Free Trucking Expenses Spreadsheet (Excel)
What's in the trucking expenses spreadsheet
The file has two sheets: a Load Income log and an Expenses log, kept separate because income and expenses are tracked and totaled differently in this workflow.
The Load Income sheet captures each load's date, load number, lane, miles, and gross pay. The Expenses sheet captures date, category, description, and amount for every cost you incur running the truck.
What calculates automatically
On the Load Income sheet, revenue per mile calculates for every load the moment you enter miles and gross pay, and the summary shows total miles, gross revenue, and your average dollars per mile across all loads.
On the Expenses sheet, categories - fuel, maintenance and repairs, insurance, truck payment, tolls and scales, permits and licenses, per-diem, phone and ELD, and other - are chosen from a dropdown, and the summary totals each category plus overall total expenses.
Logging per-diem and why expenses aren't split by load
Per-diem is logged as its own expense category: enter the number of days and your per-day rate as an amount on an expense line (check the current IRS transportation-worker per-diem rate, since it changes).
This spreadsheet tracks income and expenses in two separate logs and doesn't allocate expenses to individual loads, so there's no automatic profit-per-load figure. If a specific load has a cost tied directly to it (say, a toll on that route), you can log it as an expense with a note referencing the load number, but the sheet won't calculate net profit per load for you.
This is a planning and organization tool, not tax or accounting advice - confirm your actual deductions, including per-diem, with your tax professional.
Why this beats a blank spreadsheet
Building revenue-per-mile and category-total formulas from scratch, and remembering to log per-diem days consistently, takes setup time you'd rather spend on the road.
This template already has the revenue-per-mile formula and the expense category dropdown and totals in place - you fill in loads and expenses, and the summary numbers are ready.
How to use it
- Log every load on the Load Income sheet: date, load number, lane, miles, and gross pay. Revenue per mile calculates automatically.
- Log every expense on the Expenses sheet, choosing a category from the dropdown, including per-diem days as their own line.
- Check total miles, gross revenue, and average $/mile in the Load Income summary.
- Check totals by category, including per-diem, in the Expenses summary.
Download the free Free Trucking Expenses Spreadsheet (Excel)
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Small Business Bookkeeping & Tax Dashboard
If you need this mapped to actual tax categories, the Bookkeeping & Tax Dashboard ($19) adds Schedule C line-item categories, a monthly P&L, and a quarterly tax set-aside from your real net profit.
See the full versionFrequently asked questions
Can I use this trucking expenses spreadsheet in Google Sheets?
Yes. Upload the downloaded file to Google Drive, then open it and choose File > Save as Google Sheets. All the formulas keep working.
Does it calculate profit per load automatically?
No. Expenses are logged separately from loads and aren't allocated to individual loads, so there's no automatic profit-per-load figure - only overall revenue and overall expense totals.
How do I log per-diem?
Enter the number of per-diem days and your rate as an amount on an Expenses line, using the Per-diem category. Check the current IRS transportation-worker rate, as it changes.
Is this template really free?
Yes. You give an email address to download it, and then it's yours to use with no further cost.
Is this tax advice?
No. It's a planning tool for organizing loads and expenses. Confirm your actual deductions, including per-diem and any Schedule C categorization, with a tax professional.