June 29, 2017 – Time to ditch your mileage tracker forms…
Do you travel for business? Moving? Traveling to do charitable work? All of the above? You’ll want to make sure you are tracking your mileage, especially when tax season rolls around. The IRS 2017 rates for travel mileage can be a little complicated.
If you’re traveling for business, you can deduct mileage at a rate of 53.5 cents per mile. Moving and medical rates are 17 cents per mile, and the charitable rate remains at 14 cents. No matter your reason for tracking mileage, it’s important to keep good records. This is not something you want to wait and estimate at the end of the year.
What is the best way to track mileage?
Your smart phone can be a great tool for keeping mileage records thanks to several easy-to-use Apps. Here is a list of the top 7 rated Apps you may want to explore for tracking your mileage that takes all the guesswork out of the process:
MileIQ is the gold standard when it comes to tracking mileage. This app comes equipped with a smart-drive technology which automatically logs your drive and calculates that drive’s value.
Track My Mileage is available for Android, Windows Phone, and Apple devices, and costs 99 cents. It uses GPS to help track your mileage, and allows you to create reports.
TripLog/1040 is an iPhone app that allows you to track mileage, export date to your email, and save frequent trips. You can also track related travel expenses like food and gas.
Mobile Mileage is a basic app that tracks mileage and also allows you to take pictures of your receipts to track travel expenses.
Stride Drive is a FREE mileage and expense tracking app that will allow you to record your mileage by running in the background as you drive.
BizXpenseTracker is an app that works with iPhones and tracks mileage, as well as expenses and billable time. It remembers frequent trips and has the ability to email you reports and photo receipts.
Auto Miles is known for its high-end aesthetics and may be the best in its class for a fancy app. It offers automatic mileage tracker, which is great, but tends to have occasional hiccups where it never starts tracking trips.
No matter what method you choose, be sure to start tracking your travel expenses now, so you can benefit when it’s time to file. If you have questions about how to file and deduct your mileage expenses, call us! We look forward to hearing from you!