The short answer
If you drive for Uber, Lyft, DoorDash, Instacart, Grubhub or Amazon Flex, you're usually an independent contractor, and the miles you drive for the work are a business expense on Schedule C. They lower the profit you pay both income tax and self-employment tax on, so for most drivers mileage is the biggest deduction of the year.
Say you drove 4,500 miles for gig work from January to June 2026 and 5,500 from July to December:
- 4,500 miles × 72.5¢ = $3,262.50
- 5,500 miles × 76¢ = $4,180
- Deduction: $7,442.50
The rate changed on July 1, 2026, so each mile counts at the rate for the day you drove it. The mileage calculator works it out for your own numbers.
Which miles count
- Driving to a pickup, whether it's a passenger, a restaurant order or a grocery run.
- The trip itself, with the passenger or order in the car.
- Between jobs. Many tax professionals also count miles you drive while logged in and waiting for the next request, such as heading to a busier part of town.
The drive from home to where you start working, and home again at the end, is the murky part. It can be a commute, which never counts, or a business drive if your home is your principal place of business. Which drives count as business miles explains the rule. Log those drives either way, and let your tax professional decide.
Why the app's mileage isn't enough
Uber's yearly tax summary lists the miles you drove while online in the Driver app, and delivery apps give a similar estimate. Those numbers are a useful check, but they fall short as your record:
- They miss miles. Delivery apps typically count miles on active deliveries, not the drive to your first pickup or repositioning between orders.
- Each app sees only its own miles. If you switch between apps, no single summary has your whole year.
- They aren't a log. The IRS wants the date, miles, places and purpose of each drive, written down at or near the time.
Driving for more than one app
One log covers all of them. Record each drive once, even when two apps were open at the same time, and write which ones you were working for in the purpose, such as “DoorDash and Uber Eats deliveries”. Count a mile twice and the whole log looks less trustworthy.
What else to keep
- Your odometer reading on January 1 and December 31, so your business miles can be compared with all the miles the car drove.
- Parking and tolls for work trips. They're deductible on top of the mileage rate, unless the app paid you back for them.
- Your 1099s and yearly summaries from each app, to match your income.
Most drivers use the standard mileage rate rather than adding up gas and repairs. If your car is expensive to run, the other method is worth a look.
How MileLock helps
MileLock records every drive on its own, whichever app you're working for, so the miles to your first pickup and between orders are in your log too. Swipe each drive business or personal, add a reason in a tap, and log your odometer at the start and end of the year. It never asks for your Uber or DoorDash password.
Sources
- IRS: Gig economy tax center
- IRS Publication 463: Travel, Gift, and Car Expenses
- Uber: Tax information for drivers
This guide explains the IRS rules in plain English. It isn't tax advice; for your own situation, ask a tax professional.
Let MileLock keep the log for you
It records every drive on its own, you swipe business or personal, and the IRS-ready log is one tap away. Free for 30 drives a month.