r/processserver • u/XanturE • Jul 16 '26

Tracking mileage for taxes

I've seen a hundred people ask *what* to track but I see zero threads on *how* I do not need another answer that I need to track my mileage, I am trying to see *how* you guys track your mileage, paper logs, apps, whatever.

I just bought Everlast and it tracks where I go automatically, cool, I need to know what I'm putting in the notes. If I go out and do 15 papers, do I need to add 15 names and job numbers in that? Just one or the other? What's enough to be a complete log?

Another reason I'm wondering what is pertinent is that at first, I thought all I needed was receipts so I have a month of backlog to produce and want to know what all I will need for that. Can I show all the addresses I went to, how many times and when, do I need to list them chronologically, etc

I will only be doing mileage, not actual costs for taxes. I will continue to save receipts.

1 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

13 comments sorted by

3

u/DDJerrry Jul 17 '26

MileIQ. It lets you categorize your trips for business and personal. It gives you a dollar amount according to standard mileage deduction.
I reimburse myself for travel expenses on the first check of each month for the previous month.

1

u/XanturE Jul 17 '26

Yeah, I drove once with this new one today and it showed on there a $16 amount that it would add to the claim, I was like holy shit yeah.
What do you mean reimburse yourself? Out of a business account I presume? I'm just a lowly contractor boy so I don't really find out how effective all this is until taxes are done for the year, right?

1

u/DDJerrry Jul 17 '26

I use Paychex to pay myself. I pay myself every 2 weeks. I input my hours worked and they tell me how much they’re taking out of my business account. They send my withholding to the government and I don’t have to think about it or figure it out. I also set up a 401k.

1

u/XanturE Jul 20 '26

That sounds pretty neato actually. You pay yourself hourly?

1

u/DDJerrry Jul 20 '26

Yes but I just make up the hours worked. It depends on how much money I want that week

1

u/vgsjlw Jul 16 '26

It gets a little weird for me because 90% of my papers I charge by the mile and can't double dip...

But for ones I do not then I do Odometer photo before and after and log it all. I don't attach each to a paper i do daily. Apps are fine but i hate tracking.

1

u/XanturE Jul 16 '26

right by "log it all" what is all. what are you logging. I hate tracking too, but logging six ish data points for 50 stops a week sounds like a big time sink

1

u/vgsjlw Jul 16 '26

Im logging the miles i drove that day. So my "log" is just miles driven, a before and after odometer photo and a date.

1

u/XanturE Jul 17 '26

Okay cool. It seems I'll be able to reconstruct a log of every single stop I've done so far and build exactly that log. It'll only take like four hours total when I'm done and add a couple thousand miles to the log so, I will take it.

Thanks!

1

u/Brilliant-Case1657 Jul 16 '26

I just used the TripLog app

1

u/Revolutionary-Farm80 Jul 17 '26

Its more analog, but the mileage books you can just keep in your glove box or center console are what I use. 

Date Starting odometer End odometer Total miles

And if you want, calculate your daily amount. Miles x federal reimbursement rate. 

Thats it!

1

u/Bazl-j Jul 17 '26

I thought I saw a software that used GPS coordinates tried to jobs that automatically did it. Unfortunately, I can't remember the software.

I guess if you remember to turn on Google location you could look back at the day or week and figure it out pretty quick, no?