What to write down for each trip
IRS Publication 463 asks you to record each business use at or near the time you drive, and says a record made at the time has more value than one put together later. For a car it lists the mileage for each business use, the total miles for the year and the date you started using the car for business, along with the date, destination and business purpose of each trip. The log has a place for each of them.
| Column | What to enter |
|---|---|
| Date | The day of the trip, typed as a date in the spreadsheet |
| Start odometer | The reading when you set off |
| End odometer | The reading when you arrive or get back |
| Miles or Km | Nothing to type in the spreadsheet: end minus start; on paper, work it out |
| From and To | Where you started and where you went, such as an address or a client's name |
| Purpose | Why you drove, in words someone else would understand: "site visit, kitchen remodel" rather than "work" |
| Rate (spreadsheet only) | Copied from the rate cell at the top; type over it on a single row if needed |
| Amount | Filled in by a formula: distance times rate |
Keep the log in the car, or open the spreadsheet on your phone, and fill in the row before you drive off and when you park. It takes less than a minute and spares you rebuilding trips from your calendar months later.
The rate and the amount
The rate cell at the top of the spreadsheet starts empty, and every trip row copies whatever you type there. Use the rate your employer reimburses, or the rate you are allowed to use for your own taxes. The IRS publishes its standard mileage rates on its table of standard mileage rates. For business driving in 2026 it is 72.5¢ a mile from January 1 to June 30 (Notice 2026-10) and 76¢ from July 1 to December 31 (Announcement 2026-11).
When a rate changes during the year, as it did on July 1, 2026, type the new rate over the Rate cell of each row from that date on. The amount of each trip and the total follow. The mileage reimbursement calculator does this split by date for you and also shows the medical and charity rates.
Odometer readings for the year
Publication 463 lists the total miles for the year next to the business miles. The easiest way to get that number is to read the odometer on the first and last day of the year and write both readings into the boxes at the top. The spreadsheet then shows the distance driven in the year, the distance in your log and the share the log makes up. The box In business use since holds the date you started using the car for business, which Publication 463 lists as well. A photo of the odometer with the date is a handy backup.
The printable version
The PDF is a single page with as many trip lines as fit, boxes for the year readings, the date the car went into business use, the rate and the page total, and lines for the vehicle and the year. Print a stack and keep them in the glovebox with a pen. At the end of each page, add up the distances and amounts in the total row and copy the page total into the box at the top, so a year of pages adds up quickly.
Related tools and templates
The mileage reimbursement calculator turns your trips into an amount at the IRS rates. To see what your car really costs per mile, try the cost per mile calculator. For the fuel on a single trip, use the trip fuel cost calculator, and for your car's fuel economy the MPG calculator. To track other spending next to your driving, the expense tracker uses the same layout.
Frequently asked questions
Is the mileage log free?
Yes. Download it as often as you want, for your own car, a company vehicle or a car you share. No account, no email address, no watermark. A single small line with our web address sits at the bottom of the sheet and the page.
Why is the rate cell empty?
Because the right rate depends on who pays you and when you drove. Your employer may pay its own rate, and the IRS standard mileage rate can change during a year: for business driving in 2026 it is 72.5¢ a mile from January 1 to June 30 and 76¢ from July 1 to December 31. Type the rate that applies to you, and type over the rate on single rows when it changes.
What if I did not note the odometer readings?
Type the distance straight into the Miles or Km column of that row. That replaces the formula for the row, and the amount and the totals still use your number. Write down where the distance comes from in the Purpose cell, for example a route planner.
Can I log kilometers instead of miles?
Yes. Switch the unit to kilometers before you download, and every distance column, the rate and the printed page use km. The IRS standard mileage rates are per mile, so in kilometers enter the rate per km that you are paid or allowed to use.
Does the log have the fields the IRS asks for?
IRS Publication 463 lists, for a car, the mileage for each business use, the total miles for the year and the date you started using the car for business, along with the date, destination and business purpose of each trip. The log has a column for each of these, and the year odometer readings give the total. Whether your records are enough for your situation is something Publication 463 or a tax professional can answer.
Which currencies can I use?
Any of the 20 currencies in the list. The spreadsheet formats the rate and every amount in the one you pick, and the PDF names it under the title. To switch later, download the file again, or change the number format of the rate and amount cells in your spreadsheet program.