Mileage tracking is keeping a record of every time you drive for business, whether it’s purchasing work supplies or meeting clients. The mileage you’ve logged can then be submitted for tax deduction or reimbursement as a cost of running your business.
In order for mileage tracking to work, your location needs to be tracked at all times for trips to be logged automatically. Set up with the below steps:
From the Dashboard, tap on the Try the New Mileage Tracking button
Or, tap on the More... button at the bottom right and then select Mileage Tracking
Then tap on the Get Started button
If this is your first time, you’ll be prompted to turn on Location Services, select Allow Access
In the pop-up on your phone, select Allow While Using App
Next, for Automatic Tracking, tap on Go to Settings
In your phone’s Privacy & Security settings, ensure Location is set to Always
Tap on Got It to finish your setup
Once you start driving, trips will automatically be logged by the FreshBooks app in the background until you’re ready to start classifying them.
If your phone prompts you about FreshBooks using your location x timesin the background over x days, ensure you tap on Always Allow every time.
Classify Personal and Business Trips
Once you’ve activated automatic tracking, any trips you take will automatically appear in the Unreviewed Trips tab.
Unreviewed Trips
To access all your unreviewed trips, use the below steps:
Tap on the More... button at the bottom right
Then tap on Mileage Tracking
Then select the Unreviewed tab if you’re not on it already.
Mark as Personal or Business Trip
Since all trips you take are automatically logged, you can mark a trip as either:
Personal - This will not be counted towards your business expenses
Business - This will be counted towards your tax deductions or for reimbursement
To mark a trip on the Unreviewed tab, either:
Swipe to the left, or tap on the Personal button to mark it as a personal trip
Swipe to the right, or tap on the Business button to mark it as a business trip
Reviewed Trips
Find all trips you’ve reviewed, including those marked as Personal or Business, by tapping on the All tab:
To adjust the list of reviewed trips, tap on the Business Trips for [Year] link at the top of the list. From there you can adjust the list to show either:
Date Range - Choose to only view the current year (year to date) or a different year
Trip Type - Choose to only view either business or personal trips, or leave both checked off to view all trips
Add and Manage Trips
Add Trips
Manually add a trip anytime using the below steps:
Tap on the More... button at the bottom right
Then tap on Mileage Tracking
Tap on the + Add Trip button in the middle or the + button in the top right corner
For the Category, choose Business or Personal
The Start Date and time will default to today, tap to change to a different date and time
Tap on Start Location and choose your starting point
Next, tap on End Location and choose your destination
The Distance will automatically be calculated, tap to adjust the distance if your route was longer or shorter
Tap on Save to finish and your trip will be logged in the All tab.
Edit Trips
Trips can be edited with these steps:
Tap on the More... button at the bottom right
Then tap on Mileage Tracking
Select the All tab
Tap on the trip you want to edit
Next, you can change the Category,Start Date, End Date and Distance as needed by tapping on them
Then tap on Save in the top corner to finish.
Delete Trips
To delete a trip permanently, use these steps:
Tap on the More... button at the bottom right
Then tap on Mileage Tracking
Select the All tab
Tap on the trip you want to delete
Next, tap on Delete Trip and select Delete to confirm. The trip will be removed from your Reviewed Trips.
Mileage Tracking Report
To get a report of all your mileage tracked as a CSV file, including mileage deductions, use the below steps:
Tap on the More... button at the bottom right
Then tap on Mileage Tracking
Tap on the paper plane icon
Then tap on the year to date you want
A link to the CSV file of the report will be sent to the email listed in your Account.
Alternatively, you can log into your account on a web browser, go to Reports and download the Mileage Tracking Report under Accounting Reports.
FAQs
Where can I view my mileage Rates and Distance Units?
To view your mileage rates and distance units, which are determined by the CRA, HMRC, and IRS, use the below steps:
Tap on your avatar or initials in the top left corner
Then tap on Mileage Tracking
Ensure Location Services is activated
Tap on Mileage Rates and the allowance rates will be listed. Distance Units will be displayed as Miles (mi) for US and UK, and Kilometres (km) for Canadian users.
One of my trips is missing, how do I fix it?
If you notice a trip was missed, you can log it manually using the steps above. To ensure future trips are not missed, review the following:
The FreshBooks mobile app is on and running in the background
Location Services is set to Always (not While Using the App) and Precise Location is activated for the FreshBooks app
