The IRS has done something it only does in unusual years: it changed the standard mileage rate in the middle of the tax year. Effective July 1, 2026, the business rate went up to 76 cents per mile — a 3.5-cent jump from the 72.5 cents that applied for the first half of the year.
That's good news for your deduction. It also quietly breaks the way most people do their mileage math, because a 2026 log is no longer one number times one rate.
The short version: business miles driven January 1 – June 30, 2026 are deducted at 72.5¢/mile. Business miles driven July 1 – December 31, 2026 are deducted at 76¢/mile. You need both totals separately.
The 2026 Rates, Both Halves
| Purpose | Jan 1 – Jun 30 | Jul 1 – Dec 31 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Business | 72.5¢/mile | 76¢/mile | +3.5¢ |
| Medical / Moving | 20.5¢/mile | 23.5¢/mile | +3¢ |
| Charitable | 14¢/mile | 14¢/mile | No change |
The charitable rate didn't move because it's the one rate the IRS can't adjust on its own — it's fixed in statute and only Congress can change it. The business and medical rates are set by the IRS based on annual studies of what it actually costs to operate a vehicle, which is why they can be revised when those costs shift sharply.
Why a Mid-Year Change Happened
The IRS normally sets the standard mileage rate once, in the fall, for the following calendar year. A mid-year revision means the assumptions behind that number stopped holding — almost always because fuel prices climbed significantly after the rate was locked in.
It's rare but not unprecedented. The IRS did the same thing in 2011 and again in 2022, both times in response to fuel spikes, and both times with the change taking effect on July 1. If you remember re-doing your mileage math halfway through 2022, this is the same drill.
What It's Worth to You
The extra 3.5 cents sounds small. Across a working year it isn't.
Take a delivery driver who puts 24,000 business miles on the car in 2026, split evenly across the year — 12,000 miles in each half:
- First half: 12,000 × $0.725 = $8,700
- Second half: 12,000 × $0.76 = $9,120
- Total deduction: $17,820
Under the old rate for the whole year, the same 24,000 miles would have produced $17,400. The mid-year increase is worth $420 in additional deduction — roughly $150 in real tax savings for someone in the 22% bracket once self-employment tax is counted.
And it scales. A full-time rideshare driver covering 40,000 miles picks up around $700 in extra deduction from the second-half miles alone.
The Trap: One Total × One Rate Is Now Wrong
Here's where people are going to lose money — or worse, file something they can't defend.
The overwhelmingly common way to do mileage at tax time is to find one number for the year, multiply it by one rate, and write that down. In 2026 that produces the wrong answer no matter which rate you pick. Use 72.5¢ for everything and you under-claim. Use 76¢ for everything and you over-claim a deduction you're not entitled to, on a line the IRS can check with arithmetic.
What you actually need: two separate business-mile totals — one for January through June, one for July through December — each multiplied by its own rate, then added together. If your records can't produce those two numbers, you have a problem to fix before filing.
If You Haven't Been Tracking by Date
If your log is a spreadsheet or a notebook with dates on every entry, you're fine — sort by date, split at June 30, total each side.
If it isn't, you have a reconstruction job ahead of you. The IRS expects a contemporaneous log — records made at or near the time of each trip — and "I estimated half the year" is precisely the kind of answer that turns a routine review into a disallowed deduction. A few things that genuinely help:
- Odometer readings. If you photographed or noted your odometer around the start of July, you have a defensible boundary between the two halves.
- Your calendar. Client meetings, job sites, and appointments are dated evidence of where you drove and why.
- Location history. If you had Google Timeline or similar running, it's a dated record of your movements you can reconcile against.
- Bank and fuel records. Fill-ups place your vehicle at a place and time, which helps corroborate a reconstructed log.
Reconstruction is always weaker than a real log, though. The lasting fix is to have every trip carry its own date from the moment it happens — which is the entire point of automatic tracking. (See our guide to what the IRS actually requires in a mileage log.)
TaxMiles Already Applies Both Rates
Every trip is stamped with its own date, so TaxMiles applies 72.5¢ to your first-half miles and 76¢ to your second-half miles automatically — and your IRS-ready report shows the split. No spreadsheets, no reconstructing a year from memory.
Download TaxMiles FreeIf You Reimburse Employees
The standard mileage rate is also the ceiling for tax-free mileage reimbursement. If you run a business that reimburses staff for driving, reimbursements at up to 76 cents per mile for post-July 1 driving remain non-taxable to the employee and deductible to you.
If your reimbursement policy is still pinned at 72.5 cents, you're not doing anything wrong — you're just reimbursing below what you're now allowed to, and your drivers are absorbing more of their own vehicle costs than they need to. It's worth a look at your policy before year end.
Don't Forget the September 15 Deadline
The rate change lands right before a quarterly deadline. Q3 estimated tax payments are due September 15, 2026, and a bigger mileage deduction means a smaller quarterly payment than you may have penciled in back in the spring.
If you set your quarterly amounts in January based on 72.5¢ for the whole year, your Q3 and Q4 numbers are now overstated. Recalculating with the correct split keeps money in your account instead of parked with the IRS until refund season. (Our guide to how much to set aside on 1099 income walks through the full calculation.)
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the IRS mileage rate after July 1, 2026?
76 cents per mile for business driving, up from 72.5 cents. The new rate applies to miles driven on or after July 1, 2026 — not to miles driven earlier in the year, even if you're filing after that date.
Do I have to split my 2026 mileage log?
Yes. Your 2026 deduction is two calculations added together: first-half business miles × 72.5¢, plus second-half business miles × 76¢. One annual total times one rate will be wrong in one direction or the other.
Which rate applies to a trip that started in June and ended in July?
Use the date the driving occurred. For a multi-day trip crossing June 30, the miles you drove in June fall under the old rate and the miles you drove in July fall under the new one. In practice this affects very few people, and splitting by the day you actually drove is the defensible approach.
Did the medical and charitable rates change?
The medical and moving rate went from 20.5¢ to 23.5¢ per mile on July 1. The charitable rate is set by statute at 14¢ and stayed there all year.
Does this change my 2025 return?
No. This affects the 2026 tax year only — the return you'll file in early 2027. Miles driven in 2025 are deducted at the 2025 rate of 70 cents per mile.
Will the rate stay at 76 cents in 2027?
Unknown. The IRS sets the following year's rate in the fall, and it will be based on cost studies at that point rather than on where the mid-year revision landed. Don't assume 76 cents carries over — check the announced rate before you plan around it.
For the complete picture on the 2026 rates, who qualifies to use them, and how the standard mileage method compares to deducting actual expenses, see our full 2026 IRS mileage rate guide and our breakdown of standard mileage vs. actual expenses.