Delivering by Bike or E-Bike: What You Can Deduct

You deliver for Uber Eats, DoorDash or Grubhub on a bicycle or an e-bike, and every tax guide you find says to multiply your miles by the IRS rate. Maybe you're eyeing a Black Friday e-bike deal and wondering whether it's a write-off. Short answer: the IRS standard mileage rate (72.5¢ a mile for the first half of 2026, 76¢ from July 1) is for a car, van, pickup or panel truck. It isn't for a bicycle, an e-bike or a kick scooter. On a bike you deduct the business share of what the bike actually costs you: the bike itself, repairs, parts and gear. You still need a mileage log, because the business share comes from your business miles divided by the bike's total miles for the year.

Why the per-mile rate doesn't apply

The IRS announcement for 2026 (IR-2025-128) sets the rates "for the use of a car, van, pickup or panel truck." The revenue procedure behind the rate (Rev. Proc. 2019-46) describes it as a way to figure the costs of operating an automobile, used "in lieu of" working out that vehicle's actual costs. A bike isn't any of those. So claiming 76¢ a mile for bike deliveries isn't a shortcut the rules allow. It's a number you'd have to defend, and you couldn't.

This tends to cut against you less than it sounds. The car rate is built from the cost of running a car: gas, insurance, depreciation on a $30,000 vehicle. A bike costs far less per mile, which is why the rate doesn't fit it.

What you can deduct instead

Multiply each cost below by your business-use percentage (business miles ÷ total miles on that bike for the year), unless the item is only ever used for deliveries.

• The bike or e-bike itself. It's depreciated, not deducted like a receipt for parts. Details in the next section.
• Repairs and parts: tires, tubes, brake pads, chains, tune-ups.
• Gear used on the bike: lock, lights, phone mount, rain cover. Use the business share if you also ride it on your own time.
• Delivery-only items at 100%: an insulated backpack or bag you use only for orders.
• Rentals: if you ride a rented bike or a bike-share membership for deliveries, the business share of those fees. There's nothing to depreciate, because you don't own the bike.

Your phone and data plan are deductible the same way they are for car drivers; see write-offs that stack with mileage. Riding from home to your first pickup follows the same commuting rules as a car, covered in business miles vs commuting miles.

The bike itself: the 50% line

IRS Publication 946 lists "any other vehicles used to transport persons or goods" as listed property, alongside cars, trucks and motorcycles. A bike that carries orders fits that description, and listed property comes with two rules that matter here:

• More than 50% business use: a preparer can usually write off the business share of the price in the year you start using it, either with a Section 179 deduction or the special depreciation allowance. Which one depends on the rest of your return.
• 50% or less: Publication 946 says you "cannot claim the section 179 deduction or a special depreciation allowance." The business share is spread over several years instead.

One catch: if you take the big first-year write-off and your business use drops to 50% or less in a later year, part of it is added back to your income (recapture). If you plan to stop delivering soon, ask about that before you claim it.

The year counts from when the bike is placed in service, meaning ready and available for deliveries, not the purchase date. An e-bike bought on Black Friday and ridden for orders in December goes on your 2026 return. One that stays in its box until January goes on 2027's.

A worked example

Dani bought a $1,600 e-bike in March 2026 and delivers on it for Uber Eats and DoorDash. The display read 12 miles when Dani started and 5,212 on December 31, so the bike did 5,200 miles in 2026. Dani's log shows 4,368 of them were deliveries: 84% business use.

If Dani had used the car rate instead (2,000 miles at 72.5¢ before July, 2,368 at 76¢ after), the claim would be about $3,250. That's roughly $1,500 more than the rules allow, on a return that already shows a bike, not a car. In 2027, with the bike already written off, Dani's deduction drops to the business share of running costs, so it will be a few hundred dollars.

The log you still need

Because the bike is listed property, Publication 946 says you can't take any depreciation on it "unless you can prove your business/investment use with adequate records." Those records need to show:

• what each expense cost (keep the receipts),
• your business miles and the bike's total miles for the year,
• the date of each use or expense,
• the business purpose (for you, the platform and the deliveries).

