Uber Eats couriers are contractors, and the basics are the same as every delivery app: in the delivery driver taxes guide. Uber does two things differently from most. It can send you two different forms, and its year-end tax summary includes online miles, broken into three categories. This page is about reading both correctly.
The short version: expect a 1099-K for delivery earnings once you pass the federal $20,000 and 200-transaction thresholds (lower in some states) and a 1099-NEC for promotions and referral pay, both by January 31. Uber’s tax summary lists online miles; on-trip miles and miles to a pickup during a session are usually business, but the first leg from home usually is not.
How Uber Eats pay is built
Uber describes courier earnings as base fare, promotions and tips. Fares are shown upfront and based on estimated time and distance, you keep 100% of tips, and promotions include Quest and Boost+. All of it is income. If you also drive UberX, the same account and the same forms cover both; the passenger side is in Uber and Lyft driver taxes (2026).
The two Uber forms, and the one that is not a form
- Form 1099-K reports delivery earnings once they pass the federal $20,000 and 200-transaction thresholds; some states set lower ones.
- Form 1099-NEC reports other payments, such as promotions and referrals, above the NEC threshold ($2,000 for payments made in 2026).
- The tax summary is not an IRS form. It is Uber’s own breakdown of gross earnings, fees and online miles.
All three are available by January 31 at drivers.uber.com under Tax Information, or in the app under Account > Tax Info. The 1099-K shows gross amounts before Uber’s fees; the tax summary shows the fees, which are deductible. Do not add the 1099-K and 1099-NEC to income twice if they cover the same payments; the reconciliation is in 1099-K vs 1099-NEC for gig drivers.
Reading Uber’s online miles
Uber is the only delivery app that hands you a detailed mileage number, and it is the one most often copied straight onto a return. The tax summary splits online miles into three kinds:
| Uber category | Usual treatment | Watch for |
|---|---|---|
| On-trip miles | Business | Nothing; these are the delivery itself. |
| Miles driven to get to the pickup address | Usually business during a session | The very first pickup of the day from home can be a commute. |
| Miles driven while waiting for your next ride or delivery | Business while repositioning between orders | If you went online at home, the drive to your usual zone is inside this number and is usually commuting. |
Online miles also stop when you go offline, so the drive home is not in them, and they know nothing about personal stops made while online. And if you had DoorDash open at the same time, the same road can appear in Uber’s online miles and in DoorDash’s estimate. Use the summary as a cross-check against your own dated log, not as the log. Track each delivery the day you drive it, and keep the date, destination, purpose, and miles in the IRS mileage log requirements. See multi-app tracking without double-counting.
Illustration only: 6,200 business miles through June 30 and 6,900 from July 1 is $4,495 + $5,244 = $9,739 at the 2026 rates.
Everything else
Uber’s service fees are deductible because the 1099-K shows gross. Beyond that, what stacks on the rate, quarterly payments and self-employment tax are the same for every app and are in the delivery driver taxes guide.
Uber’s online miles are a starting point, not a log
TaxMiles records each drive with its date and lets you mark the commute legs Uber counts as online, so the deduction you file is one you can explain. Free for your first 40 business trips.
Download TaxMiles FreeFrequently asked questions
Does Uber Eats send a 1099-K or a 1099-NEC?
Often both: a 1099-K for delivery earnings above the federal $20,000 and 200-transaction thresholds (lower in some states) and a 1099-NEC for promotions and referrals above the NEC threshold. Both are available by January 31 under Tax Information.
Can I deduct all the online miles on my Uber tax summary?
Not automatically. On-trip miles are business and miles to a pickup during a session usually are, but if you went online at home, the drive to your usual zone is usually commuting even though Uber counts it as online miles.
Are Uber service fees deductible?
Yes. The 1099-K reports gross earnings before Uber’s fees; the fees shown on the tax summary are a business expense.
General tax education for U.S. federal Schedule C filers, not tax advice. Platform pay rules and tax-form practices change; the platform facts on this page were checked against each platform’s own help pages on September 22, 2026. Platform names are trademarks of their owners; TaxMiles is not affiliated with any of them.