Standard mileage rates for sourcing trips: what the IRS says about rates and records.

The IRS announced 72.5 cents for 2026 in Notice 2026-10 at the end of 2025.² It then raised the business rate to 76 cents for travel on or after July 1, 2026, in Announcement 2026-11, citing higher fuel costs.³ That means a 2026 trip taken in the spring and one taken in the fall use different rates. Each trip uses the rate for its date, and the IRS standard mileage rates page lists any later change.

Under the standard mileage method, the amount is business miles times the rate. As an illustration only, 200 business miles in March 2026 would be 200 times 72.5 cents, or $145.00. The same 200 miles in September 2026 would be 200 times 76 cents, or $152.00. The mileage figures are sample numbers, not a prediction of any amount for any person.

The IRS describes business driving as driving that is ordinary and necessary for the business, and says commuting between home and a regular workplace is not business mileage.⁴ Trips that resellers commonly consider include buying inventory at thrift stores, estate sales, and auctions, shipping packages, buying supplies, and picking up purchased items.

Whether a particular trip counts, especially one that mixes personal errands with business stops, depends on the facts, and a qualified tax professional can advise. Topic no. 510 says parking fees and tolls for business travel may be deducted in addition to the standard mileage rate.⁴

Topic no. 510 also describes limits on the standard mileage method. For a vehicle the taxpayer owns, the method generally has to be chosen in the first year the vehicle is used for business to be available later, and it generally cannot be used after certain depreciation methods.⁴ Choosing between the standard rate and actual expenses is a decision to discuss with a qualified tax professional.

The IRS says a taxpayer needs adequate records or sufficient evidence to support the taxpayer's own statement.⁴ A log with each trip's date, miles, and business purpose is a common way to keep such records. Records made at the time of a trip are generally regarded as stronger evidence than a later reconstruction.

Elements commonly included in a mileage log:

• The date of the trip.
• Where you went and the business reason, for example a list of stores or the sale you attended.
• Miles driven for the trip, plus total miles on the vehicle for the year if available.
• Receipts for what was bought, which link the trip to inventory. See the cost of goods sold guide.

The Schedule C instructions place car and truck expenses, including mileage under the standard rate, on line 9, and Part IV of the form asks about the vehicle.⁵ The Schedule C overview shows where line 9 sits with the other expenses.

Sourcing trips, on Pro and Team plans, group a buying trip's stops, items, receipts, and mileage in one record, and mileage tracking is available on Pro and Team plans. Strooply can estimate driving distance from the home address and the trip's stops, or miles can be entered manually. It prices each trip at the IRS rate in effect on that trip's date, in the user's local time zone, and adds the trips up to give an estimated amount. The Taxes tab lists completed trips with miles and the estimated amount for each, shows the yearly estimate, and names every rate that applied when a year has more than one.

Because the IRS changed the 2026 rate partway through the year, a 2026 total mixes two rates. The in-app figure is an estimate. Estimated distances can differ from miles actually driven, and the app's log is not a substitute for a contemporaneous log of the kind IRS substantiation rules describe. The IRS page is the authority for the rate on any date.

Strooply is record-keeping software. It does not prepare or file tax returns, refund claims, or other filings, it is not a tax preparer, and its figures are estimates to check against your own records.