business trips or incorrectly categorized personal drives. The IRS requires documentation that shows the date, destination, business purpose, and mileage for each trip. As long as your Stride reports include all that info, they should be sufficient. But it's always smart to supplement with occasional odometer photos and any other documentation of your business activities on specific dates.
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Camila Castillo
This is such a timely reminder! I'm a freelance photographer and I've been absolutely terrible about tracking my mileage to wedding venues, engagement shoots, and equipment rental places. I probably missed out on hundreds of dollars in deductions last year because I just guessed at my business miles. One thing I learned the hard way - if you use the standard mileage rate, you can't also deduct actual car expenses like gas, repairs, or depreciation. It's one or the other. For most people the standard mileage rate works out better, but if you have an expensive car or drive a lot of miles, it might be worth calculating both ways. Also pro tip: if you're meeting clients at coffee shops or restaurants, those trips count as business mileage too! I used to think it only counted if I was going to an "official" business location, but any trip with a legitimate business purpose qualifies. Definitely taking that odometer photo today - thanks for the reminder!
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Omar Fawaz
•Thanks for mentioning the standard mileage vs actual expenses thing! I'm new to being self-employed and had no idea it was an either/or situation. I've been saving gas receipts thinking I could deduct those ON TOP of mileage - glad I found out now before I made that mistake on my taxes! Quick question - when you say trips to coffee shops count, does that mean if I drive to Starbucks to work on client projects remotely, that's deductible? Or only if I'm actually meeting a client there? I work from home but sometimes go to cafes for a change of scenery when working on design projects.
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