Free Mileage Log Generator — guide

The Mileage Log Generator provides a table-based form where you add individual trip rows. Each row captures the standard fields recommended for IRS mileage documentation: date, origin, destination, business purpose, miles, and business or personal categorization.

Once trips are entered, the tool totals mileage by categorization and optionally calculates an estimated value at a selected rate. You can then export the log as CSV or PDF.

Anyone who needs to document business driving but does not yet use a mileage tracking app.

Self-employed individuals reconstructing a mileage log retrospectively from a calendar, bank statements, or records.

Employees preparing a mileage log for a reimbursement claim or expense report.

Tax professionals generating a clean formatted log from client-supplied data.

Required per trip — Date: the date of the drive.

Required per trip — Miles: the distance driven.

Optional per trip — Origin and destination: start and end location of the trip.

Optional per trip — Purpose: a brief business reason (e.g. 'Client meeting — Riverside office').

Optional per trip — Categorization: Business or Personal. Business miles are tallied separately.

Optional — Rate: a per-mile rate used to calculate the estimated value of business trips. Enter a custom rate or select an IRS reference rate.

The tool totals business miles and personal miles separately. If a rate is provided, it multiplies the business mile total by that rate to produce an estimated deduction or reimbursement value — for reference only.

No distance calculation or geocoding is performed: the miles you enter are taken as given. If unsure of a trip's exact distance, use a maps application or the Gas Cost Calculator to estimate.

The log table updates as you add rows. The summary shows total business miles, total personal miles, grand total miles, and the estimated value of business miles at the selected rate.

Review each row for accuracy before exporting. Errors in the log are easier to correct before downloading.

CSV export: a spreadsheet-compatible file with one row per trip, all columns, and a summary row at the bottom. Open in Excel, Google Sheets, or Numbers for further editing.

PDF export: a formatted document with a header (name and date range if entered), the full trip table, and a summary footer. Suitable for printing or emailing to an accountant.

A consultant adds five entries for the week of 13 January 2025:

Mon 13 Jan — Office to Apex Inc. client site: 32 mi, Business.

Wed 15 Jan — Client site to supplier warehouse: 24 mi, Business.

Wed 15 Jan — Warehouse to home office: 24 mi, Business.

Thu 16 Jan — School run: 8 mi, Personal.

Fri 17 Jan — Office to airport drop-off: 18 mi, Business.

Business total: 98 miles. At the 2025 IRS rate of $0.70/mile: estimated value $68.60. Personal: 8 miles.

The log generator is a manual entry tool — it does not verify addresses, calculate route distances, or connect to GPS data.

Reconstructed logs (built from memory rather than recorded in real time) may be less defensible if ever reviewed. Contemporaneous records are the IRS standard.

The estimated value shown uses IRS rates for reference only. This is not a filed deduction or tax advice.

Building a log manually works for catch-up situations but is time-consuming to maintain year-round. MileLedger's phone app records trips automatically in the background the moment you start driving — your mileage log stays current without manual entry, and you can export it at any time from the app or web app.

Learn more at /features/trip-history.