Did the IRS mileage rate change for 2026?
Yes. 2026 uses two IRS business standard mileage rates, not one year-long figure. Miles driven January 1 through June 30 use 72.5 cents per mile. Miles driven July 1 through December 31 use 76 cents per mile. Those cents-per-mile figures are the mileageRateFirstHalf and mileageRateSecondHalf values in Numerandi's rates registry.
Compared with 2025, the January IRS news release, IR-2025-128, described the first-half 2026 business rate as up 2.5 cents from 2025. The later midyear announcement then raised the second-half rate from that 72.5 cents figure to 76 cents. The later announcement did not replace January through June miles.
If you still have a January printout that shows only 72.5 cents, it is incomplete for the full year. You need the rate that matches the date you drove each eligible business mile.
What did the IRS standard mileage rate 2026 announcement say?
There were two official 2026 announcements, and they do not cancel each other.
The IRS first published the year in IR-2025-128 on December 29, 2025. That news release, and Notice 2026-10, 2026-4 I.R.B. 378, set the business rate at 72.5 cents beginning January 1. The release remains the source for the first half of 2026. It does not contain the later 76 cents rate.
The IRS later published Announcement 2026-11 in Internal Revenue Bulletin 2026-29, dated July 13, 2026. That announcement modified Notice 2026-10 for expenses paid or incurred on or after July 1, 2026. It set the business rate at 76 cents and said the change “results from recent increases in the price of fuel.”
Use the IRS standard mileage rate table when you want one IRS page that shows both 2026 periods. You do not need to choose which IRS page is “right.” You need the rate for the date of the trip.
Should you use this article or the calculator?
Use this page for the yes-or-no, the IRS standard mileage rate 2026 announcement, and how to split a dated log at July 1. Use the linked calculator to apply those rates to your miles, compare that total with actual vehicle costs, and see which method wins. This article is not a mileage vs actual expense calculator and not a second standard mileage rate calculator. The article owns the announcement. The tool owns the method comparison.
How should you split your 2026 mileage log?
Split your dated business trips at midnight between June 30 and July 1. Add eligible business miles driven from January 1 through June 30 to the first-half total. Add eligible business miles driven from July 1 through December 31 to the second-half total.
A trip driven on June 30, 2026 uses 72.5 cents per mile. A trip driven on July 1, 2026 uses 76 cents per mile. Invoice date, client payment date, and the date you enter the trip into bookkeeping do not move driven miles from one period to the other.
Suppose your log shows 4,000 eligible business miles through June 30 and 6,000 after July 1. Your 2026 standard-mileage amount before separately eligible parking and tolls is:
4,000 × $0.725 = $2,900
6,000 × $0.76 = $4,560
$2,900 + $4,560 = $7,460
The mileage totals are assumptions for this example, not IRS limits. After you separate the log, use the linked calculator on this page to compare that standard-mileage result with the business share of your actual vehicle expenses.
How much does the wrong rate cost?
Using one rate for every mile is a bookkeeping shortcut, not the IRS rule. When your eligible miles are split evenly across the two 2026 periods, applying the first-half rate to all of them understates the correct split-rate mileage amount by the amounts below. These examples omit parking, tolls, and your actual half-year totals.
| Total business miles (even split) | Correct split-rate mileage | All miles at first-half rate | Understated vs H1 all year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | $742.50 | $725.00 | $17.50 |
| 5,000 | $3,712.50 | $3,625.00 | $87.50 |
| 10,000 | $7,425.00 | $7,250.00 | $175.00 |
| 15,000 | $11,137.50 | $10,875.00 | $262.50 |
| 25,000 | $18,562.50 | $18,125.00 | $437.50 |
Your log may not split evenly. Enter your Jan. 1–June 30 and July 1–Dec. 31 business miles in the calculator above to see your own dual-rate total.
Which mistakes should you avoid?
- Applying the July rate to January through June miles. Announcement 2026-11 did not retroactively replace the first-half rate.
- Using one year-end odometer number as a business log. Total vehicle miles do not identify business purpose, trip date, or the July split. Reconstruct dates from calendars, client addresses, receipts, and trip history. Do not divide annual miles in half unless your records support that allocation.
- Treating your commute as client travel. Ordinary travel between home and a regular workplace is generally commuting. Review IRS Publication 463 for your facts.
- Averaging the two business rates. A simple average is correct only when the same number of eligible miles fell in each 2026 period.
- Mixing methods without checking eligibility. The larger estimate does not prove you can use that method. Vehicle ownership, first-year choices, lease consistency, depreciation, reimbursements, and records still matter.
Charitable driving stayed at 14 cents per mile for the full year because IRC §170(i) fixes it. Medical and certain qualifying moving miles also changed midyear on the IRS table; those rates are not the business rates this article uses, and moving-expense treatment remains limited.
What should you do now?
Export your 2026 mileage log and make June 30 the cutoff. Confirm that each trip has a date and business purpose, remove personal and commuting miles, and total each period separately. Then open the linked calculator and compare standard mileage with your documented actual-expense method. For the broader self-employed write-off list, read what you can write off as self-employed.
Rates are current as of September 2026. Keep a copy of the IRS table and Announcement 2026-11 with your tax-year records. This article is general information, and Chris Mitchell is not a CPA. Your eligibility and complete tax return depend on your facts and current IRS guidance.