You drove to a client, a supplier and a second site this month in your own car, and your employer pays you back for the miles. The sum itself is simple. What takes time is the trip record your employer asks for, and knowing which rate to use. This guide shows how mileage reimbursement is usually worked out, with an example, then how to do it with Mileage Cat, our mileage tracker for iPhone.
How mileage reimbursement is worked out
The usual sum is:
business miles × the rate per mile = what you're paid back
- Business miles are the miles you drove for work. Your employer's policy says what counts. Some policies leave out your usual commute, so check yours.
- The rate per mile is whatever your employer sets. Some use a rate published by the government, like the IRS rate in the US or HMRC's in the UK. Others set their own. Kilometres work the same way, with a rate per kilometre.
A worked example. Say your employer pays $0.50 a mile. (This is an example rate, not a real one. Use your employer's.) This month you drove:
| Trip | Miles | × $0.50 |
|---|---|---|
| Office to a client and back | 24.8 | $12.40 |
| Office to the supplier | 18.0 | $9.00 |
| Office to the second site | 31.5 | $15.75 |
| Total | 74.3 | $37.15 |
Some published rates change during the year, or drop once you pass a set number of miles. And your employer will usually want more than the total: each trip with the date, from and to, the distance and what it was for. That's a mileage log, covered in how to keep a mileage log.
What you're paid and what you can claim depend on your employer and where you live. Mileage Cat does the sums. It isn't tax advice.
Set your rate
In Mileage Cat, open More and tap Rates, then pick your Country.
- United States, United Kingdom, Canada (provinces or territories) or Australia: the app has the published rates, each with a link to its source. Each trip uses the rate for its date. For example, the app's built-in IRS business rate for trips from 1 July 2026 is $0.76 a mile (rates checked 5 October 2026). Rates change, so check the current published rate.
- Your employer pays a different rate? Type it under Use my own rate instead, next to Business. It's used for every business trip, with no yearly threshold. Leave it empty to go back to the published rate.
- Anywhere else: choose Other (my own rates), set Miles or Kilometres and your currency, then type your rate under My rates. If you log trips before you've set a rate, the Trips tab asks What's your rate per mile? (or per km) Type it and tap Save rate.
Log the trips
- Tap Start trip on the Trips tab when you set off, and Stop & save when you arrive. The distance is measured by GPS on your phone. If your employer pays for a set route, open the trip and type the distance they use. Your correction is the one used in reports.
- Or add a trip by hand. Tap Add trip or +, then fill in From, To, Distance and the date. For there and back, turn on Round trip, and the trip is logged at twice the distance. The type starts on Business.
- Say what it was for. Add a Purpose, like Client meeting, and a Client or job. Your employer will ask what the trip was for.
Trips you record wait under To classify until you tap Business or Personal. Personal trips get no amount.
Check the sum
Open any business trip. Under Amount, Mileage Cat shows the sum, such as 24.8 mi × $0.50/mi, and what it comes to. Below it is the rate's source, or Your own rate (More › Rates) if you typed one. If a trip passes a yearly threshold in a published rate, the app splits it between the two rates and says so.
Distances are kept to a tenth of a mile or kilometre, and each trip's amount is rounded to the cent (or penny). The total for this tax year is at the top of the Trips tab.
Send it to your employer
Open the Reports tab.
- Pick the period: This tax year, Last tax year, This month, Last month or Custom. The total amount for those dates is at the top.
- Add the details your employer asks for. Under More options, type your Driver name, and an Odometer start and Odometer end if they want them. These report fields are free. Personal trips stay out unless you turn on Include personal trips.
- Check for loose trips. If some trips in those dates aren't classified yet, Reports says so. Sort them on the Trips tab first.
- Share it. Tap Share PDF, CSV for a spreadsheet, or the printer button.
The PDF lists the Date, Purpose, From → To, Miles, Rate and Amount for every trip, then the total. Under Rates used it names each rate and its source, and at the bottom are lines for the Driver signature and the Date. The CSV has the same trips with the start and end times, client, category and vehicle, and a total row.
Billing a client instead?
If you're self-employed and charge a client for travel, see how to make an invoice on iPhone. Paid for parking or tolls on the way? See how to scan receipts on iPhone.
What it costs
Mileage Cat is free, with no trip limit. Logging trips, the rates, the totals and the PDF and CSV report cost nothing. There's no watermark, no ads, no account and no sign-up. The free version keeps one vehicle.
Mileage Cat Pro, a one-time purchase, adds three extras: several vehicles, with odometer readings saved for each, client and project tags with a report for one tag, and a weekly or monthly reminder that opens last period's report in the share sheet. More on the Mileage Cat page.
Your trips, routes and places are kept on your device and in your own backups unless you share, save or print them.
Quick answers
How do I calculate mileage reimbursement?
Multiply the business miles by your employer's rate per mile. For example, 74.3 miles at an example rate of $0.50 a mile is $37.15.
What rate should I use?
The one your employer pays. Some employers use a published government rate. Mileage Cat has the published rates for the US, UK, Canada and Australia, with links to their sources, or uses the rate you type.
What do I need to show my employer?
Ask your employer. Usually it's each trip's date, from and to, distance and purpose, plus the rate and the total. Mileage Cat's PDF lists all of these, with a line for your signature.
Try Mileage Cat
Try Mileage Cat: free, no watermark, no sign-up → iyio.com/apps/mileage-cat