Freelance tax deductions checklist for 2026

A deduction lowers your taxable profit, and for a freelancer that cuts two taxes at once: income tax and the 15.3% self-employment tax. A $1,000 business expense can save you roughly $250 to $400 depending on your bracket. The rule behind all of them: the expense has to be ordinary and necessary for your business, and you need a record of it.

Your workspace

• Home office, simplified method: $5 per square foot of space used regularly and exclusively for business, up to 300 square feet, so at most $1,500. No depreciation and no tracking of utility bills.
• Home office, regular method: the business share of rent or mortgage interest, utilities, insurance and repairs, plus depreciation if you own. A 200-square-foot office in a 2,000-square-foot apartment is 10%, so $24,000 of rent and utilities gives a $2,400 deduction.
• Coworking or office rent: deductible in full when it's for the business.
• Internet and phone: the business-use percentage. If you use your phone 60% for work, deduct 60% of the bill.

The office must be your principal place of business or a place you regularly meet clients, and "exclusive" means the room or area isn't also the guest room or the kids' homework spot. You pick one method each year and can switch the next year.

The home office deduction calculator compares the simplified and regular methods with your numbers.

Driving

For 2026 the IRS changed the business mileage rate mid-year because of fuel prices: 72.5 cents a mile for driving from January 1 to June 30, and 76 cents a mile from July 1 to December 31. Driving from home to a client, between clients or to pick up supplies counts. Your commute to a regular office doesn't. Example: 1,800 business miles in the first half of the year and 2,100 in the second is $1,305 + $1,596 = $2,901. You can use actual vehicle costs instead (gas, insurance, repairs, depreciation, times the business-use share), but you need records of every cost, and choosing actual costs in the first year generally rules out the standard rate for that car later.

The mileage deduction calculator applies the right 2026 rate to miles before and after July 1.

Keep a mileage log: date, destination, business purpose and miles. A phone app or a notes file is fine as long as you write it down when you drive, not in April.

Tools and equipment

• Software and subscriptions: design tools, hosting, domains, accounting and business software.
• Computer, monitor, camera and other equipment. Items of $2,500 or less per item or invoice can usually be deducted right away under the de minimis safe harbor election; more expensive items are depreciated or can be expensed under Section 179.
• Office supplies, printing and postage.
• Payment processing fees, such as Stripe or PayPal fees on client payments, and business bank fees.

Running the business

• Contractors and subcontractors you pay. Get a W-9 from each one and file a 1099-NEC when you pay one $2,000 or more in the year.
• Accountant, bookkeeper and lawyer fees for the business.
• Advertising: your website, ads, business cards and portfolio platforms.
• Courses, books and conferences that keep up or improve skills you already use in your business.
• Business insurance, such as professional liability.
• Business travel away from home overnight: airfare, lodging and 50% of meals.
• Business meals with a client or prospect: 50%, as long as you're present and it isn't lavish. Entertainment, like concert or game tickets, isn't deductible.

Deductions that aren't on Schedule C

• Half of your self-employment tax, as an adjustment to income.
• Self-employed health insurance: medical, dental, vision and qualified long-term care premiums for you, your spouse and dependents, figured on Form 7206 or the worksheet in the 1040 instructions. You can't take it for months you could have joined an employer's subsidized plan, including a spouse's.
• Retirement contributions: a SEP-IRA allows up to 25% of compensation or $72,000 for 2026, whichever is less. For your own SEP as a sole proprietor, compensation is figured from net earnings after the half-SE-tax deduction, so the effective limit is closer to 20% of net profit; IRS Publication 560 has the worksheet.
• Qualified business income deduction: up to 20% of qualified business income, made permanent by P.L. 119-21 for tax years after 2025. Limits apply at higher incomes and for some service businesses.

What doesn't count

• Personal expenses, even if you think about work while doing them: your gym, everyday clothes, personal meals.
• Commuting to a regular workplace.
• Fines and penalties, including IRS penalties.
• The personal-use share of anything you use for both: phone, car, internet.

Records to keep

For each expense: the receipt or invoice, the date, the vendor, the amount and the business purpose. For meals, note who you met and what you discussed. Keep records for at least as long as the IRS can examine the return, generally three years from filing, and longer for property you depreciate. A photo of a receipt stored with the expense is enough.

Doing it in SoloWOS

Expenses stores each expense with its receipt (photo or PDF up to 10 MB), a category and a deductible flag, and ties it to a project if you like. The categories match this checklist: software and subscriptions, computer and equipment, office supplies, internet and phone, rent and coworking, advertising, contractors, accountant and legal, courses, travel, transportation and fuel, meals, and bank and payment fees. The monthly report shows paid invoices, expenses and profit, and you can export the year to CSV for your accountant. Expenses has no mileage tracker, so keep a separate log for miles.

This checklist is general information, not tax advice. Whether a specific expense qualifies, and how much of it, depends on your facts; ask a tax professional before you claim anything unusual.