Per Diem Deduction Calculator for Truckers (2026 IRS Rates)

Per Diem Deduction Calculator for Truck Drivers (2026)

Updated October 24, 2026 · Uses IRS Notice 2026-60 rates, effective for travel on or after October 1, 2026

This per diem deduction calculator shows how much meal and incidental expense you can deduct as a long-haul trucker. Enter the days you spent away from home, and it applies the IRS transportation industry rate, the 80% limit for drivers under DOT hours-of-service rules, and the 75% rule for partial travel days.

Trucker per diem calculator

Everything updates as you type. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.

How do you work?

Total days away from home Every day you were away on business, including partial days

Of those, partial travel days The day you left and the day you got home on each trip (2 per trip)

Where did you travel?

Federal tax bracket Used to estimate your tax savings

State income tax rate (%) Optional. Enter 0 if your state has no income tax

Include self-employment tax savings Adds about 14.13% because the deduction lowers your net profit

Your per diem tax deduction

Full days: 0 × $80
Partial days (75%): 0 × $60
Total per diem before the 80% limit: $0
Deductible amount (80%): $0
Estimated tax savings: $0
Average deduction per day away: $0

This calculator gives estimates for education only. It is not tax advice. Check your numbers with a tax professional before filing.

How the trucker per diem deduction works

Instead of keeping every meal receipt, a trucker can deduct a flat daily amount for meals and incidental expenses while away from home overnight. The IRS sets a special transportation industry rate each year for this. You multiply it by your days away, then apply the percentage the tax code allows.

Two limits shape the final number. Drivers who are subject to Department of Transportation hours-of-service rules can deduct 80% of the meal amount, not 100%. And on the day you leave and the day you return, the IRS lets you claim 75% of the daily rate, because you are only away for part of those days.

Full days × daily rate
+ Partial days × daily rate × 75%
= Total per diem
Total per diem × 80% = Per diem deduction

Only owner-operators and other self-employed drivers claim this deduction on their own return. It reduces net profit on Schedule C, so it lowers both income tax and self-employment tax. If you want to see what you take home before taxes, try our truck driver pay calculator to estimate your salary from your per-mile rate.

2026 IRS per diem rates for truck drivers

IRS Notice 2026-60 applies to travel on or after October 1, 2026. For the transportation industry, the special meals and incidental expenses rates stayed the same as the year before:

$80 per day for travel within the continental United States
$86 per day for travel outside the continental United States
$5 per day if you only deduct incidental expenses and not meals

These rates cover meals and incidental expenses only. Lodging is not included in the trucker rate, and a truck sleeper cab does not count as lodging expense.

The rates were also $80 and $86 for travel earlier in 2026, so one rate applies across the whole tax year for most drivers.

Per diem deduction example

Say you are an owner-operator who spent 250 days away from home in the continental US. Your trips made 40 of those days partial travel days (20 trips, with a departure day and a return day each).

Full days: 210 × $80 = $16,800
Partial days: 40 × $80 × 75% = $2,400
Total per diem: $19,200
Deductible at 80%: $15,360

At a 22% federal bracket plus about 14.13% self-employment tax, that deduction could save roughly $5,500 in tax. You can check your own numbers in the calculator above.

Per diem deduction by days on the road

This table assumes every day is a full day in the continental US at $80. Use the calculator for partial days and other rates.

Trucker per diem deduction at the 2026 rate of $80 per day
Days away	Total per diem	80% deduction
100	$8,000	$6,400
150	$12,000	$9,600
200	$16,000	$12,800
250	$20,000	$16,000
300	$24,000	$19,200

Rules and record keeping for the trucker per diem deduction

You must be away from home overnight

The deduction applies to travel away from your tax home that requires sleep or rest. If you drive local routes and are home each night, you don’t qualify for the per diem deduction.

Keep a record of every day away

With the per diem method, you don’t need meal receipts. You still need to prove the time, place and business purpose of your travel. A trip log, ELD records, bills of lading and settlement statements all work. Write down the date you left and the date you returned for each trip.

Owner-operators and company drivers are treated differently

Self-employed drivers deduct per diem on Schedule C. Company drivers who are W-2 employees generally can’t deduct unreimbursed work expenses on their federal return under current law. If your employer reimburses you through an accountable plan, those payments follow separate rules, so ask your payroll department how yours is set up.

Common mistakes

Claiming 100% instead of 80% of the meal amount
Counting days you were home, such as 34-hour resets at your house
Using the $80 rate for days spent outside the continental US
Forgetting that partial travel days are limited to 75%
Not keeping a travel log that could back up the days you claimed

Per diem deduction calculator FAQ

What is the per diem rate for truck drivers in 2026?

The IRS transportation industry rate is $80 per day for travel within the continental United States and $86 per day for travel outside it. These rates come from IRS Notice 2026-60 and apply to travel on or after October 1, 2026. They did not change from the previous year.

How much of the per diem can truckers deduct?

Drivers who are subject to DOT hours-of-service limits can deduct 80% of the per diem amount. For example, $20,000 of total per diem becomes a $16,000 deduction.

How do you calculate the per diem deduction?

Multiply your full days away by the daily rate. Add your partial travel days multiplied by the daily rate and 75%. Then multiply that total by 80%. The calculator above does all three steps for you.

Can company drivers deduct per diem?

In most cases no. Unreimbursed employee expenses are generally not deductible on a federal return under current tax law, so W-2 drivers usually can’t claim this deduction themselves. Owner-operators and other self-employed drivers can claim it on Schedule C.

Do I need receipts to claim per diem?

No. The point of the per diem method is that you don’t need meal receipts. You do need records that show the dates, places and business purpose of your travel, such as a trip log or ELD data.

What counts as a partial travel day?

The day you leave on a trip and the day you return home. On those days you are only away part of the day, so you can claim 75% of the daily rate instead of the full amount.

Does the per diem rate include lodging?

No. The special trucker rate covers meals and incidental expenses only. It doesn’t include hotels, and sleeping in your truck’s sleeper berth is not a lodging expense.

What is the incidental expenses only rate?

If you don’t want to deduct meals, you can deduct $5 per day for incidental expenses instead. This applies to travel both inside and outside the continental US.

Per diem is one part of your trucking income picture. Use these tools alongside it:

Truck driver pay calculator: estimate your weekly, monthly and yearly salary from your pay per mile.

Sources

Tax rules change and every situation is different. This page is general information, not tax advice. Confirm your deduction with a qualified tax professional.