The IRS rate is not a complete cost-of-ownership figure. It is a tax deduction standard, set conservatively for general use. It does not touch your monthly payment, your insurance premium, or the $15 you hand over at the garage every morning.
Even if you drive a paid-off car and park for free, fuel, maintenance, and depreciation alone typically run $1,000–$3,000 per year for a typical commuter — and that's before the rest. The floor is higher than most people expect.
Your Vehicle
Fuel
Your Commute
Your Wages
Transit Alternative
The Baseline: Paid-Off Car, Free Parking
Annual cost — no payment, no parking
Per mile
Per trip
Your annual cost
Annual transit cost
Car
Transit
Annual Cost Breakdown — ✦ covered by IRS rate · ✗ not covered by IRS rate
Fuel
Maintenance
Depreciation
Loan payment
Insurance
Parking
IRS Rate vs. Your Actual Costs
What the IRS rate covers (fuel + maintenance + depreciation)
What the IRS rate misses (payment + insurance + parking)
Your actual total
The Hidden Pay Cut
Gross annual wages
Annual commute cost
What you actually net
Effective hourly wage
Where the Miles Go
Commute
Everything else
A note on EVs: Electricity replaces gasoline and maintenance costs drop — those are real savings. But there is no beater EV market. The entry point is a new or near-new vehicle: full payment, full insurance, and a depreciation curve nobody has priced with confidence yet. The three largest costs of car ownership don't change with the drivetrain. An EV is still a depreciating asset you are required to own.
Maintenance estimated at $0.10/mile (AAA average). Depreciation applied annually to current vehicle value.
Gas price and MPG inputs are user-set; defaults reflect national average (April 2026).
IRS standard mileage rate: $0.70/mile (2025) — a tax deduction standard covering fuel, maintenance, and depreciation only; not a full cost-of-ownership figure.
This calculator does not account for time cost, congestion, parking search time, or the $213M in regional transit capital your taxes have already paid for.