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Mileage & Fuel Cost Calculator

The drive isn't free. Put in a job's miles and see what it really costs you — fuel, wear on the truck, and your time behind the wheel — before you price the work.

$
$
This drive costs you
$0
before you turn a wrench
Fuel$0
Wear & tear beyond fuel$0
Your drive time$0
True cost of the trip$0

Vehicle cost uses the IRS all-in benchmark of 72.5¢/mile for 2026 (fuel + maintenance + tires + depreciation) — your fuel input covers the gas share and the rest shows as wear. Estimates for pricing awareness, not accounting.

Fuel is the small half

Most guys price a far job by glancing at the gas gauge. But the pump is only part of it — tires wear, oil changes come sooner, brakes and transmission age, and the truck loses value every mile. The IRS puts the all-in cost of a business mile at 72.5¢ for 2026, and fuel is usually only 20–30¢ of that.

Then there's the seat time. Forty minutes of driving at an $85 rate is $57 of your working day that nobody's paying for — unless you price it in. A "quick" job across town can quietly eat $75 before the work starts.

What to do with the number

You don't have to call it a trip fee (though service trades have charged one forever). Bake it into the quote, set a minimum for far jobs, bundle stops on the same side of town — whatever fits how you work. The point is knowing the number instead of donating it.

And those same miles work for you in April: business miles are generally deductible at the IRS standard rate if you keep a record. Twenty-four miles is about $17 of deduction — log it once and it counts twice. That's exactly what SideWRK's per-job miles field and Tax wrap-up do.

Log the miles once — price better now, deduct them in April

SideWRK tracks each job's miles alongside what you charged and what parts cost you, so you see real profit per job — and at tax time, the year's miles and costs export in one tap.

Per-job miles & parts costsReal profit, not just revenueYear-end tax wrap-up & exports14-day free trial
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See it first: open the live demo's Money tab — no sign-up.

Common questions

How much does driving really cost per mile?
The IRS all-in benchmark is 72.5¢/mile for 2026 — fuel, maintenance, tires, insurance, and depreciation together. Gas alone is usually 20–30¢ of it.
Should I charge a trip fee for far-away jobs?
If the drive costs real money and time, it belongs in the price — baked in or as an honest trip fee, the way HVAC and plumbing outfits have always charged a service call. The calculator gives you the number; presentation is your call.
Can I deduct my work miles?
Generally yes — business miles for a side business are deductible at the IRS standard rate if you keep a record. Driving to customers' jobs typically counts; commuting to a regular workplace doesn't. A tax professional makes the final call — the record-keeping part is on you either way. More in side job taxes, in plain English.
Is fuel the whole cost of a drive?
No — it's usually the smaller half, which is why the IRS rate runs two to three times what most people spend on gas.