Your delivery app's history shows which days you worked, and some apps list each trip's distance; it's a useful backup, but it doesn't count the ride to your first pickup or the ride home. A simple daily note of miles plus the two odometer photos covers it. The same IRS standards behind a car log apply; see what an IRS-ready mileage log needs.

Motorcycles and mopeds

IRS rate announcements name cars, vans, pickups and panel trucks and say nothing about motorcycles, and Publication 463 doesn't settle it either. The cautious approach for a motorcycle or moped is the same as for a bike: actual costs (gas, insurance, repairs, depreciation) times business use, with a log. If you want to use the per-mile rate on one, ask a preparer first.

Who this isn't for

• Car drivers who also ride now and then. Your car miles still use the standard rate. Keep the bike's costs separate and never put bike miles in your car log.
• Couriers who are employees. If a company pays you on a W-2, your unreimbursed bike costs aren't deductible on your federal return.
• Couriers on foot. Walking deliveries have no mileage deduction; delivery-only gear like a bag still counts.
• Couriers outside the US. The UK, for example, has its own bicycle rate. This page covers US federal tax only.

Where TaxMiles fits, and where it doesn't

We make TaxMiles, so weigh this accordingly.

• It's built for driving. Automatic trip detection looks for car travel, and it treats cycling as not driving, so a bike delivery won't be recorded by itself.
• You can add rides by hand (Add → Manual Trip) and set a vehicle's type to Bicycle or Motorcycle. But in the US the app still values those miles at the IRS car rate, which doesn't apply to a bike. Use the miles, not the dollar figure.
• If all your deliveries are by bike, TaxMiles isn't the right tool. A spreadsheet with the date, miles and platform for each shift, plus your two odometer photos and your receipts, does the job for free.
• If you deliver by car some days and bike others, TaxMiles logs the car days automatically at the right rate, and you keep the bike days in your own sheet.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use the IRS mileage rate for my e-bike or bicycle?

No. The IRS sets the standard mileage rate for a car, van, pickup or panel truck. On a bicycle, e-bike or kick scooter you deduct the business share of what the bike actually cost you to buy and run, so you still need to know your business miles and your total miles.

Can I write off an e-bike I bought for food delivery?

Yes, the business share of it. If more than half of the bike's miles are for deliveries, a preparer can usually deduct that share of the price in the year you start using it. At 50% business use or less, it's spread over several years instead.

Do I need a mileage log if I deliver on a bike?

Yes. A bike used to carry deliveries is treated as listed property, and IRS Publication 946 says you can't take depreciation on listed property unless you can prove business use. That means business miles, total miles for the year, dates and purpose.

What about a motorcycle or moped?

The IRS announcements name cars, vans, pickups and panel trucks and never mention motorcycles. The cautious approach is actual costs times business use, the same as a bike. Ask a preparer before you claim the per-mile rate on one.

If I buy an e-bike on Black Friday, can I deduct it on my 2026 return?

Only if you start using it for deliveries in 2026. Depreciation starts when the bike is ready and available for its business use, so a bike bought in late November and ridden for work in December counts for 2026. One that sits in the box until January counts for 2027.

Sources: IRS IR-2025-128 (2026 rates "for the use of a car, van, pickup or panel truck"); IRS standard mileage rates (72.5¢ January 1–June 30, 2026; 76¢ July 1–December 31, 2026, IR-2026-29); Rev. Proc. 2019-46 (standard mileage rate for operating an automobile, in lieu of actual costs); IRS Publication 946 (listed property includes "any other vehicles used to transport persons or goods"; no Section 179 or special allowance at 50% business use or less; recapture; placed in service; adequate records for listed property); IRS Publication 463 (car expenses and commuting). Checked November 7, 2026.

This article is general information about US federal income tax, not tax or legal advice. The worked example is hypothetical and assumes the business share of the e-bike is written off in the first year, which depends on the rest of the return. Ask a tax preparer about your own situation. TaxMiles is published by Gigabyte LLC, the company that wrote this article.