Tax deductions for rideshare drivers
The miles are most of it. Here is what else a driver can deduct, what the mileage rate already covers, and what each puts back at your tax rate.
Free. No bank login. Snap a receipt and see what it puts back.
What rideshare drivers miss
Not the laptop or the phone; everyone finds those. These are particular to the work, and each is shown the way Reimburse would log it.
Miles to each pickup
The drive to a pickup is business, not only the ride itself. The app’s summary is a start; your own log is the record.
Service fees
The 1099-K can include what riders paid before the app’s cut, so the fees it kept are deductible on line 10.
Tolls and parking
They go on top of the mileage rate. A toll the app paid you back is deductible only when the payback is counted in your earnings.
Water, snacks and chargers for riders
What you keep in the car for passengers is a supply. What you eat yourself isn’t.
Car loan interest
The business share of the interest is deductible even on the mileage rate. The payments themselves aren’t.
Where a driver’s receipts go
Each goes on its own line of Schedule C. Start from this page and Reimburse reads your receipts as a driver’s, so the line is right the first time.
| On the receipt | Where it goes |
|---|---|
| The app’s tax summary | Gross earnings are income; the service fees it lists are commissions and fees, line 10. |
| Tolls and parking on a trip | Car and truck, line 9, on top of the mileage rate. |
| Car loan interest | The business share, line 16b. |
| Water and chargers for riders | Supplies, line 22. |
| Your phone bill | The business share, line 25. |
What to write on it
- Odometer at the start and end of the shift? A log written at the time is what holds up in an audit.
- Did the app pay the toll back? Then it’s deductible only if the payback is in your earnings.
- For riders, or for you? Snacks for passengers are supplies; your own lunch is personal.
A driver’s year
An example, not an average: a driver on Uber and Lyft most days, clearing $30,000 after about 26,000 business miles. Every amount is priced at your rate; change it below and the year moves.
| What | Schedule C | Deductible | Back |
|---|---|---|---|
| 26,000 business miles | Line 9 | $19,305 | $6,961 back |
| Service fees the apps kept | Line 10 | $11,000 | $3,967 back |
| Tolls and parking on trips | Line 9 | $1,200 | $433 back |
| Phone, 90% business | Line 25 | $972 | $351 back |
| Car loan interest, 85% business | Line 16b | $950 | $343 back |
| Water, mints and chargers for riders | Line 22 | $360 | $130 back |
| Car property tax, 85% business | Line 23 | $280 | $101 back |
| Tax preparation, the business part | Line 17 | $250 | $90 back |
| A dash cam | Line 22 | $160 | $58 back |
| A phone mount and cables | Line 22 | $65 | $23 back |
| The year | $34,542 | $12,456 back |
Sounds deductible, isn’t
Or has a catch.
- Gas, repairs, insurance and car washes on the mileage rate
- The rate already includes them. Deduct them only if you use actual costs instead.
- Tickets and fines
- Never deductible, even on a ride.
- Your own meals on a shift
- Personal. Meals count only when you’re away overnight for work.
- Changing to the mileage rate later
- If the first year the car worked was on actual costs, that car stays on actual costs.
Questions rideshare drivers ask
What can Uber drivers write off?
Business miles, the service fees the app kept, tolls and parking, the business share of your phone and car loan interest, and supplies for riders. Gas and repairs are already in the mileage rate.
Can I deduct gas as a rideshare driver?
Only if you use actual costs instead of the mileage rate. The standard rate already includes gas, repairs, insurance and depreciation.
Should rideshare drivers use standard mileage or actual expenses?
Either works. The mileage rate needs a log of business miles; actual costs need every receipt and the business share of all miles. Use the rate in the car’s first year for work if you want to keep the choice.
Are Uber and Lyft fees tax deductible?
Yes, when the income you report includes them. The fees the app kept go on Schedule C line 10.
Priced at your rate
What a deduction puts back depends on your state, your profit and how you file. Change any of it and every figure on this page reprices.
I run in . I file , and this year the business should clear about , with from a job or anything else.
of every dollar you spend on the business comes back to you.
14.1¢ is self-employment tax, 7.4¢ federal income tax and 0.9¢ California.
Your answers come with you. Next is your first receipt.
What every freelancer can deduct
Checked on September 25, 2026 against Standard mileage rates, Publication 463, Travel, Gift and Car Expenses and Instructions for Schedule C. An estimate for your records, not tax advice.
Snap the next receipt.
Set up for rideshare drivers and Reimburse reads each receipt as a driver’s, files it on its Schedule C line and shows what it puts back.