Mileage Tracking for Plumbers
Many plumbers drive 10,000 to 20,000 business miles a year. At the 2026 IRS standard rate of 72.5 cents per mile, that is a deduction range of $7,250 to $14,500 for the workers who can claim it.
Who can deduct
Self-employed plumbers (sole proprietors, LLCs) deduct business mileage on Schedule C at 72.5 cents per mile in 2026. W-2 plumbers employed by a shop or union cannot deduct on the federal return.
How plumbers actually drive
An independent plumber running residential service commonly logs 14,000 to 18,000 miles a year. Commercial plumbers and those covering large rural territories log 16,000 to 22,000.
Typical deductible trips
The trips below are the ones plumbers most commonly forget to log, plus the obvious ones. Auto-tracking catches all of them, including the small ones that add up.
- Driving to service calls (residential, commercial, emergency)
- Driving to supply houses for parts
- Driving to job-site bids and estimates
- Driving to inspections and licensing renewals
- Driving to specialty work (gas line, septic, water heater install) at client locations
How TruMile helps
TruMile auto-detects every drive using motion plus location, so the trips above get logged whether you remember them or not. Smart classification learns your repeat routes (between regular client homes, between job sites, to your supply store) and starts tagging them automatically after a few trips.
At year-end, one tap turns your trip log into an IRS-compliant CSV or PDF you can hand to your accountant or paste into Schedule C. The math is already done.
Free for 40 auto trips a month, every month. If you are anywhere near the high end of the typical mileage range, the unlimited Pro tier at $7.99 a month or $59.99 a year usually pays for itself in the first week of tax season.
FAQ for plumbers
Are emergency-call drives at 2 a.m. still deductible?
Yes. The time of day does not change the business-purpose test. A drive to a customer for an emergency repair is business mileage.
I run a two-truck shop with one helper. Both trucks deductible?
Yes if both trucks are used for business. You file one Schedule C for the business and report mileage for each vehicle separately on Schedule C, Part IV.
What about driving to the dump or recycling for old fixtures?
Yes. Disposal runs for materials removed from a job are part of the job and deductible.
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