How to Track Mileage for Taxes (Free & Paid Apps Compared)

For anyone who drives as part of a self-employed business — Uber drivers, DoorDash dashers, Instacart shoppers, real estate agents, traveling photographers — the vehicle mileage deduction is the single most valuable line item on Schedule C. The IRS standard mileage rate for 2025 is $0.70 per business mile, which means a typical full-time gig driver logging 25,000 miles can write off $17,500 of taxable income. The catch is that the IRS demands a contemporaneous log of every mile, with date, destination, and business purpose. Reconstructing miles from memory in April is one of the fastest ways to lose a deduction in an audit.

What the IRS actually requires

According to IRS Publication 463, an acceptable mileage log records the date of each trip, the starting and ending odometer readings (or total miles), the business destination, and the business purpose. The log must be kept "at or near the time" of each trip — meaning the same day, not weeks later. Spreadsheet logs are technically allowed, but every CPA recommends an automatic GPS-based app instead because the time-stamped records are far harder for the IRS to disqualify.

Stride: the best free option

Stride is a free mileage tracker built specifically for gig workers, with no subscription tier and no transaction limits. The app uses your phone's GPS to detect drives automatically, and you classify each one as Business or Personal with a quick swipe. Stride also tracks deductible expenses (gas, supplies, phone) and exports a clean Schedule C summary at year-end. The trade-off is that the auto-detection isn't quite as precise as paid alternatives, and the app drains slightly more battery than Everlance or MileIQ. For under-$30,000 earners, Stride is more than enough.

Everlance: the freelancer's favorite

Everlance sits at the premium end of the spectrum with a $9.99/month plan that auto-classifies drives by analyzing repeat destinations, syncs with QuickBooks and FreshBooks, and produces audit-ready PDF reports that include a notarization statement. The free tier limits you to 30 auto-detected trips per month, so most full-time drivers eventually upgrade. Everlance is particularly popular among Upwork freelancers and consultants who want one app to track miles, expenses, and revenue side by side.

MileIQ: the simplest UX

MileIQ earns its reputation on user experience — the entire app is built around a single swipe-left-for-personal, swipe-right-for-business gesture. It costs $5.99/month for unlimited drives, integrates with Microsoft 365 (helpful for Outlook calendar cross-referencing), and produces clean monthly reports. The downside is that MileIQ doesn't track non-mileage expenses, so heavy gig workers usually pair it with a separate expense tracker.

Hurdlr: the all-in-one accounting alternative

Hurdlr is closer to a full bookkeeping app than a pure mileage tracker. It auto-tracks miles, classifies bank transactions, calculates quarterly taxes in real time, and even generates basic invoices. The premium plan is $10/month. For Etsy sellers, Upwork freelancers, and anyone running a true small business, Hurdlr can replace QuickBooks Self-Employed entirely — the mileage tracker is just the entry point.

Triplog: best for actual-expense filers

If you choose the actual expense method instead of the standard mileage rate (which is rare but can pay off for drivers of expensive or low-MPG vehicles), TripLog is the most powerful option on the market. It logs not just miles but fuel-up purchases, parking, tolls, and maintenance separately so you can produce a true cost-per-mile report. TripLog plans range from free (limited to 40 drives per month) to $7.99/month for unlimited tracking and team features.

Why a Google Sheets log alone is risky

A surprising number of gig workers still attempt to log miles manually in a Google Sheets template at the end of each week. The IRS technically accepts this format, but in practice, examiners scrutinize manual logs far more aggressively than automated ones. Round numbers, identical entries, and round-trip distances that match Google Maps too perfectly are all red flags. If you do use a spreadsheet, fill it in the same day as each trip, include odometer readings rather than computed mileage, and add a note about the business purpose for every drive.

The hidden mileage you might be missing

Most gig drivers count only the miles spent on a paid trip — picking up a passenger or delivering an order. The IRS actually allows you to deduct every mile driven for business purposes, which includes the dead-head drive between passenger drop-off and your next pickup, the trip to the gas station to refuel between shifts, drives to a car wash, drives to pick up insulated bags or supplies, and drives to your accountant's office. A typical Uber driver who tracks only "loaded" miles is leaving 30% to 40% of deductible mileage on the table.

What to do once you have a clean log

Once your annual mileage total is locked in, the math is straightforward. Multiply your business miles by $0.70 to get your standard mileage deduction, then subtract that from your gross self-employment income to find your net earnings. Plug those numbers into the free GigTaxPro 1099 calculator to see exactly how much your mileage deduction reduces your federal, state, and self-employment taxes for 2025.