🧾 Free 2026 Tax Tool

Trucker Per Diem Calculator — 2026 Tax Deduction

Enter your days away from home and instantly see your per diem total, your 80% deductible amount, and the estimated tax it saves you. Built on the current IRS special per diem rate for transportation workers — one of the biggest deductions an OTR driver can claim.

✓2026 IRS rate ✓80% DOT rule applied ✓Tax-savings estimate ✓No signup
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Days Away & Tax Rate
Count days away from your tax home over the year
Whole days on the road (not departure/return).
Departure & return days — claimed at 75%.
$
2026 CONUS rate. Use $86 if mostly outside the U.S.
%
Income + self-employment bracket, for savings estimate.
⚠️ Enter at least one day away and a full-day rate to calculate.
✓
Your Per Diem & Deduction
Live result — updates as you type
Total Per Diem
$0
full + partial days
Deductible (80%)
$0
DOT HOS drivers
Est. Tax Savings
$0
at your rate
Total Days
0
away from home
⚠️ Important: Self-employed owner-operators (Schedule C) can deduct this. W-2 company drivers generally cannot deduct per diem on a personal return under current law (2018–2025) unless their carrier runs a per diem pay program. Estimates only — confirm with a tax professional.

How the per diem deduction is calculated

The Formula

①Per Diem = (Full Days × $80) + (Partial Days × $60)
②Deduction = Per Diem × 80%  (DOT hours-of-service drivers)
③Tax Savings ≈ Deduction × Your Marginal Rate

Worked example

An owner-operator with 250 full days and 60 partial days on the road:

  • Per diem = (250 × $80) + (60 × $60) = $20,000 + $3,600 = $23,600
  • Deduction = $23,600 × 80% = $18,880
  • At a 22% marginal rate, tax savings ≈ $4,154 — with no receipts required

Per diem is one of the largest deductions a trucker can claim

The per diem deduction covers meals and incidental expenses while you're away from your tax home. Instead of saving every meal receipt, the IRS lets transportation workers claim a flat daily rate — and unlike most travelers who deduct only 50%, drivers under DOT hours-of-service rules deduct 80%. Over a full year on the road, that often adds up to a $15,000–$19,000 deduction and several thousand dollars in real tax savings.

The 2026 rate

The IRS special per diem rate for the transportation industry is $80 per full day in the continental U.S. ($86 outside it), in effect from October 1, 2024 through September 30, 2026. Departure and return days are partial days, claimed at 75% — $60. This tool pre-loads the current rate from our maintained rates source and updates automatically when the IRS issues new figures each October.

Who can claim it

  • Owner-operators / self-employed (Schedule C): yes — this is a core deduction.
  • W-2 company drivers: generally no on your personal return for 2018–2025 (the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act suspended unreimbursed employee expenses). The exception is if your carrier runs a per diem pay program that splits part of your pay as a non-taxable reimbursement.

Keep a clean log of days away — your ELD and trip records back it up. Then make sure your take-home pay reflects it, and that the rest of your business math (your cost per mile and the rates you charge) is just as tight.

Frequently asked questions

What is the trucker per diem rate for 2026?+
The IRS special per diem rate for transportation workers is $80 per full day in the continental U.S. ($86 outside it). It took effect October 1, 2024 and runs through September 30, 2026. Travel (partial) days are claimed at 75% — $60.
How much of per diem can truck drivers deduct?+
Drivers subject to DOT hours-of-service rules deduct 80% of the per diem amount — higher than the 50% for most travelers — because of the time spent away from home. This calculator applies 80% automatically.
What counts as a partial day?+
The day you leave your tax home and the day you return are partial days, claimed at 75% of the full rate ($60 instead of $80). Whole days away are claimed at the full $80.
Who qualifies for the per diem deduction?+
You must be subject to DOT hours-of-service rules and away from your tax home long enough to need rest. Self-employed owner-operators (Schedule C) can deduct it; W-2 company drivers generally cannot on a personal return (2018–2025) unless their carrier runs a per diem pay program.
Do I need receipts to claim per diem?+
No. The per diem method needs only a reliable log of days away from home (your ELD and trip records establish this). You still keep receipts for other deductible expenses like fuel and repairs.
How is the per diem deduction calculated?+
Multiply full days by $80 and partial days by $60, add them, then take 80%. For example, 250 full + 60 partial days = $23,600 per diem, an $18,880 deduction, saving about $4,150 at a 22% marginal rate.
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📅 Per Diem Rate

Full day (CONUS): $80 · Partial day: $60 · Deductible: 80%. In effect Oct 1, 2024 – Sep 30, 2026. Source: IRS special per diem rates.