The business side of trucking
Driving is the part you already know. These are the guides for everything else — what a mile actually costs you, what the government wants and when, and how much of every settlement isn't yours to spend.
Written plainly, with the numbers worked out. Free to read, nothing to sign up for.
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How to calculate your real cost per mile
The number that decides whether a load is worth taking. All miles versus loaded miles, fixed and variable costs, the reserves nearly everyone skips, and why your cost per mile changes every month. With every figure worked out.
8 min read
Fuel tax
IFTA, explained without the jargon
It isn't a tax you pay — it's a settlement that works out whether you paid the right states. Who needs it, how the quarterly math works, what records an auditor requires, and the 4.00 mpg rule that makes bad recordkeeping expensive.
10 min read
Heavy highway use tax
Form 2290: what it costs and why it can ground you
The simplest trucking filing and the one most likely to leave you with an unplated truck. What you owe, the August 31 deadline, the EIN requirement that catches people out, and why the stamped Schedule 1 matters more than the tax.
6 min read
Taxes
Deductions, and the trap in the biggest one
Per diem is worth thousands — and there's a condition that can wipe it out entirely for drivers who live in the truck. Plus why the standard mileage rate doesn't apply to a tractor, how depreciation works, and the write-offs people leave on the table.
9 min read
Cash
What to set aside, and how much
Taxes, repairs, tires and downtime. Self-employment tax figures, the 2026 quarterly payment dates, the safe-harbor rule that prevents penalties, and why a downtime cushion is the reserve that saves businesses.
7 min read
A legal pad works fine
Everything in these guides can be done by hand. Plenty of owner-operators run a spreadsheet and four bank accounts and do perfectly well.
The hard part was never the arithmetic — it's keeping the records that feed it, every day, for a year, while also driving eleven hours. That's the part AxleVault does for you. Free for 14 days, no card required.